Dolichogenidea lobesiae Fagan-Jeffries & Austin, 2019

Fagan-Jeffries, Erinn P., Cooper, Steven J. B. & Austin, Andrew D., 2019, New species of Australian microgastrine parasitoid wasps (Hymenoptera: Braconidae: Microgastrinae) documented through the ‘ Bush Blitz’ surveys of national reserves, Zootaxa 4560 (3), pp. 401-440 : 425-427

Dolichogenidea lobesiae Fagan-Jeffries & Austin sp. nov.

( Fig. 14 )

urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:175C13D6-23DE-417C-8770-9E7B0B49F7B4

Material examined (including Genbank numbers of DNA barcodes). Holotype: Queensland: ♀ Tolga, Costa Berries Rangeview, 243 Marnane Road ( Rocky Creek locality), 30.ix.2017, -17.193 145.438, J. Cheesman, ex. Lobesia physophora on blueberries (QM: T244829 ; Genbank COI: MK185730 ). Paratypes: Queensland: 2♀, same data as holotype ( QM: T244830 , T244831 ) , 2♂, same data as holotype ( QM: T244832 , T244833 ) .

Diagnosis. Of the currently described species from Australia, D. lobesiae most closely resembles D. miris , but can be separated by having a broadening T1 whilst D. miris has T1 almost parallel-sided, and by having a clearly curved vein r in the fore wing, whilst in D. miris it is much straighter. Dolichogenidea lobesiae can be separated from D. biroi , D. lipsis , D. ilione and D. tasmanica by the absence of a white gena blotch. Dolichogenidea brabyi , D. hyposidrae , D. eucalypti , D. expulsa , D. garytaylori and D. orelia all have ovipositor sheaths much shorter than the metatibia, D. bonbonensis and D. acratos have ovipositor sheaths slightly shorter than the metatibia and D. kelleri , D. gentilis and D. heterusiae have sheaths approximately equal to the metatibia. All these species can be easily distinguished from D. lobesiae , which has an ovipositor approximately 1.3 x longer than the metatibia. Dolichogenidea coequata , D. cyamon , D. finchi , D. ilione , D. labaris , D. mediocaudata , D. platyedrae and D. xenomorph all have ovipositor sheaths longer than 1.5 x the metatibia, and thus can be differentiated from D. lobesiae which has ovipositor sheaths 1.2–1.4 x the metatibia. In addition, D. gentilis , D. mediocaudata , D. finchi and D. xenomorph have the propodeal areola poorly defined, whilst D. lobesiae has a clearly carinate areola. Dolichogenidea iulis can be separated by T1 sculpturing (T 1 in D. iulis is punctate, becoming strigate in the posterior one-third as opposed to reticulate rugose sculpturing in D. lobesiae ) and general body colouration; D. iulis has the metasoma all black, and the hind legs dark. Dolichogenidea carposinae and D. inquisitor also possesses an all dark metasoma, as opposed to the lighter orange colouration of D. lobesiae , and in addition D. carposinae has punctate propodeal sculpturing as opposed to the nearly smooth propodeum of D. lobesiae , while D. inquisitor has punctate sculpturing on T1 as opposed to the reticulate rugose sculpturing of D. lobesiae . Dolichogenidea agonoxenae and D. upoluensis are both described as having a rugose propodeum, which separates these species from D. lobesiae which has a mostly smooth propodeum (other than the areola and lateral carinae). Dolichogenidea hyblaeae can be separated by the presence of rugosity on the propodeum near the lateral carinae, as opposed to the smooth propodeum of D. lobesiae . It should be noted that the co-types of D. hyblaeae from Java differ in the form of the propodeum compared to the holotype from Samoa; the propodeum of the co-types is smooth with the areola indicated by a depression, and weak posterior carinae, and are therefore also easily distinguished from the propodeum of D. lobesiae . Based on what we currently know about the expected level of morphological variation in Dolichogenidea, we suspect that the paratypes of D. hyblaeae from Java are a different species to the holotype. Dolichogenidea lobesiae resembles D. stantoni in ovipositor length, propodeum and general body form and colouration, but it can be distinguished by the fore wing r vein, which is curved in D. lobesiae and straight, meeting vein 2RS at an approximately 145° angle in D. stantoni ( Table 1).

Description. FEMALE. Colour: dark except for orange to light brown sclerites and areas of posterior tergites; antenna dark; coxae (pro-, meso-, metacoxa) orange, orange, orange; femora (pro-, meso-, metafemur) orange, orange, orange with darker area posteriorly; tibiae (pro-, meso-, metatibia) orange, orange, orange with darker area posteriorly; tegula and humeral complex dark; pterostigma dark; fore wing veins dark. Head: antenna similar length to body length; body length (head to apex of metasoma) 1.9–2.2 mm; ocular–ocellar line/posterior ocellus diameter 1.7–2.0; interocellar distance/posterior ocellus diameter 1.8–2.1; no white gena spot. Mesosoma : anteromesoscutum evenly and densely punctate; mesoscutellar disc mostly smooth, sparsely covered in fine setae; number of pits in scutoscutellar sulcus 12–13; maximum height of mesoscutellum lunules/maximum height of lateral face of mesoscutellum 0.5. Wings: fore wing length 2.3–2.7 mm; length of veins r/2RS 1.7–2.3; length of veins 2RS/2M 0.8–0.9; length of veins 2M/(RS+M)b 1.2–1.5; pterostigma length/width 2.6–2.8. Legs: metatibia inner spur length/metabasitarsus length 0.4–0.5. Propodeum: almost complete hexagonal areola, carina forming anterior side of hexagonal missing so that areola is open anteriorly, strong straight lateral carinae present, rest of propodeum mostly smooth with some reticulate rugose sculpturing in anterior half and small carinae emerging from posterior boundary approximately a third of the distance from lateral edge to centre. Metasoma: T1 length/ width at posterior margin 1.0–1.2; T1 shape broad, broadening slightly posteriorly, T1 sculpture irregularly reticulate rugose; T2 width at posterior margin/length 4.5–5.2; T2 sculpture rugose with crenulate margin at border with T3; T3 sculpture smooth and shiny; hypopygium with membranous area mid-ventrally; ovipositor sheaths length/metatibial length 1.2–1.4.

MALE. As female, although antenna longer than body and T2 sculpturing much less defined.

Etymology. This species is named for the host, Lobesia physophora (Lower, 1901) ( Tortricidae ), a significant pest of blueberries in Australia, and could be a key parasitoid for its control (Ian Newton, pers. comm.). The species name is an invariable genitive.

Distribution. Currently this species is only known from the type locality, Tolga, north Queensland.

Remarks. The host, L. physophora , is also recorded from the Solomon Islands (Bradley, 1955) and possibly from Papua New Guinea (BOLD, data not publically released). Dolichogenidea lobesiae is reported to be gregarious on the host. A single COI barcode of D. lobesiae was sequenced, which is at least 7% divergent from the nearest relative, and from any sequences on Genbank. The BOLD BIN for D. lobesiae is BOLD:ADM1412.

Figures

FIGURE 14. Dolichogenidea lobesiae A. holotype, dorsal habitus; B. holotype, anterior head; C. paratype, lateral habitus; D. holotype, dorsal meso- and metasoma (in part).