Spilomena tsunekii Tessy, Sureshan et Girish Kumar, 2021

Rajan, Tessy, Kumar, P. Girish, Sureshan, P. M. & Binoy, C., 2021, A review of the genus Spilomena Shuckard (Hymenoptera: Crabronidae) with the description of six new species from India, Zootaxa 5068 (2), pp. 263-276 : 271-272

Spilomena tsunekii Tessy, Sureshan et Girish Kumar , sp. nov.

( Figs 37–44 )

Type material: Holotype, ♂, India: Kerala, Kozhikode dt., Manipuram (11°22’48’’N & 75°56’40’’E, Alt. 99 m), 4–26.iv.2019, Coll. C. Binoy, ZSIK Regd. No. ZSI/ WGRC /IR/INV/17151.

Diagnosis. Spilomena tsunekii sp. nov. differs from its congeners by the following combination of characters: frons and vertex imbricate, without setigerous micropunctures; mesopleuron finely aciculate, with illdefined punctures; relative length to breadth of scape = 20:5; stigma not elongate, relative length to breadth = 98:68; propodeal dorsum transversely striate, with two longitudinal carinae medially, posterior surface finely aciculate, with median longitudinal carina, lateral surface transversely striate.

Description. Holotype ♂. Body length 2.6 mm; fore wing length 1.1 mm.

Colour. Body black except pronotum yellowish brown; clypeus and metasoma brown; mandible (except apical tip brown), tegula, pronotal lobe, legs and antenna yellow; fore wing veins and stigma brown.

Vestiture. T5–T7 with scattered setigerous punctures; remaining body with sparse vestiture.

Head. Clypeus dull without any appressed setae, markedly convex ( Fig. 38 ); interantennal tubercle inconspicuous, not distinctly pointed, extending into short median carina at most reaching lower frons; mandible bidentate, inner mandibular tooth short, blunt; relative length to breadth of scape =20:5 frons and vertex imbricate without setigerous micropunctures; inner eye margin straight; gena imbricate, impunctate.

Mesosoma. Pronotum reticulate, with irregular longitudinal rugae; anterior carina of pronotal collar conspicuous, deeply emarginate; mesoscutum reticulate, with scattered setigerous punctures; admedian line and parapsidal line lacking; scutellum dull and reticulate, with sparse setigerous punctures, anterior groove of scutellum not broadened by crenulation; metanotum dull and reticulate, irregularly transversely rugose laterally; mesopleuron finely aciculate, with ill-defined punctures ( Fig. 40 ); metapleuron finely aciculate; stigma not elongate, relative length to breadth = 98:68; recurrent vein of fore wing received well within first submarginal cell; propodeal dorsum transversely striate, with two longitudinal carinae medially, posterior surface finely aciculate, with median longitudinal carina ( Fig. 41 ), lateral surface transversely striate.

Metasoma. Integument shiny; T4–T7 with sparse setigerous micropunctures.

Female. Unknown.

Etymology. The specific epithet is a commemorative, genitive noun taken from patronym Tsuneki after late Dr. Katsuji Tsuneki, in honor of his immense contribution to aculeate hymenopteran taxonomy.

Distribution. India: Kerala.

Figures

FIGURES 37–44. Spilomena tsunekii Tessy, Sureshan & Girish Kumar, sp. nov., Holotype ♂. 37. Habitus, lateral view; 38. Head, frontal view; 39. Head and mesosoma (in part), dorsal view; 40. Mesosoma, lateral view; 41. Propodeum, dorsal view; 42. Metasoma, dorsal view; 43. Fore wing; 44. Hind wing.