Prochiloneurus lenus, Noyes, 2023

Noyes, John Stuart, 2023, ENCYRTIDAE OF COSTA RICA (HYMENOPTERA: CHALCIDOIDEA), 4 Subfamily Encyrtinae: tribes Arrhenophagini, Habrolepidini, Cerapterocerini, Cheiloneurini, Trechnitini, Cercobelini, Polaszekiini, Protyndarichoidini, Gahaniellini and Syrphophagini (part), mainly primary parasitoids and hyperparasitoids of Coccoidea and Psylloidea (Hemiptera), Taxonomic Monographs on Neotropical Hymenoptera (Oxford, England) 2 (11), pp. 1-921 : 475-477

Prochiloneurus lenus sp.nov.

(Figs 1196-1200; Hab. E 170)

DIAGNOSIS. Female (length about 1.6-1.9mm): head generally dark brown, temple and gena without a distinguishable dark brown streak; antenna (Fig. 1197) with flagellum dark brown; thorax mostly orange, mesoscutum (Fig. 1200) with posterior three-quarters dark brown with a weak metallic blue sheen, clothed with dense silvery setae; mesopleuron anterior dusky orange, posteriorly dark brown with a purple, blue and blue-green sheen; fore wing (Fig. 1198) with a group of 3 to 9 setae below proximal half of parastigma but without any pale setae below distal half; hyaline apex of fore wing very slightly wider than length of marginal vein; fore wing without a subapical band of paler setae; propodeum brown with a slight purple, blue and green sheen, with about 10 silvery setae near spiracle; gaster mostly dark brown with metallic reflections, syntergum orange-brown; head (Fig. 1199) in facial view about 1.13X as high as broad and about 6.2X as wide as frontovertex; antennal scrobes sharply margined, carinate laterally; scape (Fig. 1197) about 6.5X as long as broad, subcylindrical; mesoscutum (Fig. 1200) laterally and in anterior one-third or so with obliquely elongate, striate to striate-reticulate sculpture, middle and posterior two-thirds with more regular, rounded, polygonally reticulate sculpture; apical scutellar tuft about 0.4X as long as scutellum; fore wing (Fig. 1198) about 3.0X as long as broad; line of setae on ventral surface of costal cell broadly interrupted above parastigma; exserted part of ovipositor about 0.5X as long as gaster. Male: unknown.

Female (holotype): length, including ovipositor, 1.87mm; excluding ovipositor, 1.52mm (CPD).

Head generally dark brown; occiput orange to pale orange-brown with area around foramen brown and hypostomal area bordered dark brown from foramen to mandibular base; mouth margin, area immediately outside torulus and posterior gena orange; area between eye and scrobe with a fairly strong pale green and brassy sheen, temple and gena similar, but temple conspicuously mixed blue and purple; dorsal part of scrobes metallic green, interantennal prominence with a purple and blue sheen; frontovertex with inconspicuous, translucent, pale brown setae along inner eye margins, these continued below eye; gena and interantennal prominence with numerous, scattered setae, those on interantennal prominence more dense and conspicuous; maxillary palpus pale orange, terminal segment dark brown; antenna with radicle mostly dark brown, but proximally orange-brown; antenna (Fig. 1197) with scape largely orange, apical one-quarter white, extreme apex and base dark brown, ventral margin brown for about three-quarters its length and a brown band at about two-thirds; pedicel and flagellum dark brown, almost black; pronotum orange with weak purple and brassy reflections, posterior margin translucent; propleuron and prosternum orange; anterior one-quarter or so of mesoscutum (Fig. 1200) coloured as pronotum and with relatively sparse golden brown setae, posterior three-quarters dark brown with a weak metallic blue sheen and clothed with relatively dense silvery setae, anterior margin of darker area subparallel to posterior margin of pronotum, posterior margin of mesoscutum purple-brown; tegula orange with apex brown with a slight coppery sheen; axilla orange with very weak brassy and purple reflections, with golden brown setae; scutellum orange with weak purple and brassy reflections, anteriorly with translucent pale brown setae, posteriorly with black setae, sub apical tuft black; metanotum dark brown; mesopleuron anteriorly slightly dusky orange with a weak brassy and purple lustre, posteriorly dark brown with a distinct purple, blue and blue-green lustre; mesosternum pale orange; fore coxa white; fore femur white, orange towards apex, dorsally margined brown, tibia and tarsus dark brown; mid coxa slightly dirty white, dark brown ventrally; mid femur white, a pale brown band at two-thirds, dorsal margin brown towards apex, extreme apex dark brown, tibia dark brown, orange-brown towards apex, spur orange, basitarsus brown proximally, orange distally, rest of tarsus pale orange; hind coxa orange; hind femur orange margined dark brown, tibia dark brown, tarsus orange, brown at apex; fore wing (Fig. 1198) mostly infuscate but hyaline towards base and at apex, submarginal vein pale orange, rest of venation brown; propodeum brown with a purple sheen, slightly bluish and greenish near spiracle, about 10 translucent silvery setae around spiracle; gaster mainly dark brown with coppery, purple, green and brassy reflections, Gt1 laterally with a metallic green sheen, syntergum orange-brown; gonostylus pale orange.

Head (Fig. 1199) about 6.2X as wide as frontovertex, in profile about 2.0X as high as deep, anteriorly fairly evenly rounded from occipital margin to just above top of scrobes, and from top of scrobes virtually straight to mouth margin, interantennal prominence conspicuously protuberant between toruli; occipital margin sharp, carinate; vertex with an inconspicuous groove from posterior ocellus along eye margin nearly to occipital margin; ocelli forming an angle of about 40°; frontovertex quite shiny, with shallow, slightly irregular, fine, polygonally reticulate sculpture of mesh size generally subequal to diameter of facet, area immediately above scrobes with coarser, more irregular, transversely elongate sculpture; narrowest point between eye and scrobe about 0.23X length of scape and with obliquely elongate, coarse polygonal sculpture; temple fairly smooth, with shallow, irregular, transversely elongate, sculpture, gena with similar, but more longitudinally elongate sculpture; scrobes deep, very broadly ∩-shaped, meeting, dorsally very smooth, sharply margined dorsally and laterally, margin carinate laterally; interantennal prominence without median ridge, broadly rounded and completely smooth dorsally, below with shallow, regular, polygonally reticulate sculpture; antenna as in Fig. 1197; scape subcylindrical, about 6.5X as long as broad; F1 a little longer than broad, F2-F6 subquadrate, segments larger and broader distad; clava clearly broadened, about as long as funicle, sutures oblique, sensory area enlarged, extending ventrally about 0.8X length of clava, apex strongly obliquely truncate; eye reaching occipital margin, clothed in fairly conspicuous setae that are about as long as diameter of facet; inner eye margins clearly diverging in front of anterior ocellus; malar sulcus absent; clypeal margin virtually straight medially; mandible with three teeth; apical segment of maxillary palpus not enlarged, hardly longer than radicle. Relative measurements: HW 80, HH 90, FV 13, POL 4.5, OOL 0, OCL 10.5, AOL 10.5, EL 62, EW 43, MS 35.5, SL 53, SW 8.

Thorax (Fig. 1200) with polygonally reticulate sculpture on pronotum and mesoscutum that is similar to that in ocellar area, but clearly deeper and finer on pronotum and anterior part of mesoscutum; mesoscutum laterally and in anterior one-third or so and laterally with obliquely elongate, striate to striate-reticulate sculpture, middle and posterior two-thirds with more regular, rounded, polygonally reticulate sculpture; axilla and scutellum with similar sculpture but slightly deeper and coarser than that on pronotum; visible part of mesoscutum about 2.2X as broad as long; scutellum hardly broader than long, with a distinct subapical tuft, setae about 0.4X as long as scutellum; mid tibia with a strong external carina for about 0.7X its length; hind femur about 4.5X as long as broad; fore wing with venation and setation as in Figs 1196, 1198; costal cell naked dorsally at apex; apices of postmarginal and stigmal veins connected by a naked, hyaline streak; propodeum (Fig. 1200) medially about 0.18X as long as scutellum and smooth. Relative measurements: FWL 80.5, FWW 27; HWL 64, HWW 17.

Gaster with syntergum about 0.6X as long as mid tibia; exserted part of ovipositor about 0.5X length of gaster or about 0.6X mid tibia.

Paratype. Funicle with linear sensilla present only on F5-F6. Relative measurements: OL 69, GL28.5 [MT 40].

Variation. Females vary in overall length from 1.55-1.87mm, otherwise very little in material available, although the exposed part of the mesoscutum may be almost entirely dark brown, the posterior part of the mesoscutum may have some purple reflections, the scutellum may be medially dark brown, the mid basitarsus may be completely orange and the hind femur may be almost totally orange.

Male. Unknown.

DISTRIBUTION. Costa Rica.

HOSTS. Unknown, but part of the type series was collected from Virola Aubl. ( Magnoliales : Myristicaceae ) and Eugenia L. ( Myrtales : Myrtaceae ).

MATERIAL EXAMINED.

Type material. Holotype E: COSTA RICA, Heredia, La Selva BS, 10°26’N 84°01’W, Fog Virola, FVK /01, 50-150m, i.1993 (INBio-OET) . Paratypes: COSTA RICA, 1E, Heredia, Est. Biol. La Selva, 10°26’N 84°01’W, canopy fog Eugenia sp. , FOT/76/1-40, 50-150m, 5.i.2000 ( INBio / OET); 1E, Heredia, Estacion Biológica La Selva , 10°26’N 84°01’W, 75m, 1-2.iii.2007 (J.S. Noyes) . Holotype in MZUCR, paratypes in NHMUK .