Cheiloneurus ceiba, 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 : 436-438

Cheiloneurus ceiba sp.nov.

(Figs 1111-1113; Hab. E 160)

DIAGNOSIS. Female (length about 1.2mm): body mostly orange with posterior part of mesoscutum, propodeum and parts of gaster dark brown, mouth margin brown, temple and gena with a diagonal brown streak, paler areas with a weak metallic sheen, darker areas with a weak to moderate metallic sheen; antenna (Fig. 1111) with scape mostly orange, ventral margin brown; pedicel pale orange with a dark brown streak; flagellum dark brown; mesoscutum with silvery setae in posterior half or so; fore and hind coxae white, mid coxa pale orange; legs otherwise white to pale orange, with some pale brown areas; fore wing (Fig. 1112) mostly infuscate with basal cell mostly hyaline, a small hyaline area at apex of venation, a larger one opposite and a subtriangular hyaline area at apex; head about 6.3X as wide as frontovertex, in facial view slightly broader than long, subrectangular, genae converging, distinctly curved inwards; frontovertex with one seta medially between anterior ocellus and scrobes; eye separated from scrobe by about 2X diameter of anterior ocellus, area between eye and scrobe completely smooth; scrobes moderately deep, sharply margined below eye; interantennal prominence dorsally rounded, with a median ridge and about 10-12 inconspicuous setae; mandible tridentate; antenna (Fig. 1111) with scape about 1.8X as long as broad; funicle segments subquadrate, increasing in size towards clava; linear sensilla on F5-F6; clava 3-segmented, about as long as F3-F6 combined, sensory area enlarged, extending ventrally about 0.3X length of clava, apex obliquely truncate; head width slightly more than flagellum length; mesoscutum anteriorly with fine, longitudinally elongate, striate-reticulate sculpture, posteriorly with polygonally reticulate sculpture; scutellum with a distinct, apical tuft of setae; wings fully developed, fore wing (Fig. 1112) about 2.5X as long as broad; parastigma downcurved; costal cell dorsally naked save for three or four apical setae, ventrally with a line of setae that is widely interrupted above parastigma; area below proximal part of parastigma with a line of five or six setae; apices of postmarginal and stigmal veins connected by a naked hyaline area that continues some way into disc (Fig. 1113); apical bristle of postmarginal vein about 0.6X as long as marginal vein; mid tibial spur hardly longer than basitarsus; propodeum with about five silvery setae adjacent to spiracle, side naked; syntergum about 0.8X as long as mid tibia with apex more or less rounded; ovipositor about 3.7X gonostylus or about 1.3X as long as mid tibia; gonostylus about as long as mid tibial spur; exserted part of ovipositor about 0.3X as long as mid tibial spur. Male: unknown.

Female (holotype): length, including ovipositor, 1.22mm; excluding ovipositor, 1.17mm ( CPD) .

Head largely pale orange; occiput with a weak triangular brown spot above foramen; frontovertex slightly dusky, ocellar area with a blue and green sheen, anterior parts of frontovertex with a weaker blue and green sheen, area immediately above scrobes brassy and above this narrowly purple; temple, gena and area below eye with a weak brassy, purple and green sheen; scrobal area with a very weak brassy and purple sheen, top of scrobes delimited by a narrow brown line, this continuing a little way to the median, dorsal ridge of the interantennal prominence; a curved brown line between mouth margin and toruli; temple with a diagonal brown line from occipital margin towards torulus only reaching position of malar sulcus; frontovertex clothed with inconspicuous, pale brown setae, a line of more conspicuous, translucent setae below eye; antenna (Fig. 1111) with radicle pale orange, apex narrowly brown; scape very pale orange, apex white, ventral margin brown nearly to apex; pedicel very pale orange with an internal dark brown streak along its length; flagellum dark brown; maxillary palpus white; pronotum mostly orange, neck brown; prosternum pale orange, anterior to coxa brown; mesoscutum orange in anterior half, posterior half dark brown with a distinct, dark, metallic blue-green sheen, posterior margin purple-brown with a slight brassy and purple sheen, anterior part clothed in relatively sparse dark brown setae, posterior part with relatively dense silvery setae, mixed with a few dark brown setae; tegula orange, apex orange-brown; axilla and scutellum orange, clothed in translucent golden brown and dark brown setae, scutellar tuft black; metanotum orange; mesopleuron mostly orange with a weak brassy sheen, posteriorly slightly dusky with a slight purple and green sheen; fore coxa white; fore femur largely white, apically pale orange with dorsal margin pale brown, tibia pale orange, dorsal margin pale brown proximally, tarsus pale orange, pale orange-brown at apex; mid coxa very pale orange, virtually white; mid femur white, slightly dusky towards apex, tibia largely pale orange with knee brown, an incomplete brown subbasal ring and dorsal margin brown along most of its length, spur and tarsus very pale orange, almost white; hind coxa white; hind femur pale orange with a small brown apical spot, tibia pale orange, marked brownish externally along about half its length, tarsus pale orange, brown at apex; fore wing (Fig. 1112) mostly infuscate, hyaline towards base and at apex; submarginal vein largely pale orange, otherwise venation brown; propodeum pale orange-brown with a slight brassy lustre, laterally with a pale blue sheen, side with a pale blue and purple sheen; 4 or 5 translucent, pale setae outside spiracle; gaster dorsally dark brown with a green, brassy, coppery and purple sheen, syntergum pale orange, apex brown, sides and venter mainly orange-brown, with coppery, green, brassy and blue reflections; gonostylus very pale orange.

Head about 6.3X as wide as frontovertex, in profile about 1.4X as high as deep, anteriorly quite straight below top of scrobes, interantennal prominence hardly protuberant; occipital margin sharp, not carinate; ocelli forming an angle of about 50°; frontovertex quite shiny, with shallow, fairly regular, polygonally reticulate sculpture, slightly deeper in ocellar area, mesh size slightly smaller than diameter of eye facet; area immediately above scrobes with slightly transversely elongate sculpture, interantennal prominence with shallow sculpture, scrobes with distinct sculpture, temple and posterior gena with shallow, irregular, longitudinally elongate sculpture, anterior gena with slightly deeper, irregular, reticulate sculpture; area between eye and scrobe about twice as broad as diameter of anterior ocellus and virtually completely smooth; scrobes moderately deep, not quite meeting dorsally, sharply margined only immediately below eye, very broadly ∩-shaped, interantennal prominence dorsally acute and with a median ridge that connects with frontovertex; antenna as in Fig. 1111; scape broadened and flattened, about 1.8X as long as broad; funicle with F1 very slightly longer than broad, F2-F4 quadrate, F1-F4 subequal in size, F5-F6 larger, subequal and subquadrate; clava hardly broadened, about as long as F3-F6 combined, sutures oblique, sensory area enlarged, extending about one-third along clava, giving it a distinct, obliquely truncate appearance; eye reaching occipital margin, clothed with extremely short setae that are much shorter than diameter of facet; inner eye margins converging weakly below anterior ocellus; malar sulcus absent; clypeal margin medially virtually straight; mandible with 2 acute teeth and a truncation, virtually tridentate; apical segment of maxillary palpus not enlarged, hardly longer than radicle. Relative measurements: HW 72, HH 66, FV 11.5, POL 6, OOL 0, OCL 6, AOL 8, EL 48, EW 37, MS 36, SL 36, SW 20.

Thorax with irregular, polygonally reticulate sculpture on pronotum that is similar in depth to that in ocellar area; mesoscutum in anterior half with fine, longitudinally elongate, striate-reticulate sculpture of similar depth to sculpture on pronotum, posteriorly with slightly shallower, polygonally reticulate sculpture; axilla and scutellum with polygonally reticulate sculpture of similar depth to that on pronotum and of slightly larger mesh on scutellum, sculpture on scutellum more elongate laterally; visible part of mesoscutum about 1.5X as broad as long; scutellum about 1.1X as long as broad with a distinct subapical tuft, setae mostly about two-thirds as long as scutellum; hind femur about 4.2X as long as broad; fore wing with venation and setation as in Figs 1112, 1113; costal cell naked dorsally at apex; apices of postmarginal and stigmal veins connected by a distinct, naked, hyaline streak (Fig. 1113); mid tibia with an distinct, external subbasal carina for about half its length; propodeum medially about 0.1X as long as scutellum and virtually smooth. Relative measurements: FWL 86, FWW 35; HWL 68.5, HWW 16.5.

Gaster with hypopygium reaching about half-way to apex; syntergum about 0.9X as long as mid tibia, with apex very weakly angular, more or less rounded; ovipositor slightly exserted, about one-third as long as mid tibial spur or 0.1X as long as mid tibia.

Paratype. Funicle with linear sensilla present only on F5-F6; gaster without “gland-like” structures on Gt1 or Gt5. Relative measurements: OL 37, GL 10 [MT 28].

Variation. Females vary in overall length from 1.20-1.22mm, the brown line delimiting the top of the scrobes may not extend onto the median dorsal ridge of the interantennal prominence, the head may be only about 5.1X as wide as the frontovertex, otherwise very little in material available.

Male. Unknown.

DISTRIBUTION. Costa Rica.

HOSTS. Unknown.

MATERIAL EXAMINED.

Type material. Holotype E: COSTA RICA, Guanacaste, Santa Rosa NP, Sn. Emilio 6-C, 24.viii-14. ix.1985 (Janzen, Gauld) . Paratypes: COSTA RICA, 1E, Guanacaste, Santa Rosa NP, Sn. Emilio 6-C, 22.vi- 13.vii.1985 (Janzen, Gauld) . Holotype in MZUCR, paratype in NHMUK .

COMMENTS. Cheiloneurus ceiba is very close to nasica but can be separated reliably using the characters given in the key.