Hoplognathoca costarricensis Suárez, 1962

Cambra, Roberto A., Quintero, Diomedes & Brothers, Denis J., 2014, A new species of Hoplognathoca Suárez, 1962 from Central America and description of male of Hoplognathoca costarricensis Suárez, 1962 (Hymenoptera: Mutillidae), Zootaxa 3884 (3), pp. 295-300 : 297-299

Hoplognathoca costarricensis Suárez, 1962

( Figs 4, 6 )

Hoplognathoca costarricensis Suárez, 1962 . EOS, 38: 123. Holotype ♀, Costa Rica, Talamanca (Suárez collection, Museo de Ciencias Naturales, Madrid, Spain); Cambra & Quintero 2003: 490 -491, 65 ♀♀ examined.

Diagnosis. Males of Hoplognathoca costarricensis Suárez, 1962 and Hoplognathoca nodifrons ( Gerstaecker, 1874) can be separated as follows: H. costarricensis lacks spines on the hypostoma (at most has a very short tubercle laterally), and T2–T6 are covered with dense long, decumbent and semi-erect, golden setae ( Fig. 4 ); H. nodifrons has a distinctive spine on the hypostoma ( Figs 1, 2 in Cambra & Quintero 2003), and T2-T6 mostly covered with black setae ( Fig. 5 ).

Description. MALE (hitherto undescribed). Body length 10.1–15.8 mm (mean 14.18 mm, SD 1.21 mm, n=23). Color: integument black, tibial spurs pale whitish; wings weakly infuscated, with bluish reflections with light at some angles, veins blackish; head mostly with long white setae, except inner margin of eye with very few long black setae and discal area of vertex with black setae; pronotum, mesopleuron and propodeum dorsally with long white setae; mesoscutum with decumbent black setae; scutellum basal half with long erect black setae, apical half with long erect white setae; metanotum with long erect white setae; metapleuron and side of propodeum with short decumbent and few long erect white setae; legs with white setae; T1 with long erect and decumbent white setae; T2–T7 with dense long, decumbent and semi-erect, golden setae concealing most of integument; S1–S2 with sparse erect and decumbent white setae but golden posteriorly; S3–S7 with sparse erect and decumbent golden setae.

Head: transverse in dorsal view, sub-rectangular, frons, vertex and gena with medium-sized, very close punctures; eye 0.56–0.67 × as long as minimal distance between them; ocelli small, distance between eye margin and lateral ocellus 4.5–5.5 × as long as diameter of ocellus; genal carina absent; clypeus convex mesally, its anteromedial margin slightly concave and with a small tooth in front of each antennal tubercle; oral fossa not extending to base of mandible; hypostoma without spines, sometimes with a very short tubercle or merely a triangular expansion of hypostomal carina posterior to mandible; apex of mandible broad, tridentate, ventral margin smooth, without a process or tooth; scrobal carina reduced to an inconspicuous protuberance between antennal tubercle and eye; antennal tubercle simple, without protuberance or carina; scape with a single longitudinal carina below; first flagellomere 1.31–1.43 × as long as second.

Mesosoma : pronotum, mesoscutum and scutellum with medium-sized, very close punctures; tegula evenly convex, entirely heavily punctate; scutellum slightly convex; dorsum and posterior face of propodeum broadly reticulate; pronotum with humeral area narrowly rounded lateral to low conical tubercle bearing humeral epaulet, lateral area with short obliquely vertical carina anteriorly; mesopleuron anteriorly and posteriorly with small separated punctures and dense micro-punctation, medial area with medium-sized, very close punctures, dorsal and ventral areas separated by broad and shallow scrobal groove; metapleuron and propodeum laterally mostly smooth and impunctate; forewing (as in Fig. 5 ) with three submarginal and two discal cells, veins 3rs-m and 2m-cu faintly indicated or interrupted.

Metasoma: T1 not constricted posteriorly, sessile and evenly merging with T2, 0.59–0.69 × as long as wide, 0.33–0.43 × length and 0.52–0.56 × width of T2; T1 central area mostly smooth, with few small punctures, except apically and laterally with small close punctures; T2 with lateral felt line 0.50–0.55 × as long as lateral margin; T2–T6 with small, very close punctures; T7 mostly with medium-sized, very close punctures, apical fourth smooth; S1 with small close punctures anteriorly and sparse posteriorly, with median longitudinal keel; S2 without felt line; S2 mostly with medium-sized sparse punctures; S3–S6 with small, close punctures; S7 mainly with medium-sized, very close punctures; hypopygium apex slightly convex, without denticles or tubercles; paramere (as Figure 6 in Cambra & Quintero 2003) nearly straight, with apex simple, basal half not very broad, distal half gradually narrowing toward apex, ventral margin with a few long setae, except becoming short and sparser on apical onefourth; volsella with cuspis and digitus short; penis valve (Fig. 7) with apical tooth and lacking preapical tooth.

Material examined. 30♂♂, 10♀♀. COSTA RICA: A. Alfaro (without other data) (1♀ DJBC). Alajuela: Sec. San Ramón de Dos Ríos, 620 m, 18 Mar.–13 Apr. 1995, F. Quesada (1♂ MIUP); Cord. Tilaran, Peñas Blancas, 700 m, Oct. 1986, malaise trap, E. Cruz (1♂ PMAE), same data except 1–10 Jan. 1987 (1♂ PMAE), same data except Apr. 1987 (1♂ DJBC). Guanacaste: R. San Lorenzo, 1050 m, Tierras Morenas, R. F. Cord. Guanacaste, 1050 m, Sep. 1991, C. Alvarado (1♂ INBio), same data except Oct. 1992, G. Rodríguez (1♂ MIUP), Mar. 1993, G. Rodríguez (1♂ INBio); Sotobosque, W side Volcán Cacao, 1100 m, II.1989, I. Gauld (1♀ INBio). Limón: Sector Cerro Cocori, Finca de E. Rojas, 150 m, July 1993, E. Rojas (1♂ MIUP, 1♀ INBio); 4 km NE Bribri, 50 m, Dec. 1989 – Mar. 1990, P. Hanson (1♂ INBio). Puntarenas: Rancho Quemado, 200 m, Península de Osa 12–24 May 1993 (1♂ MIUP), same data except 11–28 Oct. 1993, A. H. Gutiérrez (1♂ INBio), 6–28 Apr. 1994, A. Marín (1♂ INBio); San Luis, Monteverde, 1000–1350 m, July 1994, Z. Fuentes (1♂ MIUP), same data except Dec. 1993, Z. Fuentes (1♂ INBio); Monteverde, 1400 m, II.1985, Eberhard (1♀ DJBC); Monteverde, 1450 m, 24.VIII.1987, FIT, H. Howden (1♀ PMAE); Res.Biol. Carara, Est. Quebrada Bonita, 50 m., Feb. 1994, J.C. Saborío (1♂ INBio), same data except Nov. 1994, J. C. Saborío (1♂ MIUP), 2–23 Sep. 1992, R. Guzmán (1♂ INBio), May 1994, R. Guzmán (1♂ INBio); Avenida el Pizote, 14 km NE de la Tigra, 1300 m, 27 July 1998, E. Navarro (1♂ INBio); Est. Agujas, sendero Zamia, 300 m., 24–30 May 1996, A. Azofeifa (1♂ INBio), same data except 3 May 1998 (1♂ MIUP); San Vito, Jardín Bot., Las Cruces, May 1988, 1200 m, P. Hanson (1♂ DJBC), same data except July–Aug. 1988 (1♂ INBio); San Vito de Java, 7.VII.1963, C.F. Dowling Jr (1♀ DJBC). San José: Est. Carrillo, 700 m, P.N. Braulio Carrillo, 15–17 Feb. 1993 (1♂ INBio); San Antonio de Escazú, 1300 msnm, W. Eberhard (1♂ DJBC). Heredia: Las Horquetas, Rara Avis, 2–5 Mar. 1993 (1♀ MLUH). PANAMA: Chiriquí-B.Toro Provinces, Fortuna, División Continental, 8–11 Apr. 1999, 1050 m, R. Cambra & A. Santos (3♂, 2♀ MIUP); Chiriquí, 8 Km. N. Hato Chami, 8° 31' N., 81° 46' W., 4 Aug. 1993, 1550 m., H. P. Stockwell (1♀ STRI); Bocas del Toro, Parque Internacional La Amistad, Wekso-Teribe, 50 m. 17-24 Oct. 1999, yellow trap, A. Santos (2♂ MIUP).

Distribution. Central America: Costa Rica, western Panama.

Comments. Extensive sampling in Costa Rica and western Panama shows the presence of only one species of Hoplognathoca in this area, H. costarricensis . The coincidental capture of males and females (see material examined) and the common geographic distribution support the sex association we have made. Suárez (1962) described H. costarricensis based on a single specimen. We have examined 73 females and found marked continuous differences in the shape of the laminate ventral process at the base of the mandible: from triangular and not or very little longer than wide at the base to linear and almost twice as long as its basal width. Other morphological characters used by Suárez (1962) to distinguish females of this species have no variation, except that the pale pubescent patch on the vertex varies slightly in size and depth of golden coloration. We consider such variability as intraspecific morphological variation.

Figures

FIGURES 4 – 6. Hoplognathoca spp., ♂♂. 4. H. costarricensis Suárez, habitus; 5. H. nodifrons (Gerstaecker), habitus; 6. H. costarricensis, penis valve, lateral view. Scales: Figs 4 – 5 = 2 mm, Fig. 6 = 0.1 mm.

FIGURES 1 – 3. Hoplognathoca jinotega sp. nov., ♀, holotype. 1. Habitus; 2. Head, dorsal view, CP = clypeus tongue-like process; 3. Head, lateral view, GCS = genal carina incurved spine, HCP = hypostoma subconical projection, MVE = mandible ventral expansion. Scales = 2 mm.