Ficomila sinai Lotfalizadeh, 2024

Lotfalizadeh, Hossein, Delvare, Gérard, Cruaud, Astrid & Rasplus, Jean-Yves, 2024, Morphological phylogeny and revision of Sycophila and Ficomila (Hymenoptera: Chalcidoidea, Eurytomidae) associated with Afrotropical fig trees (Moraceae, Ficus), Zootaxa 5401 (1), pp. 1-190 : 33-37

Ficomila sinai Lotfalizadeh & Rasplus sp. n.

( Figs 14–16 )

Type material examined. Holotype ♀: Cameroon, Route Bafang-Baha, 4.946767° 10.740467°, 17.v.2007, ex syconia of Ficus vallis-choudae, Kjellberg F. & Djeto-Lordon C. Deposited in CBGP. Paratype s: same data as holotype, 2♀. Cameroon, Colline Nkolbisson, Ficus sycomorus , 25.ix.1993, Gibernau M. leg., 6♀ & 6♂. Ebogo, 10.i.1993, ex syconia of Ficus no. 11, Gibernau M. leg., 1♀. Mont Koupé, 4.824667° 9.701717°, ex syconia of Ficus artocarpoides , 16.v.2007, Kjellberg F. & Djeto-Lordon C. leg., 1♂. Guinea, Monts Nimba, Mifergui, ex syconia of Ficus artocarpoides , 6.v.1993, Rasplus J.-Y. leg., 1♀.

Etymology. The species is dedicated to H.L.’s son, Sina, who patiently follows his father in his entomological activities. The name “Sina” refers to Avicenna, a Persian physician, philosopher, and scientist (980 – 1037) who wrote almost 450 treatises on a wide range of subjects, of which 240 have reached our epoch.

Diagnosis. Female body dark ( Fig. 14A ). Mesoscutum with dense umbilicate punctures and conspicuous white pubescence ( Fig. 15A ). Fore wing with a small dark brown spot beside mv, setation including marginal fringe long and conspicuous ( Fig. 15E ). Gaster of female dorsally broad, Gt3 longer than Gt4 (about 1.5 × as long as Gt3) ( Fig. 15C ).

Male body mostly dark, in some part yellowish ( Fig. 16A ). Flagellum with fu2–fu4 long, longer than wide ( Fig. 16C ). Dark brown spot of fore wing not present, only mv dark ( Fig. 16D ).

Description of holotype ♀ ( Figs 14–15 ). Length 3.70 mm. Body generally dark ( Fig. 14A ), except scape, mouth parts, tibia, tarsomeres, and pronotum anterolaterally yellowish; pedicel and funiculars dark brown; mv of fore wing slightly dark, fore wing without spot below mv, lower margin of mv not obscured by dark brown spot; gaster uniformly coloured; body setation whitish, setation of fore wing entirely dark.

Head 1.4× as broad as high [HW 280 & HH 200] ( Fig. 14C ); in dorsal view transverse, 2.15× as broad as long [HW 280 & HL 130]; face coriaceous with sparse punctures, vertex densely punctulate ( Fig. 14D ); malar space 0.43× length of eye [ms 52 & EH 122]; malar sulcus absent (or just visible basally) ( Fig. 14E ); genal margin regularly curved, edged but not carinate; antennal toruli narrowly separated; interantennal space not raised, carinate laterally; scrobal depression slightly sculptured ventrally, reaching the median ocellus, carinate on margin (at least dorsally); POL 2.54× as long as OOL [POL 104 & OOL 41] ( Fig. 14D ); temple rounded, 0.23× the eye length (in dorsal view) [TL 38 & EL 162]; setation oriented downwards on face, outwards on the punctuate frons.

Antenna. Scape not reaching median ocellus, 2.75× as long as broad [SL 99 & SW 36]; fu1 1.97× as long as broad [fu1L 90 & fu1W 46], distinctly longer than pedicel, bulging dorsally; funiculars (fu2–fu4) with three rows of mps and several whorls of short adpressed setae; fu2–fu4 distinctly longer than broad; fu5 distinctly longer than broad ( Fig. 14B ).

Mesosoma weakly arched dorsally, 1.5× as long as wide (170:115), with deep sculpture ( Fig. 15A ); pronotum with coarse umbilicate punctures; mesodiscrimen with a ring-like process, adjacent to mesocoxa; mesoscutum 0.55× as long as wide (65:115), 0.7× longer than length of pronotal collar (65:90), with densely umbilicate punctures, distinctly raised sculpture anteriorly; notauli conspicuous, slightly obliterated by mesoscutum sculpture; prepectus bare, slightly sculptured; mesoscutellum with distinct umbilicate punctures bearing long hairs and densely shagreened interspaces; mesepimeron transversally strigose; metepimeron subtriangular and areolate with long white hairs; propodeum ( Fig. 15B ) with shallow median depression, without smooth median band, without any median carina, lateral rows of areolae absent, basal carina inverted V, truncate mesally, lateral branches of carina relatively straight, width of basal carinae about 0.5× width of nucha.

Fore wing with short marginal fringe, apically subtruncate (pointed anteriorly); dark brown spot only behind mv; basal cell bare or nearly so; mv slightly enlarged, normally broadened, in lower margin concave; stv curved up; pmv not distinct; ventral side of costal cell sparsely setose, dorsally bare; speculum present; parastigmal bristles absent ( Fig. 15E ).

Legs. Fore coxa without depression on frontal surface, hind coxa bare basodorsally; fore (30:8) and hind femora (30:8); hind tibia dorsally with more than 10 setae, setae shorter than tibia width basally.

Metasoma. Petiole shorter than broad dorsally, ventral transverse carina between petiole and St1 present. Metasoma 1.65× as long as wide (165:100) ( Fig. 15C ), shorter than mesosoma, broad and not compressed laterally; ventral transverse carina between petiole and St1 present; petiole in dorsal view not longer than wide, shorter than half length of hind coxa; tergites smooth; Gt4 (in lateral view) slightly as long as Gt3, sinuous posteriorly; Gt5 partly covering Gt6, not sinuous posteriorly ( Fig. 15D ); Gt4–Gt5 with a row of setae dorsally, Gt6 entirely but sparsely setose; ovipositor oriented dorsad but not distinctly upturned ( Fig. 15C ).

Male ( Fig. 14C ). Length 3.28–3.72 mm. Similar to female with longer petiole; exhibiting different colouration, mesosoma laterally and all legs yellowish ( Fig. 16A ); antennal formula 11152, fu2–fu4 much broader than long, at least 2× as long as wide; each funicular with several rows of mps and several whorls of relatively short erected setae ( Fig. 16C ); fore wing more setose ( Fig. 16D ).

Variation. Length 2.49–3.47 mm.

Host plants. Ficus artocarpoides , F. sycomorus and F. vallis-choudae .

Geographical distribution. Cameroon and Guinea.

Figures

FIGURE 14. Ficomila sinai sp. n. (♀). A, body in lateral view. B, antenna. C, head in frontal view. D, head in dorsal view. E, head in lateral view. F, mesosoma in lateral view.

FIGURE 15. Ficomila sinai sp. n. (♀). A, mesosoma in dorsal view. B, propodeum. C, metasoma in lateral view. D, metasoma in dorsal view. E, fore wing.

FIGURE 16. Ficomila sinai sp. n. (♂). A, male in lateral view. B, propodeum. C, antenna. D, fore wing.