Epirhyssa brianfisheri, Rousse & Noort, 2014

Rousse, Pascal & Noort, Simon Van, 2014, A review of the Afrotropical Rhyssinae (Hymenoptera: Ichneumonidae) with the descriptions of five new species, European Journal of Taxonomy 91, pp. 1-42 : 12-14

Epirhyssa brianfisheri sp. nov.

urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:1C872313-52C3-4D81-B8AD-94AA2C724EAC

Fig. 1

Diagnosis

Overall color mottled, pale yellow and dark brown to black; wings hyaline, apically infuscate; face rugulose-punctate, strongly protruding medially; clypeus sparsely punctate, with median subapical tubercle strong and lateral subapical tubercle weak, ventral margin strongly produced laterally; frons rugulose with a blunt Y-shaped mid-longitudinal carina; antenna with 33 flagellomeres; mesopleuron with shallow transverse striations; epicnemial carina hardly reaching level of mesopleural pit; subtegular ridge convex; fore wing with 2m–cu opposite rs–m; tergite 1 slender; sternite 1 with an additional pair of basal tubercles; tergites 1–2 smooth, following tergites densely and finely punctate; apical margins of tergites 3–5 moderately concave. CT 3.3; ML 0.7; POL 2.0; OOL 1.5; Fl 1 4.2; Fl 15 1.8; Fl 32 1.2; T1 1.7; OT 3.9.

Differential diagnosis

Species characterized by the exceptional mottled coloration and the presence of antero-basal tubercles on sternite 1 (cf. taxonomic remarks). All other species of Epirhyssa lack the antero-basal tubercles.

Etymology

Dedicated to Brian Fisher, friend and expert organizer of expeditions into central Africa, including the CAR expedition that discovered this species.

Type material

Holotype

CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC: ♀, Préfecture Sangha-Mbaéré, Réserve Spéciale de Forêt Dense de Dzanga-Sangha , 12.7 km, 326° NW of Bayanga, 3°00.27’ N 16°11.55’ E, 420 m, 13 May 2001, S. van Noort, Sweep CAR 01– S 158, Lowland Rainforest, SAM–HYM–P048018 ( SAMC).

Description

Female (holotype)

B 18.6; A11.0; F 12.8.

COLOR. Head pale yellow with black to dark brown parts: mandible, malar space, median tubercle of clypeus, a thin mid-longitudinal line on upper face, frons, vertex, and most of occiput; mesosoma pale yellow with most of mesoscutum black, and testaceous to brown parts: anterior margin of pronotum, propleuron, most of mesopleuron but subtegular ridge and two lateral patches, mesosternum, ventral margin of metapleuron and anterior third of propodeum; metasoma dark brown with pale yellow markings: tergites 1–2 medially, tergite 3–4 posteriorly; sternites pale yellow, more or less extensively testaceous anteriorly; antenna dark brown with scape somewhat pale maculated; ovipositor sheath brown; fore and mid legs testaceous with coxae and tibiae mostly pale yellow, hind leg testaceous with coxa partly pale yellow and femur with an outer longitudinal pale yellow stripe; wings hyaline, fore wing anteriorly infuscate from pterostigma to apex.

HEAD. Densely setose with long hairs, hairs shorter on upper back head; face rugulose punctate, strongly protruding medially; clypeus sparsely punctate, subapical ridge with median tubercle strong and lateral tubercle weak, ventral margin strongly produced laterally; mandible stout; frons transversely rugose with a blunt Y-shaped mid-longitudinal carina below median ocellus, inner margins of toruli not expanded backwards; vertex and temple sparsely punctate but inter-ocellar area rugose; ocellar triangle wide; occipital carina mid-dorsally interrupted; antenna with 33 flagellomeres.

MESOSOMA. Entirely covered with dense and long hairs; mesosoma moderately densely punctate, but mesonotum deeply transversely striate, anterior half of pronotum smooth and mesopleuron somewhat transversely strigose medially; epomia moderate; epicnemial carina hardly reaching level of mesopleural pit; apex of subtegular ridge convex, not flanged laterally; submetapleural carina strong, slightly and evenly narrowed toward apex.

WINGS. Fore wing with 2m–cu opposite rs–m, cu–a almost opposite Rs&M, and Rs strongly bowed forwards; hind wing with distal abscissa of Cu joining Cu&cu–a close to junction with M, with a basal group of two hamuli on distal abscissa of R1.

METASOMA. Tergite 1 moderately slender; sternite 1 with a basal pair of submedian tubercles, additional to usual ones on sternites 2–4; tergites 1–2 mostly smooth, following tergites densely and finely punctate with fine transverse striations medially; apical margins of tergites 3–5 moderately concave.

Male

Unknown.

Distribution

Central African Republic.

Taxonomic remarks

The presence of tubercles on sternite 1 is quite unexpected in Epirhyssa , while it is one of the features defining the Oriental genus Triancyra Baltazar, 1961 . However, we refrain from placing this new species in Triancyra for the following reasons. Besides the geographical separation from the known distribution area of Triancyra , the majority of morphological characters exhibited by this new species do not fit the current generic definition for Triancyra . For example, E. brianfisheri sp. nov. exhibits subequal mandibular teeth (vs. upper tooth narrower in Triancyra ), a pterostigma that is long and slender (vs. up to 5x longer than high), hind wing with a basal group of two hamuli (vs. usually three), tergite 1 long and slender (vs. stout, 1.3x longer than wide) ( Townes, 1969). Hence, we are of the opinion that the species fits more comfortably within Epirhyssa than in Triancyra , but the possession of additional tubercles in Epirhyssa species underlines the need for a global phylogenetic revision of the whole subfamily. Epirhyssa is indeed poorly defined and probably not monophyletic (G. Broad, pers. comm.).

Figures

Fig. 1. Epirhyssa brianfisheri sp. nov., holotype, ♀. A. Habitus, lateral view (inset: data labels). B. Mesosoma, lateral view. C.. Metasoma, dorsal view. D. Head, anterior view. E. Mandibles, anterior view.