Encarsia azimi Hayat, 1986

Schmidt, Stefan & Polaszek, Andrew, 2007, The Australian species of Encarsia Förster (Hymenoptera, Chalcidoidea: Aphelinidae), parasitoids of whiteflies (Hemiptera, Sternorrhyncha, Aleyrodidae) and armoured scale insects (Hemiptera, Coccoidea: Diaspididae), Journal of Natural History 41 (33 - 36), pp. 2099-2265 : 2132-2134

14. Encarsia azimi Hayat

( Figures 47–50 )

Trichaporus indicus Azim and Shafee 1980, p 335 . Holotype ♀, India, Tamil Nadu, Ootacamund, 24 June 1968 (S. A. Shafee), ex aleyrodid on Nerium (Apocynaceae) (ZDAMU, not examined). Preoccupied by Prospaltella indica Shafee 1973, p 255 .

Encarsia azimi Hayat : Hayat 1986, p 160. Replacement name for indicus Azim and Shafee. Encarsia azimi Hayat : Hayat 1989a, p 62; Chou et al. 1996, p 196; Huang and Polaszek 1998, p 1845 –1847; Hayat 1998, p 202 –203, Schmidt et al. 2001, p 376.

Encarsia adrianae Lopez-Avila 1987, p 425 . Holotype ♀, Pakistan, Rawalpindi, April 1985, ex Bemisia tabaci on Lantana camara L. ( Verbenaceae ) [ex culture UK, Ascot, Silwood Park, 26 August 1986 (A. Lopez-Avila), ex Bemisia tabaci (BMNH, examined). Synonymy by Hayat 1998, p 202.

Encarsia adrianae Lopez-Avila : Polaszek et al. 1992, p 381; Booth and Polaszek 1996, p 72.

Diagnosis

Female. Colour: head predominantly brown, vertex and area around mouthparts lighter. Mesosoma brown. Metasoma pale yellow to white except with sharply defined narrow dark brown band at base. Antenna yellow with pedicel brown and apical segments slightly darkened. Fore wing hyaline. Legs yellow, coxae and femora slightly darkened.

Morphology: stemmaticum with rugosely strigose surface sculpture ( Figure 49 ). Antennal formula 1,1,4,2. Pedicel longer than F1 (1.17–1.30). F1 2.00–2.30 times as long as its maximum width, shorter than F2 (0.75–0.88) and F3 (0.63–0.79). Flagellomeres with the following numbers of sensilla: F1: 0, F2: 2, F3: 2, F4: 2–3, F5: 2–3, F6: 3. Midlobe of mesoscutum with eight setae, side lobes with three setae each. Scutellar sensilla widely separated (approximately six to seven times the maximum width of a sensillum). Distance between anterior pair of scutellar setae greater than between posterior pair. Fore wing 2.5–2.7 times as long as width of disc. Marginal fringe 0.30–0.36 times as long as width of disc. Submarginal vein with two setae, marginal vein anteriorly with seven or eight setae. Tarsal formula 5-5-5. Apical spur of midtibia shorter than half the length of the corresponding basitarsus (0.30–0.44). Tergites laterally with the following numbers of setae: T1: 0–2(–4), T2: 1–2(–3), T3: 1–2, T4: 1–2, T5: 2–3, T6: 3, T7 with 4(–5) setae. Ovipositor slightly shorter than or subequal in length to midtibia (1.91–1.00). Third valvula 0.36–0.46 times as long as second valvifer.

Male. Body brown with mesoscutal midlobe posteriorly and scutellum lighter. Legs brown, tibiae and tarsi light brown. Apical two segments of antenna fused and sensilla partly overlapping.

Species group placement. E. inaron group.

Distribution. Australia: New South Wales, Queensland, South Australia, Victoria, Western Australia. Taiwan, India, Pakistan, Japan, Italy, Spain.

Host. Aleyrodidae : Bemisia tabaci (Gennadius) , Lipaleyrodes atriplex (Froggatt) , Lipaleyrodes sp. , Trialeurodes vaporariorum (Westwood) . The following additional hosts have been recorded ( Chou et al. 1996; Huang and Polaszek 1998): Aleurolobus rhododendri Takahashi , Dialeurodes piperis Takahashi , Odontaleyrodes rhododendri (Takahashi) , Parabemisia myricae (Kuwana) , Rhachisphora fici (Takahashi) (recorded as Dialeurodes citri ).

Additional material examined

New South Wales: 5♀, 2 „, Narrabri, Pikes Lane, 8 February 1997 (P. De Barro), ex Aleyrodes (5 Lipaleyrodes ) atriplex on Chenopodium trigonum Schult. (Chenopodiaceae) (ANIC). Queensland: 3♀, 1 „, Ayr, 13 November 1996 (P. De Barro), ex Bemisia tabaci on Sonchus oleraceus L. ( Asteraceae ) (ANIC, ZSMG); 1♀, Dalby, 17 April 1997 (D. R. Lea), ex Bemisia tabaci on Gossypium hirsutum L. ( Malvaceae ) (ANIC); 1♀, Warra, 25 June 1997 (D. R. Lea), ex Trialeurodes vaporariorum on Anoda cristata (L.) Schltdl. ( Malvaceae ) (ZSMG); 3♀, Mt Isa, 3 October 1996 (P. De Barro), ex Bemisia tabaci on Sonchus oleraceus (ANIC) ; 3♀, Bundaberg, 18 March 1999 (G. Artlett), ex Lipaleyrodes sp. on Convolvulus sp. (Convolvulaceae) (ANIC, ZSMG); 2♀, Redland Bay, December 1998 (J. R. Hargreaves), ex Bemisia tabaci on Lantana camara L. ( Verbenaceae ) (ANIC, ZSMG); 1♀, Bunya Mts National Park (26 ° 529S, 151 ° 359E), 6 October 1984 (I. D. Naumann and J. C. Cardale) (ZSMG). South Australia: 1♀, Brookfield Cons. Park, 24 November 1992 (I. D. Naumann and J. C. Cardale) (ANIC). Victoria: 2♀, 2 „, Red Cliff, 28 April 1936 (ANIC). Western Australia: 1♀, CALM Site 4/3, 14 km S by E Kalumburu Mission (14 ° 259S, 126 ° 409E), 3–6 June 1988 (T. A. Weir), Malaise trap, closed forest (ANIC).

Figures

Figures 47–50. Encarsia azimi Hayat, female. (47) Mesosoma and gaster. (48) Antenna. (49) Stemmaticum. (50) Fore wing.