Synopeas noyesi, Buhl, 2009

Buhl, Peter Neerup, 2009, Six new species of Platygastrinae from the British Isles (Hymenoptera, Platygastridae), Journal of Natural History 43 (11 - 12), pp. 687-699 : 696-698

Synopeas noyesi sp. nov.

( Figure 6 )

Diagnosis

Hyperoccipital carina very weak; notauli almost complete; mesopleuron striate along hind margin in upper half; scutellum with strong spine; two distinctly separated propodeal carinae; metasoma as long as mesosoma, flattened.

Description

Female. Length 1.1–1.3 mm. Black; antennae, mandibles, tegulae and legs dark brown; A1, all trochanters, fore tibia, middle and hind tibiae, and segments 1–4 of all tarsi light brown.

Head from above ( Figure 6A ) 1.8 times as wide as long, as wide as mesosoma, reticulate-coriaceous, on frons with distinct transverse elements, frons in lower half with a medial longitudinal carina; occiput angled, but hyperoccipital carina only weakly indicated medially. OOL:LOL51:2; OOL equal to diameter of lateral ocellus. Head in frontal view only slightly more than 1.1 times as wide as high. Antenna ( Figure 6B ) with A1 0.8 times as long as height of head, 1.2 times as long as distance between inner orbits; A9 1.1 times as wide as long.

Mesosoma 1.3 times as long as wide, higher than wide (25:24). Sides of pronotum reticulate-coriaceous, meshes not elongate, sides smooth in lower 0.2. Mesoscutum with sparse and scattered hairs, dull reticulate-coriaceous, posteromedially with longitudinal elements; notauli distinct, fading out in anterior 0.2; mid lobe posteriorly narrow but slightly blunt, slightly produced, hardly reaching disc of scutellum; scuto-scutellar grooves wide, each with about seven long hairs. Mesopleuron smooth, with fine longitudinal striation in about posterior quarter in upper half. Scutellum ( Figure 6C ) dull, sculptured almost as mesoscutum, medially sparsely hairy, laterally densely hairy; spine strong and dark, with a narrow vertical semitransparent lamella below. Metapleuron smooth and bare in upper third, rest with white pilosity. Propodeal carinae only very slightly semitransparent, parallel, well separated; area between them about twice as long as wide, smooth and shiny.

Fore wing as long as entire body, 2.3 times as long as wide, almost clear, with fine and dense microtrichia; marginal cilia absent. Hind wing 5.1 times as long as wide; marginal cilia 0.25 times as long as width of wing.

Metasoma ( Figure 6D ) as long as mesosoma, slightly narrower than this, 1.6 times as wide as high. T1–T2 smooth; narrow hind margin of T2 and entire T3–T6 with very weak reticulate microsculpture; apical tergites with a few hairs which are inserted in shallow punctures (two on each side on T4, three on each side on T5).

Material examined

Holotype female: England, Oxon , Mapledurham, 8.vi.1975, J.S. Noyes . Paratypes: one female same data as holotype ; one female, Ireland, Galway, Dunguaire, Kinvara , 4.vi.1992, J.P. O’Connor (in the National Museum of Ireland) .

Affinities

Most similar to S. madridiana Buhl, 2001 , but this species has more transverse and stronger margined head, less sculptured sides of pronotum, longer striae on mesopleuron, more upturned and pointed scutellar spine, and shorter female metasoma than S. noyesi ; cf. also Buhl (2001). Also similar to S. noyesi is S. jasius (Walker, 1835), but this species has OOL and LOL equal, and metasoma downcurved apically and more pointed than in S. noyesi , cf. also Vlug (1985). S. hansseni Buhl, 1998a and S. acutispinus Buhl, 1998b have much more extensive striation on mesopleuron than S. noyesi . S. hansseni also has only a single propodeal carina, and S. acutispinus has head less transverse and weaker hyperoccipital carina than S. noyesi .

Etymology

Named after the collector.

Figures

Figure 6. S. noyesi sp. nov., female. (A) head, dorsal; (B) antenna; (C) scutellum and propodeum, lateral; (D) metasoma, dorsal.