Dicranorhina sreeramani Mawadda, Girish Kumar & Sureshan, 2019

Mawadda, N. V. Ayisha, Kumar, P. Girish, Sureshan, P. M. & Rajan, Tessy, 2019, A taxonomic review of the genus Dicranorhina Shuckard (Hymenoptera: Crabronidae: Crabroninae) from the Indian subcontinent with the description of three new species from Southern Western Ghats, Zootaxa 4629 (1), pp. 109-121 : 117-120

Dicranorhina sreeramani Mawadda, Girish Kumar & Sureshan sp. nov.

( Figs. 30–41 )

urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:B9E396B6-BAEF-4545-920B-07D798B4D368

Diagnosis. Within Dicranorhina , this new species can be separated from all other species by the following character combination: Hind femur near the base beneath without any distinct tooth or preapical thickening ( Fig. 39 ). Glossy median fovea not present above posterior ocelli on vertex ( Fig. 34 ). Apex of clypeus with distinct, strong inverted U-shaped incision medially ( Fig. 32 ). Median area of clypeus weakly raised with indistinct median carina ( Fig. 32 ) Forewing recurrent vein 1 and 2 not united anteriorly, they are distinctly separated ( Fig. 36 ). Interocular distance at vertex 1.30 × as long as F1.

Description. Holotype ♀ ( Fig. 30 ). Head. Head width 1.30 × its median height in frontal view ( Fig. 31 ); clypeus not tripartite, apex of clypeus with distinct, strong inverted U-shaped incision medially ( Fig. 32 ); clypeus medially weakly raised with indistinct median carina; distance between antennal toruli 0.29 × distance between antennal torulus and inner eye margin; posterior ocelli opaque, scar-like, thin and oval-shaped ( Fig. 34 ), its maximum diameter as long as POL; POL 0.20 × OOL; glossy median fovea not present above posterior ocelli on vertex; interocular distance at vertex 0.46 × interocular distance at clypeus, 1.3 × as long as F1. Antenna ( Fig. 35 ) with scape 4.25 × as long as wide, F1 3.4 × as long as wide, 1.08 × as long as F2; F2 1.09 × as long as F3.

Mesosoma . Pronotal collar with deep transverse grove anteriorly, thick and roundly swollen at lateral areas; but medially obliquely inclined and then raised anteriorly, median length of mesoscutum as long as its maximum width, with a depression at medioanterior area, anterior margin strongly emarginated in middle; mesoscutum with two weak submedian and two lateral carina up to ¼ to half of mesoscutum basally ( Fig. 38 ); scutellum convex; propodeum with dense silvery setae on anterior and posterior aspects; propodeal dorsum transversely, finely and closely rugosostriate; forewing ( Fig. 36 ) with recurrent vein 1 and 2 not united anteriorly, distinctly separated; hind femur near base beneath without tooth or preapical thickening ( Fig. 39 ).

Metasoma. T1 12.43 × as long as its maximum width, 0.99 × as long as T2 ( Fig. 40 ); T2 0.75 × as long as its maximum width; T7 somewhat largely densely and subcontiguously punctured, but punctures slightly sparser towards base; pygidial plate as in figure 41.

Colouration. Black, with following ferruginous markings: clypeus except base and apex, mandible except base and apex, scape to F6, posterolateral corner of pronotum, mesoscutum entirely, tegula, mesopleuron anteriorly, metapleuron, propodeum entirely, T1, apex of T6 and S1. Legs mostly ferruginous to reddish brown with following black markings: fore and mid coxae mostly and hind coxae almost entirely, all trochanters and femora, most of hind tibia, mid and hind tibial spurs. Wings slightly yellowish hyaline, forewing with stigma strongly and adjacent areas lightly infumated. Body setae silvery, short setae on apical part of pygidial area yellowish brown.

Size (measured from head to second tergite). 7.61 mm.

♂. Unknown.

Material examined. Holotype, ♀, INDIA: Kerala, Wayanad district, Moolankavu paddy field (11.6729°N, 76.2892°E), yellow pan trap collection, 7.i.2018, Coll. S. Sreeraman, ZSIK Regd. No. ZSI/ WGRC /IR/INV/1 1601.

Distribution. India: Kerala.

Etymology. The species is named after Mr. S. Sreeraman, former GSDP Scholar, Western Ghat Regional Centre, Zoological Survey of India, Kozhikode, who collected the holotype.

Discussion. In Tsuneki (1983), females of this new species key out as D. ruficornis ( Cameron, 1889) in having antenna extensively ferruginous; hind femur near base beneath without distinct tooth. But, it differs from D. ruficornis in having: (1) interocular distance at vertex 1.30 × as long as F1 (in D. ruficornis , interocular distance at vertex as long as F1); (2) base of T2 black (in D. ruficornis , base of T2 ferruginous).

This new species differs from D. dinesani Mawadda, Girish Kumar & Sureshan sp. nov., in having: (1) glossy median fovea not present above posterior ocelli on vertex (in D. dinesani sp. nov., distinct glossy median fovea present above posterior ocelli on vertex); (2) apex of clypeus with distinct, strong inverted U-shaped incision medially (in D. dinesani sp. nov., apex of clypeus with distinct but weak incision (flattened inverted V-shaped) medially; (4) clypeus medially weakly raised with indistinct median carina (in D. dinesani basal area of clypeus medially strongly raised with distinct median carina; (5) posterolateral corner of pronotum, mesoscutum and propodeum entirely ferruginous (in D. dinesani , pronotum entirely ferruginous, mark on both sides of mesoscutum anteriorly and propodeum except median part of dorsal side and posterior side ferruginous).

Figures

FIGURES 25–32. Dicranorhina spp. 25–29. Dicranorhina georgei sp. nov., holotype ♀. 25. Head and Mesosoma, dorsal view; 26. Mesosoma, lateral view; 27. Hind tibia; 28. Metasoma, dorsal view; 29. Pygidium. 30–32. Dicranorhina sreeramani sp. nov., holotype ♀. 30. Body in profile; 31. Head, frontal view; 32. Clypeus.

FIGURES 33–41. Dicranorhina sreeramani sp. nov., holotype ♀. 33. Right mandible; 34.Area around ocelli; 35. Antenna; 36. Forewing; 37. Hindwing; 38. Head and Mesosoma, dorsal view; 39. Hind tibia; 40. Metasoma, dorsal view; 41. Pygidium.