Aphanogmus maua, Salden & Peters, 2023

Salden, Tobias & Peters, Ralph S., 2023, Afrotropical Ceraphronoidea (Insecta: Hymenoptera) put back on the map with the description of 88 new species, European Journal of Taxonomy 884 (1), pp. 1-386 : 93-96

Aphanogmus maua sp. nov.

urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:4003F40F-71E9-4F98-B699-6F08EEB33BBA

Fig. 25

Diagnosis

Scape, pedicel and flagellum brown; scape as long as F1 and F2 combined; F1 3.0 × as long as wide; F1 as long as F9; mesometapleuron with longitudinal striations. Male genitalia: harpe finger-shaped in ventral and dorsal view; harpe/gvc index 0.77; dorsomedial margins of harpes slightly converging and almost touching at distodorsal margin of gvc, dorsomedial margin of harpe slightly convex and slightly diverging distolaterally in basal half, straight and slightly diverging distolaterally in apical half; widest point of harpe at apex; apical setae oriented distodorsally, distolaterally and distomedially; aedeagus + gonossiculus with at least eight digital teeth, six oriented dorsally and two oriented ventrally.

Etymology

The species is named after the Maua Route near the type locality. The Maua Route leads to the summit of Mount Kilimanjaro.

Material examined

Holotype

TANZANIA • ♂; Kilimanjaro Region, Mount Kilimanjaro; 3°11′11.1 S, 37°26′25.1 E; 2820 m a.s.l.; 6 Feb. 2012; KiLi project leg.; “low 1”; FPD4, disturbed Podocarpus forest; Coloured pan trap; ZFMK; ZFMK-HYM-00037069 .

Description

Male

BODY LENGTH. 0.76 mm.

COLOUR. Head dark brown, mesosoma dark brown metasoma brown; scape, pedicel and flagellum brown; legs light brown except joints and tarsi lighter and pro- and mesocoxa brown, proximal half of metacoxa brown; fore wing venation light brown, distal end of marginal vein and pterostigma marginal vein distinctly darker, fore and hind wing disc slightly melanized, fore wing at proximal part and distal part less melanized.

ANTENNA. 11-segmented, flagellomeres trapezoidal; scape 4.0 × as long as pedicel, scape as long as F1 and F2 combined, F1 3.0× as long as wide, F1 2.2 × as long as pedicel, F1 1.4 × as long as F2, F1 shorter than F7 and F8 combined, F1 as long as F9, F6 1.6× as long as wide, F6 shorter than F7 and F8 combined, F6 1.3× as high as F9; numerous distinctly small multiporous plates on flagellomeres, sensillae on flagellomeres erect and longer than width of F1 to F5.

HEAD. Head width 1.18 × head height; head width 1.80 × interorbital space; maximum eye diameter 1.26 × minimum eye diameter; head height 1.58 × maximum eye diameter. Dorsal margin of occipital carina ventral to dorsal margin of lateral ocellus in lateral view; preoccipital furrow present; preoccipital carina present. OOL:POL:LOL 1.00:0.93:0.80; OOL 1.88 × lateral ocellus diameter. White, thick setae on upper face absent; supraclypeal depression present; lateral margin of torulus slightly raised; intertorular carina present; posterolateral processes of gena absent.

MESOSOMA, METASOMA. Mesosoma compressed laterally. Head width 1.22 × mesosoma width; Weber length 300 µm. Mesoscutum densely setose, setae curved backwards; median mesoscutal sulcus present; median mesoscutal sulcus adjacent to transscutal articulation; interaxillar sulcus absent (= scutoscutellar sulcus adjacent to transscutal articulation), scutoscutellar sulcus concave; dorsal axillar area setose, setae curved backwards; mesoscutellum setose, setae curved backwards or straight. Mesoscutum width 1.89 × mesoscutellum width; posterior mesoscutal width 1.37 × mesoscutellum width; mesoscutellum length 1.58× mesoscutellum width; mesoscutellum length 1.15 × posterior mesoscutal width; Weber length 1.33 × mesoscutum width; Weber length 1.60 × mesoscutellum length. Anteromedian projection of the metanoto-propodeo-metapecto-mesopectal complex oriented posterodorsally in lateral view with pointed and lighter end; mesometapleural sulcus absent, mesometapleuron with longitudinal striations; posterior propodeal projection short and light in ventrolateral view; posterior mesosomal comb absent. Basal transverse carina of petiole (on syntergum) present; at least six, distinct, basal longitudinal carinae on syntergum; pairs of translucent patches on metasomal syntergum and synsternum.

FORE WING. Length 3.11 × width; stigmal vein longer than 2 × pterostigma marginal length.

MALE GENITALIA. Genital length 131 µm; Weber length 2.29 × genital length; gvc width 50 µm; genital length 2.63× gvc width; gvc width more than two thirds of gvc length; gvc width 1.14 × distal gvc width. Proximodorsal margin of gvc straight; distodorsal margin of gvc descending proximomedially ( Fig. 25C ); proximoventral margin of gvc concave; distoventral margin of gvc strongly descending proximomedially ( Fig. 25A ); ventral area of gvc slightly convex; dorsal area of gvc straight ( Fig. 25B ), indented distomedially; proximolateral margin of gvc ascending ventrally; distolateral margin of gvc descending ventrally ( Fig. 25B ). Harpe finger-shaped in ventral and dorsal view; harpe/gvc index 0.77; lateral articulation site of harpe with gvc virtually flush ( Fig. 25A, C ); ventral margin of harpe concave, dorsal margin convex ( Fig. 25B ), lateral margin straight, widest point of harpe at apex ( Fig. 25A, C ); dorsomedial margins of harpes slightly converging and almost touching at distodorsal margin of gvc, dorsomedial margin of harpe slightly convex and slightly diverging distolaterally in basal half, straight and slightly diverging distolaterally in apical half ( Fig. 25C ), apex of harpe pointed, oriented distolaterally ( Fig. 25A, C ). Harpe with at least two lateral setae restricted to apical quarter, longest lateral setae less than one quarter as long as harpe, lateral setae oriented distolaterally and distoventrally; harpe with at least two apical setae, longest apical setae less than one quarter as long as harpe, apical setae oriented distodorsally, distolaterally and distomedially. Aedeagus + gonossiculus less than half as long as harpe, apex of aedeagus + gonossiculus indistinct ( Fig. 25A, C ) and ventral to apex of harpe. Aedeagus + gonossiculus with at least eight digital teeth, six oriented dorsally and two oriented ventrally. Genitalia moderately sclerotized with strongest sclerotization at aedeagus + gonossiculus.

Female

Unknown.

Variation

Unknown.

Biology

Host unknown, specimen collected with coloured pan trap.

Distribution

Afrotropical: Tanzania.

Remarks

Comparison with similar species

Aphanogmus maua sp. nov. is distinguished from all other treated species by the combination of a short and dark scape, a high harpe/gvc index and the unique genitalia with a rather odd shape of the harpe and aedeagus + gonossiculus.

Aphanogmus maua sp. nov. matches some of the diagnostic characters of the Aphanogmus hakonensis species complex ( Polaszek & Dessart 1996) (see also A. rafikii sp. nov. and A. taji sp. nov.): dark body colouration (except for the legs), longitudinally striated mesometapleuron without a sulcus, and laterally and posteriorly carinate mesoscutellum. It does not have a lighter scape, pedicel and F1–F5 ( Polaszek & Dessart 1996). We refrain from formally assigning A. maua to the Aphanogmus hakonensis species complex.

Condition of type material In the holotype, the left middle leg, the right fore leg (except coxae), the head, the distal part of the left fore wing, and the hind wings are detached, Also, the posterior half of the metasoma is detached, deformed and partially missing, thus the body length measurement is not precise.

Figures

Fig. 25. Holotype of Aphanogmus maua sp. nov. (ZFMK-HYM-00037069). A–C. Male genitalia in ventral (A), lateral (B) and dorsal (C) views. D. Habitus in lateral view.