Illidops oroseira Höcherl & Fernandez-Triana, 2025

Höcherl, Amelie, 2025, Revision of Holarctic Illidops Mason (Hymenoptera, Braconidae): A first step towards resolving a dark taxon and descriptions of three new species, European Journal of Taxonomy 1031, pp. 1-121 : 61-63

Illidops oroseira Höcherl & Fernandez-Triana sp. nov.

urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:

Figs 2H–I, 35–36

Diagnosis

This species resembles I. suffectus in the coarsely rugose to reticulate propodeum with a median carina. However, it differs in its overall coloration: entirely black to dark brown (compared to mostly yellow in suffectus ), and T1 shape: subrectangular to slightly barrel-shaped T1 (compared to widening in suffectus ).

Etymology

This species was collected from elevations above 1800 m in the Alps. The coarse propodeum sculpture including the median carina reminds the authors of an aerial view of a mountain range. Considering this, the species epithet is derived from Greek and translates to “mountain range”.

Type material

Holotype

GERMANY – Bavaria • ♀; Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Zugspitze, Platt ; 47.407° N, 11.008° E; 2005 m a.s.l.; 18 Jul.–2 Aug. 2018; D. Doczkal and J. Voith leg.; Malaise trap; bulk ID: dv.zugsp5.3; SNSB-ZSM, ZSM-HYM-42389-G02.

Paratypes

GERMANY – Bavaria • 1 ♀; same data as for holotype; 2–13 Aug. 2018; bulk ID: dv.zugsp5.4; SNSB-ZSM, ZSM-HYM-42390-A02 • 1 ♀; same data as for holotype; 47.405° N, 11.009° E; 1980 m a.s.l.; 18 Jul.–2 Aug. 2018; bulk ID: dv.zugsp7.3; SNSB-ZSM, ZSM-HYM-42390-G06 • 1 ♀; Oberstdorf, Koblat ; 47.423° N, 10.357° E; 2005 m a.s.l.; 4–25 Jul. 2014; D. Doczkal, S. Schmidt and J. Voith leg.; Malaise trap; bulk ID: ds.kobl3.3; SNSB-ZSM, ZSM-HYM-42470-C08 .

Description

Female

MEASUREMENTS. Body length: 2.90 (2.90–3.35) mm. Fore wing length: 2.95 (2.55–2.95) mm. Antenna shorter than body.

HEAD. Face: eyes very slightly converging below, inner margin of eyes almost straight. Minimum face width/maximum face width: 0.95 (0.92–0.95). Malar distance/mandible width: 1.43 (1.06–1.67). Face softly punctate. Ocelli in high triangle, posterior tangent to anterior ocellus not touching posterior pair. OOL/POD: 2.44 (2.00–2.55). POL/POD: 2.05 (1.90–2.22). F2 length/width: 2.54 (2.37–2.54). F15 length/width: 1.33 (1.17–1.3). F2 length/F15 length: 2.36 (2.21–2.36).

MESOSOMA. Anteromesoscutum mostly with shallow punctures. Mesoscutellar disc punctate. Posterior smooth band of mesoscutellum in some specimens, including holotype, appearing somewhat interrupted centrally by punctures of scutellar disc, giving impression of a very slightly sculptured area interrupting posterior smooth band of scutellum centrally. Propodeum sculpture coarse, with strongly elevated longitudinal median carina (which has some small rugosities or small carinae radiating perpendicularly).

METASOMA. T1 shape: slightly barrel-shaped with sinuous posterior margin. T1 sculpture: mostly sculptured. T1 width (anterior, maximum, posterior): 0.27, 0.41, 0.37 (0.20–0.27, 0.37–0.41, 0.24–0.39) mm. T1 central length: 0.38 (0.35–0.40) mm. T1 length/width at posterior margin: 1.03 (0.97–1.08). T2 shape: more or less rectangular, posterior margin slightly sinuate, lateral margins concave. Mediotergite 2 sculpture: mostly coarsely sculptured. T2 width at posterior margin/length: 3.06 (2.90–3.24). Posterior margin of T3–T7 slightly desclerotized, but mediotergites not appearing to be pushed forward. Hypopygium not enlarged, its posterior end about in line with end of apical tergites. Ventral margin of hypopygium with desclerotized area showing few pleats. Ovipositor sheaths broad and setose over most of their length. Ovipositor sheaths length/metatibial length: 0.55 (0.53–0.57). Metafemur length/width: 0.27 (0.25–0.32). Tarsal claws: simple.

WINGS. Length of fore wing veins r/2 RS: 1.19 (1.06–1.20). Pterostigma length/width: 2.79 (2.58–2.79). Point of insertion of vein r in pterostigma: clearly beyond half length of pterostigma. Angle of vein r with fore wing anterior margin: clearly outwards, inclined towards fore wing apex. Length of vein R1/ length of pterostigma: 0.94 (0.94–1.00). Length of vein R1/distance of distal end of R1 to distal end of vein 3 RS: 1.25 (1.25–1.5).

COLORATION. Body color: mostly dark brown to black, except for tibiae and tarsi. Head color: head including face, clypeus and labrum completely dark brown to black, palpi pale except for slightly darker base. Antenna completely dark brown to black. All coxae and femora dark brown to black, pro- and mesofemora with slightly paler apical tip. All tibiae orange-brownish. Tegula and humeral complex dark brown. Fore wing: pterostigma brown, wing veins in basal third dark brown, becoming slightly lighter towards apex.

Male

Unknown.

Ecology / host information

Host unknown.

Distribution

PAL: Germany.

Molecular data

4 Sequences in BOLD, BIN BOLD:AEO8226.

Remarks

We place this species in Illidops because it fits our current concept of the genus and due to its similarity to another species in the genus, I. suffectus . Both I. oroseira sp. nov. and I. suffectus have characters that fit within the current concept of Illidops : the posterior smooth band of the scutellum is interrupted centrally by a sculptured area (although it varies slightly between specimens in I. oroseira and the sculpture is very weak, similar to I. suevus , and limited to a small area on the anterior margin of the mesoscutellar bar); the fore wing vein R1 is shorter than the pterostigma; the propodeum is strongly sculptured, with the sculpture reticulate. Illidops oroseira does not have some of the other characters typical of Illidops (but neither do some other species within the genus): the eyes are only very slightly convergent towards the lower inner margin (not at all in I. suffectus ); T3–T7 are only slightly medially desclerotized and do not appear pushed forwards (similar in I. suffectus ). Both I. suffectus and I. oroseira have a similar propodeum sculpture which is quite unique in Illidops (coarsely reticulate rugose, with strongly elevated longitudinal median carina which has some small rugosities or small carinae radiating perpendicularly).

The Nearest Neighbor (NN) of BIN BOLD:AEO8226 has a minimum p-distance of 6.56% (BOLD:ACP4312). The NN-BIN includes a single specimen from Bulgaria, BIOUG15445-A06, which is linked to a private sequence, but upon examination of a lateral habitus image could represent a species of Illidops (short R1). We also performed a BLAST search in the BOLD database and found that the closest public match is BIOUG85322-C11 (BOLD:AET9368) which was collected in California, USA, and has 92.99% COI sequence similarity. Apart from the Bulgarian and Californian specimens, which are the closest matches, the sequences mostly match specimens mostly identified morphologically by us as Illidops . But there are some similarly close matches which represent different genera: for one, there is a 92.69% similarity in the COI sequence with a specimen identified as Dolichogenidea murinanae (CNCHYM 00190). Upon examination of a lateral photo, the specimen does not seem to be a misidentified representative of Illidops . The same is true for Parapanteles hyposidrae , which has several specimens at 92.08% COI sequence similarity, but is clearly not a member of Illidops (at least upon photo observation and identification by a Microgastrinae expert). Another record of Pholetesor sp. with 91.95% COI similarity also seemingly does not represent a misidentified specimen of Illidops .

Since all of these molecular analyses are only based on sequences of the COI gene, microgastrine genera in general are in urgent need of revision, and no reliable phylogeny is available at the moment, we cannot draw any conclusions from this. More details are discussed below in the section on DNA barcoding . Summarizing this, it is difficult to clearly state whether this species is part of Illidops or not. Morphologically, it seems very similar to I. suffectus and most of the molecular data also places it in Illidops rather than any other genus. For now, we place this species within Illidops , but this status may need to be revised in the future.