taxonID	type	description	language	source
156F1878106E596E9CA9357904D0B710.taxon	distribution	Distribution. New Mexico, USA. These specimens are the only known representatives of this species.	en	Morrison, Colin R., Armstrong, Wyatt R., Plowes, Robert M., Gilbert, Lawrence E., Fernández-Triana, José L. (2025): A new species of Iconella (Mason, 1981) (Hymenoptera, Braconidae, Microgastrinae), a parasitoid of Melitara subumbrella (Dyar, 1925) cactus moth larvae from New Mexico with biological notes and an updated key to the American Iconella species. Journal of Hymenoptera Research 98: 483-498, DOI: 10.3897/jhr.98.151036
156F1878106E596E9CA9357904D0B710.taxon	description	Diagnostic description also see key below. This species can be recognized as Iconella based on the features first described by Mason (1981) and further expanded and discussed in Fernandez-Triana et al. (2013, 2020), namely: a sinuated vein cu-a in the hind wing and the presence of a median longitudinal carina on the propodeum. Iconella melitaraevora is very distinctive from most other described species in the New World (Fig. 1). Iconella isolata, a species recorded from the Caribbean and South America, has much lighter coloration of hind legs and veins in forewing, as well as mostly transparent or whitish pterostigma, with only thin brown margins (pterostigma almost completely brown, with only small whitish spot anteriorly in melitaraevora). Two species recorded from Central America (Costa Rica and Mexico), I. andydeansi and I. jayjayrodriguezae both have mostly transparent or whitish pterostigma, with only thin brown margins (pterostigma almost completely brown, with only small whitish spot anteriorly in melitaraevora); T 1 width at anterior margin 3.1 × or more its width at posterior margin (T 1 width at anterior margin 2.4 – 2.6 × its width at posterior margin in melitaraevora); metatibia with smaller darker area posteriorly and with larger yellow spot on anterior half of first segment of metatarsus (metatibia dark on posterior half and first segment of metatarsus with very small yellow spot anteriorly in melitaraevora). Iconella canadensis, recorded from Eastern Canada, has different pterostigma color (mostly transparent or whitish versus mostly brown in melitaraevora); comparatively smaller ocelli size (ocular-ocellar line 1.6 × posterior ocellus diameter versus 2.0 × melitaraevora); and shorter ovipositor sheath (ovipositor sheath length 0.8 × or less metatibial length versus 1.06 – 1.12 × in melitaraevora). Also see key below for additional diagnostic description. The most similar species is I. etiellae, which is the only other species so far recorded from New Mexico, among several other states in the central and western U. S. A. (Rodriguez et al. 2013; Fernandez-Triana et al. 2020). The main morphological differences between these two species are the hind leg color (metatibia entirely yellow and metatarsus almost entirely yellow in etiellae, metatibia with posterior half dark brown to black and almost entire metatarsus dark brown to black in melitaraevora); different size of ocelli (ocular-ocellar line 1.6 × posterior ocellus diameter in etiellae, 2.0 × in melitaraevora); and T 1 width slightly different (T 1 width at anterior margin 2.4 – 2.5 × T 1 width at posterior margin in etiellae versus 2.0 × in melitaraevora). Additionally, the longitudinal median carina on propodeum is more strongly defined in etiellae (much thinner and weak in melitaraevora), although this is a character difficult to assess unless several specimens from both species are at hand and available for comparison. The two species have different recorded caterpillar hosts within the Lepidoptera family Pyralidae (Table 1; Etiella zinckenella, Melitara junctolineella, Psorosina hammondi, and Ufa rubedinella for etiellae; Melitara subumbrella for melitaraevora). There are also molecular differences based on DNA barcodes (Fig. 2) with 43 / 552 bp different base pairs, or a 7.8 % difference, between the two species melitaraevora (Process ID NACMA 001 - 24) and etiellae (Process ID HYCNE 1332 - 11). The combination of morphology, biology and molecular data allows us to separate and distinguish these two species. It is important to note that there are many undescribed species accessioned on BOLD, that are probably in Iconella, and the CO 1 sequence data of this species differentiates it from those undescribed. Body measurements and proportions (measurements of holotype provided first, followed, between parentheses, by range based on other specimens). Body L: 3.4 mm (3.2 – 3.5 mm). Fore wing L: 3.5 mm (3.5 – 3.6 mm). F 2 L / W: 0.22 mm / 0.09 mm (0.22 – 0.23 mm / 0.10 mm). F 14 L / W: 0.10 mm / 0.07 mm (0.10 mm / 0.07 – 0.06 mm). F 15 L / W: 0.10 mm / 0.06 mm (0.10 mm / 0.06 mm). Metafemur L / W: 0.82 mm / 0.26 mm (0.82 – 0.83 mm / 0.26 – 0.27 mm). Metatibia L: 1.06 mm (1.02 – 1.06 mm). Ovipositor L: 1.12 mm (1.14 – 1.18 mm). OOL: 0.14 mm (0.13 – 0.14 mm). POL: 0.15 mm (0.14 – 0.15 mm). OD: 0.07 mm (0.07 mm). T 1 W anterior margin / W posterior margin: 0.32 mm / 0.12 mm (0.32 mm / 0.12 – 0.13 mm). T 2 W posterior margin / L: 0.44 mm / 0.11 mm (0.44 – 0.45 mm / 0.11 – 0.12 mm). Ovipositor sheath L / metatibia L: 1.06 × (1.09 – 1.12 ×). Ocular-ocellar line / posterior ocellus diameter: 2.0 ×. T 1 width at anterior margin / T 1 width at posterior margin: 2.4 – 2.6 ×.	en	Morrison, Colin R., Armstrong, Wyatt R., Plowes, Robert M., Gilbert, Lawrence E., Fernández-Triana, José L. (2025): A new species of Iconella (Mason, 1981) (Hymenoptera, Braconidae, Microgastrinae), a parasitoid of Melitara subumbrella (Dyar, 1925) cactus moth larvae from New Mexico with biological notes and an updated key to the American Iconella species. Journal of Hymenoptera Research 98: 483-498, DOI: 10.3897/jhr.98.151036
