Physaraia tigeri Chansri, Quicke & Butcher, 2022

Chansri, Kittipum, Quicke, Donald L. J. & Butcher, Buntika A., 2022, Four new species of Physaraia (Hymenoptera: Braconidae: Braconinae) from Thailand, Zootaxa 5182 (5), pp. 479-488 : 486-488

Physaraia tigeri Chansri, Quicke & Butcher , sp. nov.

urn:lsid:zoobank.org:pub:74FA1E4D-B2EC-467B-B042-D23AA4FB8D20

Material examined. HOLOTYPE female THAILAND, Chaiyaphum province, Tat Tone NP 15° 57.243’N, 101°54.079’E, 12-19.x.2006, Malaise trap, col. T. Jaruphan, DNA voucher CCDB-06326-A02 ( QSBG).

Description. Holotype female. Length of body 4.5 mm, fore wing 4.0 mm, length of antenna at least 3.0 mm (broken).

Head. Antenna broken with at least 31 flagellomeres. Median flagellomere 1.33 × longer than wide. Malar space long, height of eye 1.6 × vertical distance separating lower margin of eye from mandible. Face finely punctuate rugulose, moderately short setose, eyes glabrous. Frons with a Y sculpture running from anterior ocellus. Height of eye: width of face: width of head = 1.0: 1.44: 2.63. Length of face (from dorsal margin of clypeus to anterior margin of antennal socket) 0.7 × width of face. Horizontal length of eye (measured perpendicular to face) 2.0 × horizontal length of head behind eye. Post-ocellar length: transverse diameter of posterior ocellus: shortest distance between posterior ocellus and eye = 1.0: 1.0: 3.0. Occipital and vertex rugulose superimposed on coriaceous sculpture.

Mesosoma. Mesosoma largely coarsely rugose and setose with 1.44 × longer than high. Notauli shallow, obvious only anterior half. Precoxal sulcus complete, mesoscutum with weak longitudinal carina, mesopleuron and mesosternum with aciculate striate. Median area of metanotum with a strong dorsally exserting mid-longitudinal carina. Propodeum shiny with four parallel coriaceous sculpture, with deep mid-longitudinal groove bordered posteriorly by pair of anterior diverging carinae; posterior lateral parts of propodeum smooth and shiny.

Wings. Lengths of fore wing veins SR1: 3-SR: r = 4.6: 2.85: 1.0. Lengths of 2-SR: 3-SR: r-m = 1.75: 2.5: 1.0. Ratio of length of fore wing vein m-cu: 2-RS+M = 1.2: 1.0. Apex of hind wing vein C+SC+R with 1 thick setae. Base of hind wing evenly setose.

Legs. Ration of length of fore femur (excluding trochantellus): tibia: tarsus = 1.0: 1.17: 1.17. Length of hind femur (excluding trochantellus): tibia: tarsus = 1.0: 1.0: 1.1. Hind basitarsus 2.1 × longer than sub-posteriorly deep.

Metasoma. Carapace coarsely rugose; widest at 0.65 × distance from base to apex. Anterior sculpture radially areolate rugose with one largest central. Posterior spines robust, ratio of distance of each spine tip 1.07 spine length. Ovipositor exserted beyond apex of metasomal spines by approximately 2.4 length of spine.

Coloration. Body bright brownish; frons, gena, fore coxa, metasomal carapace, ivory; compound eyes, claws, and tip of mandibles, black; antennae, ovipositor, and ovipositor sheaths, dark brown; wings hyaline.

Distribution. Chaiyaphum province, Thailand.

Host. Unknown.

Etymology. Named after TIGER project ( Thailand Inventory Group for Entomological Research).