Cerchysius ugandensis Kerrich

Hayat, Mohammad, Ahmad, Zubair & Khan, Farmanur Rehman, 2014, Encyrtidae (Hymenoptera: Chalcidoidea) from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Zootaxa 3793 (1), pp. 1-59 : 19-20

Cerchysius ugandensis Kerrich

( Figs 41–43 )

Cerchysius ugandensis Kerrich, 1954: 373 , 376, ♀. Uganda.

A redescription and illustrations are given based on the specimens from Saudi Arabia .

Redescription. Female. Length, 1.80–2.0 mm. Head with intense bluish shine. Antenna dark brown. Mesosoma bluish; prepectus white. Fore wing hyaline, with discal setae brown; basal half of submarginal vein brownish yellow, rest of veins dark brown; disc around distal veins with a distinct though light infuscation, in some specimens disc with a light infuscated band below marginal and stigmal veins extending to about half wing width ( Fig. 42 ). Hind wing hyaline. Legs, including coxae, dark brown, with apex of fore femur, bases and apices of fore and mid tibiae brownish yellow; fore tarsus with basal two segments pale brown distal three segments brown; mid tibial spur white; mid basitarsus white, segments 2–4 yellowish, fifth segment brown; hind tarsus with basal two segments brown, segments 3–5 dark brown. Gaster with TI largely bluish; posterior margin of TI and remaining tergites dark bronzy violet; apex of TVII white; ovipositor sheaths dark brown.

Head. Frontovertex width 0.28× head width; ocellar triangle with apical angle slightly acute; posterior ocellus about half its diameter to margin of eye; POL, OOL, OCL, AOL ratios–7:1:6.5:6.5; antennal torulus with upper margin in line with or slightly below, lower margin of eye, and separated from mouth margin by about the height of a torulus; eye height 2.13× malar space; frontovertex and face with raised, polygonal reticulate sculpture, and with sparse setigerous punctures, rather more on face proximal to malar sulcus; finely elongate reticulate sculpture behind malar sulcus; setae on head white. Antenna ( Fig. 41 ) with scape about 5.5×as long as broad; pedicel equal in length to or very slightly shorter than, F1; funicle segments gradually becoming shorter and slightly broader; F1 about 2.5× as long as broad, and F6 as long as broad; clava as long as distal half of F4 and F5 and F6 combined. Relative measurements —head dorsal width, 50; frontovertex width, 14; eye height, 32; malar space, 15.

Mesosoma shorter than metasoma (65:83); mesoscutum with irregular polygonal reticulate sculpture, not deeper than on frontovertex; scutellum with sculpture still finer, nearly fading towards apex; setae silvery white including those on sides of propodeum distal to spiracles. Fore wing about 2.9× as long as broad; the relative lengths of marginal, postmarginal and stigmal veins vary not only among specimens, but also among the two wings of the same specimen, but marginal vein always shorter than postmarginal vein, and stigmal vein longer than either ( Fig. 42 ). Hind wing about 4× as long as broad. Relative measurements (From card)—mesosoma length, 65; mesoscutum length (width), 31 (45); scutellum length (width), 29 (22); fore wing length (width), 81 (28). (From slide)—mid tibia length, 65; mid basitarsus length, 21; mid tibial spur length, 19.

Metasoma. Length of exserted part of ovipositor sheaths ( Fig. 43 ) varies depending on the size of the specimen and the state of preservation; in larger specimens (Body length, 2.0 mm) 0.84× gaster length, and in two smaller specimens, it is 0.75× (Body length, 1.85 mm) and 0.68× (Body length, 1.95 mm) gaster length; ovipositor, as seen through the derm, originates from about level of mid coxae; third valvula 0.75× second valvifer length; ovipositor 2.8× as long as mid tibia. Relative measurements (From slide)—TVII length, 65; ovipositor length, 184; third valvula length, 79.

Male. Unknown from Saudi Arabia .

Material examined. KSA: ASIR: Abha, Raidah, vi.2011, (MT), Coll. Z. Ahmad (3 ♀; one specimen with right antenna beyond F4, and two specimens with all antennae beyond pedicel, missing); Abha, KKU [King Khalid University] Campus, vi.2012, Coll. Z. Ahmad (1 ♀, on slide, EH.1502); Abha, Vill.[age] Garadh, 12.x.2012, (SN), Coll. Z. Ahmad (1 ♀) ( ZDAMU).

Distribution. Afrotropical ( Uganda); Palaearctic ( Saudi Arabia , present record).

Figures

FIGURES 41 – 43. Cerchysius ugandensis Kerrich. Female: 41, antenna; 42, part of fore wing; 43, gaster.