Cercobelus epimetheus, Noyes, 2023

Noyes, John Stuart, 2023, ENCYRTIDAE OF COSTA RICA (HYMENOPTERA: CHALCIDOIDEA), 4 Subfamily Encyrtinae: tribes Arrhenophagini, Habrolepidini, Cerapterocerini, Cheiloneurini, Trechnitini, Cercobelini, Polaszekiini, Protyndarichoidini, Gahaniellini and Syrphophagini (part), mainly primary parasitoids and hyperparasitoids of Coccoidea and Psylloidea (Hemiptera), Taxonomic Monographs on Neotropical Hymenoptera (Oxford, England) 2 (11), pp. 1-921 : 611-613

Cercobelus epimetheus sp.nov.

(Figs 1626-1634; Hab. E 242, G 243)

DIAGNOSIS. Female (length about 1.9-2.0mm): antenna (Fig. 1626) with scape pale orange; wings (Fig. 1627) hyaline; all coxae dark brown; fore and mid femora mostly dark brown; hind tibia largely dark brown, distinctly white at base; scape (Fig. 1626) about 3.7X as long as broad; pedicel about 1.6X as long as broad; F1 quadrate, F2-F4 slightly longer than broad; F1 without linear sensilla; mandible (Fig. 1630) with 1 very short obtuse tooth and a broad truncation with a finely serrate margin; fore wing with marginal vein (Fig. 1628) punctiform; hind wing about 4X as long as broad; propodeum medially with irregular sculpture, spiracle separated from anterior margin of propodeum by about 0.7X its own diameter; apex of syntergum (Fig. 1634) rasp-like; hypopygium (Fig. 1629) not longitudinally divided and with short anterior apodemes. Male (length about 1.6-1.8mm): hind tibia brown with a well-defined white, basal band; fore wing hyaline; head in facial view with eyes kidney-shaped; setae on funicle about 2X as long as diameter of segments (Fig. 1631); costal cell of fore wing mostly with a single line of setae ventrally.

Female (holotype): length 1.95mm (CPD).

Head black and slightly shiny, interantennal prominence with a weak purple sheen; radicle pale orange mixed dark brown; antenna (Fig. 1626) with scape pale orange, slightly dusky proximally; pedicel largely pale orange, dark brown proximally; flagellum pale orange, but slightly dusky dorsally, terminal segment of clava slightly dusky; maxillary palpus white; thorax black and slightly shiny; mesoscutum and tegula with a dull dark blue and weak purple sheen; axilla slightly shiny; scutellum shiny with a brassy and very weak purple sheen, very weakly green at extreme apex; mesopleuron with a weak purple and brassy sheen; all coxae very dark brown; fore femur dark brown, extreme apices pale orange, tibia dark brown, apices pale orange, tarsus orange-brown, basitarsus pale orange; mid femur with proximal 0.4X white, apex very dark brown, tibia with proximal 0.4X white, apex very pale orange, remainder very dark brown, spur white, tarsus with proximal 3 tarsomeres white, apical tarsomeres dark brown; hind femur very dark brown, tibia with proximal 0.3X white, remainder very dark brown, tarsus very dark brown; wings (Fig. 1627) hyaline; propodeum dark brown and slightly shiny; gaster dark brown, slightly shiny with a weak purple sheen, with some coppery, green and blue reflections; gonostylus dark brown.

Head (Fig. 1630) about 1.6X as wide as frontovertex, in profile about 1.8X as high as deep, more or less evenly convexly rounded from occipital margin to top of scrobes, then straight to mouth margin; occipital margin sharp, carinate; ocelli forming an angle of about 130°; frontovertex shiny, in ocellar area with moderately deep, regular, polygonally reticulate sculpture of mesh size subequal to eye facet, of larger mesh in front of anterior ocellus; temple with longitudinally elongate, polygonally reticulate to striate sculpture; gena with shallow, polygonally reticulate sculpture; eye separated from occipital margin by about 1.5X diameter of posterior ocellus or 5X diameter of facet, slightly kidney shaped with inner margin sinuate, clothed with inconspicuous, sparse, pale setae that are each a little longer than diameter of facet; scrobes shallow, broadly ∩-shaped, virtually smooth but with shallow, polygonally reticulate sculpture; interantennal prominence weak, dorsally rounded, with moderately deep, polygonally reticulate sculpture; lower margin of torulus about level with lower eye margin; antenna as in Fig. 1626; scape slightly broadened, about 3.7X as long as broad; pedicel about 1.6X as long as broad; F1 more or less quadrate, relatively small, F2-F4 slightly longer than broad, linear sensilla present only on F2-F4; clava slightly longer than F2-F4 combined; clypeal margin slightly protuberant medially, tentorial pit clearly visible below torulus. Relative measurements: HW 92, HH 78, FV 58, POL 26, OOL 16, OCL 9, AOL 11, EL 49, EW 29, MS 13, SL 33.5, SW 9.

Thorax in dorsal view with pronotum slightly elongate, a large part visible behind head, with posterior margin hardly concave; pronotum with fairly regular, polygonally reticulate sculpture, of mesh size similar to that in ocellar area, but conspicuously shallower; mesoscutum with similar sculpture to that on frontovertex in front of anterior ocellus; axilla with transversely elongate, polygonally reticulate sculpture of similar mesh size and depth to that on pronotum; scutellum with irregular, polygonally reticulate sculpture of similar mesh size to that on mesoscutum, but conspicuously shallower, apex and side virtually completely smooth and shiny; visible part of mesoscutum about 1.6X as broad as long and medially very nearly 2X as long as pronotum; scutellum about as broad as long; fore wing with venation and distribution of setae as in Figs 1627, 1628; marginal vein punctiform; propodeum medially about 0.23X as long as scutellum and virtually smooth, with very shallow, irregular, sculpture, spiracle separated from anterior margin of propodeum by about 0.7X its own diameter. Relative measurements: FWL 109.5, FWW 44; HWL 77, HWW 19.5.

Gaster very slightly shorter than thorax, syntergum about 0.5X as long as mid tibia, apex tapering, acute and with dense, short, peg-like structures forming a rough, rasp-like structure (Fig. 1634).

Paratype. Mandible with 1 very short more or less obtuse tooth and a broad truncation with a finely serrate edge; hypopygium (Fig. 1629) not longitudinally divided and with short anterior apodemes; ovipositor Fig. 1632. Relative measurements: OL 56.5 [MT 120].

Variation. Females vary in overall length from 1.87-1.95mm, the flagellum may be completely pale brown, otherwise very little variation in material available.

Male: length 1.61-1.68mm (CPD).

Generally very similar to female but for structure of antenna (Fig. 1631) and genitalia (Fig. 1633). Eye relatively shorter, about 1.7X as long as malar space with straight inner margin; hind tibia brown with a well-defined white, basal band; fore wing hyaline; head in facial view with eyes kidney-shaped; setae on funicle (Fig. 1631) about 2X as long as diameter of segments; costal cell of fore wing mostly with a single line of setae ventrally; gaster without rasp-like structure on apex of syntergum. Relative measurements: AL 48.5, MT 113.5.

DISTRIBUTION. Costa Rica.

HOSTS. Unknown.

MATERIAL EXAMINED.

Type material. Holotype E: COSTA RICA, Heredia, 6km ENE Vara Blanca , 10°11’N 84°07’W, 2000m, 20/M/TN, iii.2002 (INBio-OET-ALAS) . Paratypes: COSTA RICA, 2E, 2G, Heredia, 6km ENE Vara Blanca , 10°11’N 84°07’W, 2000m, 20/M/NOTN, iii.2002 and iv.2002 (INBio-OET-ALAS); 1G, Heredia , 6km ENE Vara Blanca , 10°11’N 84°07’W, 2000m, 20/M/TN, iv.2002 (INBio-OET-ALAS) . Holotype in MZUCR, paratypes in MZUCR and NHMUK .

COMMENTS. Probably the easiest species of the genus to identify because of the presence of the rasp-like structure on the apex of the syntergum. This appears to be unique within the Encyrtidae