Stadima, 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 : 174

Genus STADIMA gen.nov.

Type species: Stadima moros sp.nov. Gender feminine.

Female. Length about 1.7mm.

Body generally dark brown to black with a metallic green sheen mixed with some brassy and coppery areas; tegula dark brown; legs mostly yellow to pale orange with some dark brown areas; wings virtually hyaline; wing venation pale yellow-brown.

Head about 4X as wide as frontovertex, in profile frontovertex and face both quite flat and forming an angle of about 100° at top of scrobes; occipital margin acute and sharp; malar sulcus absent; clypeal margin very slightly emarginate medially; frontovertex, excluding setae long eye margin, naked in front of anterior ocellus; antennal scrobes shallow, but well defined, broadly ∩-shaped, more or less meeting; antenna attached near mouth margin, well below lowest eye margin, separated from mouth margin by less than half length of torulus; scape strongly broadened and flattened, less than 2X as long as broad, dorsal margin distinctly convexly curved, widest in middle; pedicel about 2.5X as long as broad; funicle segments subequal but gradually increasing in width distally; F1 clearly longer than broad and F6 quadrate, linear sensilla absent from proximal segments; clava slightly wider than funicle, 3-segmented, apical sensory area slightly enlarged forming an oblique truncation; eye reaching occipital margin, clothed in inconspicuous, translucent setae that are clearly shorter than diameter of facet; mandible with 3 teeth, upper tooth short and rounded or truncate; palp formula 4-3.

Thorax with pronotum short and hardly visible behind head, posterior margin strongly concave; dorsum of thorax flat in profile; notaular lines absent; scutellum quite flat, apex and side smooth and shiny, apex acute and slightly overhanging the propodeum medially; mid tibia slightly swollen subbasally, spur about as long as basitarsus; hind femur relatively broadened and flattened; fore wing about 2.8X as long as broad; costal cell dorsally with a single line of setae in apical half, ventrally with a single line of setae; parastigma hardly swollen, hardly downcurved; junction of submarginal and marginal veins with a hyaline break; marginal vein about 6X as long a broad, slightly longer than stigmal vein and about 2.5X as long as postmarginal vein; uncus developed; basal cell evenly setose, linea calva entire, more or less open; filum spinosum present, represented by 6 modified setae; mesopleuron not quite reaching level with posterior margin of propodeum, so that in profile the propodeum is narrowly in contact with hind coxa, the two together separating mesopleuron from base of gaster; propodeum medially less than one-fifth length of scutellum; about 35 dense, silvery setae surrounding spiracle, extending towards posterior margin, but not extending down side.

Gaster slightly longer than head and thorax combined; hypopygium ( Fig. 442) V-shaped and reaching apex, extending very slightly past apex of syntergum; ovipositor ( Fig. 444) slightly exserted with exserted part shorter than mid tibial spur; second valvifer without any subapical setae; gonostylus free, relatively broad and elongate with apex slightly downcurved; outer plates slender and ribbon like, not triangular, with a single subapical seta.

Male. Unknown.

DISTRIBUTION. Costa Rica.

HOSTS. Unknown.

COMMENTS. The tridentate mandible, pale wing venation, relatively slender fore wing and elongate marginal vein, suggest a possible relationship with Mahencyrtus and Georynus (tribe Cheiloneurini ). However, the strongly broadened and flattened scape with a convex dorsal margin, scutellum with shallow sculpture with apex slightly overhanging the propodeum medially, hypopygium V-shaped and reaching the apex of the gaster and unusual structure of the ovipositor clearly separates Stadima from these and other genera.