Glyptapanteles hypermnestrae Gupta & Pereira

Gupta, Ankita & Pereira, Blaise, 2012, A new species of Glyptapanteles (Hymenoptera: Braconidae: Microgastrinae), a larval parasitoid of Elymnias hypermnestra (Linnaeus) (Lepidoptera: Nymphalidae), along with some new host records of parasitoids from Peninsular India, Zootaxa 3227, pp. 54-63 : 55-59

Glyptapanteles hypermnestrae Gupta & Pereira , sp. nov.

Plates. I, II & III.

Female. Body length = 2.40–2.67 mm.

Body colour: Fore and mid legs light yellow, coxae and tarsal claws brownish. Fore and mid coxa with a yellow infuscation at apical end. Hind coxa blackish brown except a yellow infuscation apically, hind trochanter and hind femur (except at extreme apical end- light brown) light yellow, hind tibia yellow with brown infuscation on anterior ¼ and tarsal segments, tarsal claws dark brown.

Metasoma light yellow, 1st tergal plate and 2nd tergum median part dorsally, 3rd tergum medially with brown infuscation, posterior one third of metasoma brown. Antenna brownish yellow, palpi testaceous, labrum & tegula light yellow, ovipositor dark brown. Scape yellow (except apical edge brownish black), pedicel brownish yellow and remainder of antenna brownish yellow; ocelli yellowish; tarsal claws brownish black.

Wings hyaline, fore wing veins translucent except dark brown pterostigma and C+SC+R with very light brown colour; hind wing veins translucent.

Head. Head height /width=0.8; compound eye height = 0.36–0.37 mm; intertentorial pit distance = 0.165–0.17 mm; tentorial pit distance/distance tentorial pit to compound eye = 0.048–0.05; width of face at dorsal clypeal edge = 0.28–0.29 mm; clypeus width = 0.69–0.7; vertex width /distance between anterior ocelli and edge of torulus = 2.3; length of first flagellomere = 0.168–0.17 mm; length of second flagellomere= 0.165–0.168 mm; length of third flagellomere = 0.162–0.164 mm; terminal flagellomere length = 0.155–0.157 mm; penultimate flagellomere length= 0.088–0.09 mm =; terminal flagellomere length/width =3.75; malar space height/basal width of mandible=0.12; ocell-ocular distance/lateral ocelli distance =0.9

Clypeus with punctulate sculpture denser medially; face with dense fine punctate sculpture, frons laterally with fine punctate sculpture and dense near the scrobes, vertex with dense punctulate sculpture.

Mesosoma . Mesosoma length = 0.61–0.62 mm; mesosoma length/width = 0.82.

Mesonotum with dense punctate sculpture that almost reaches the scutellar groove; Scuto-scutellar groove distinctly crenulate with nine deep costulae; scutellum medial area essentially nitid, scutellum lateral area with costulate sculpture which become narrower and elongated towards posterior edge; metanotum subrectangular; propodeum with lateral longitudinal carinae inclined medially, areola absent; spiracles large and round. Hind femur length = 0.60–0.62 mm; hind femur length/width = 3.1; hind tibia length/hind femur length = 1.16.

PLATE I. 1–5. (1) Unparasitized larva of Elymnias hypermnestra . (2) Parasitized larva of E. hypermnestra . (3) Yellow cocoons of G. hypermnestrae associated with E. hypermnestra . (4) Dorsal view of adult of G. hypermnestrae , female. (5) Lateral view of adult of G. hypermnestrae , female.

PLATE II. 6–11. Glyptapanteles hypermnestrae sp. nov. (6) Head frontal view, female. (7) Antennae with part of head capsule, female. (8) Mesosoma , female. (9) Fore wing, female. (10) Propodeum, female. (11) Hind wing, female.

PLATE III. 12–16. Glyptapanteles hypermnestrae sp. nov. (12) Mid leg, female. (13) Metasoma, male. (14) Metasoma, female. (15) Ovipositor, dorsal view. (16) Ovipositor, lateral view.

Wings. Fore wing length = 2.16–2.18 mm; 1RS length = 0.144-0.148 mm; 1CUa length/1CUb length = 0.74; length RS+Ma = 0.81–0.82 mm; length M+CU = 1.69–1.70 mm; pterostigma length/height = 1.3. Hind wing: 1M length = 0.31–0.32 mm; 1M length/M+CU length= 0.91; length r-m/length cu-a= 0.44–0.51; 1A length = 0.20– 0.21 mm.

Metasoma. First tergum basal width = 0.20–0.21 mm; first tergum length/distal width = 1.6; second tergum length/distal width = 0.4; hypopygium length = 0.34–0.35 mm.

First metasomal tergum brown and nitid; widest pre-apically; apically narrower and curvaceous; medially with a shallow curve similar to inverted “U” shape; without any noticeable sculpture except for some fine striations preapically. Second metasomal tergum brown and nitid; subrectangular; ovipositor short and thick at base, barely exserted from hypopygium. Ovipositor sheaths broad in lateral view; hypopygium short in length, ovipositor sheath with setation only at distal 1/3; setae long and scattered.

Male. Similar to female.

Distribution. India: Maharashtra

Material examined. Holotype, female on card, INDIA, Maharashtra, Mumbai, Borivli, 11.x.2011, emerged from parasitized larvae of Elymnias hypermnestra caterpillar on coconut, leg. Blaise Pereira. Paratypes two females and six males on card and two females and males, dissected, on slide, with same data as holotype. All types deposited in National Bureau of Agriculturally Important Insects ( NBAII), Bangalore, India. Code 111011.

Comments. The most distinctive characters include yellow silken cocoons. Antenna with scape yellow (except apical edge brownish black); scuto-scutellar groove distinctly crenulate with nine deep costulae; mid legs light yellow (except coxae and tarsal claws brownish). Propodeum smooth and nitid with shallow lateral longitudinal carinae inclined medially, areola absent; spiracles conspicuously large and round. First metasomal tergum brown and nitid; widest pre-apically; apically narrower and curvaceous at the edges; medially with a shallow dent or curve similar to inverted “U” shape; without any noticeable sculpture except for some fine striations pre-apically. Ovipositor broad in lateral view and ovipositor sheaths covered with long setae in distal 1/3.

Discussion. Resembles G. spodopterae Ahmad et al. in having a row of long hairs on basal half of hind wing. Differs in having mid femur entirely yellow (mid femur entirely black in G. spodopterae ). Also differs in having metasomal tergum II more or less sub rectangular and about 2.5 times as broad apically as long medially (tergum II triangular and about 2 times as broad apically as long medially in G. spodopterae ). Cocoons are gregarious and yellow in colour (cocoons are white in colour in G. spodopterae ).

G. hypermnestrae is also compared with the description of G. “ melanitisi ” and it differs in rugosity of first tergum which is almost smooth except for some very fine striations pre apically. (tergum I rugose in G. “ melanitisi ”). Also the apex first tergite is much wider. (tergum I much narrower apically in G. “ melanitisi ”) Second tergite smooth and subrectangular (much more rugulose and triangular in G. “ melanitisi ”).

In comparisons with Indian species G. bhupali it strongly differs in having smooth propodeum with lateral longitudinal carinae inclined medially, spiracles large and round, tergite I smooth and ovipositor sheath with many long setae scattered in distal half. (propodeum much more rugose and sculptured with median carina, spiracles small and oval, tergite I rugose-reticulate and ovipositor sheath with few distal setae in G. bhupali ).

Host Record. Elymnias hypermnestra larva ( Lepidoptera : Nymphalidae ) on coconut palm ( Cocos nucifera ).

Etymology. Gender, neutral. This species is named after the host E. hypermnestra .