Pholetesor teresitergum Liu & Chen

Liu, Zhen, He, Jun-Hua & Chen, Xue-Xin, 2016, The genus Pholetesor Mason, 1981 (Hymenoptera, Braconidae, Microgastrinae) from China, with descriptions of eleven new species, Zootaxa 4150 (4), pp. 351-387 : 382-384

Pholetesor teresitergum Liu & Chen , sp. n.

Figures 17 , 20

Description. Female. Body length ca. 1.7 mm, fore wing length ca. 1.9 mm.

Head. A little transverse in dorsal view, 1.9× wider than long and 1.3× wider than mesoscutum. Eye in dorsal view 1.6× longer than temple. Temple relatively shiny, with weak shallow punctures, not constricted. Face subquadrate, nearly 0.9× as high as wide, relatively dull, weakly bulging with short, weak sulcus medially, with even minute punctures, more pubescent, inner margin of eyes parallel. Ocelli relatively small, distance between fore and a hind ocellus distinctly larger than diameter of hind ocellus, POL:OD:OOL=3.0:1.5:3.0. Antenna 1.1× length of body, penultimate antennomere subcubic.

Mesosoma. Length: breadth: height=27.0:16.5:20.0. Disc of mesonotum dull with more distinct, satin-like sheen posteriorly, and fine, small punctures anteriorly, interspaces larger than diameter of punctures. Scutellar sulcus curved, narrow without carinae in between. Sculpture on scutellum as mesonotum. Postscutellum with a strong emargination between its middle point and forwarding-pointing projection, thus, phragma freely exposed. Propodeum slightly shiny, mostly polished. Mesopleuron highly polished, its anterior part with superficial, sparse punctuation.

Legs. Spines on outer side of hind tibia cattered. Spurs of hind tibia of equal size, 2/5× length of basitarsus. Hind basitarsus as long as tarsal segments 2–4 combined.

Wings. Pterostigma 2.6× as long as its widest part. Vein 1-R1 (metacarp) slightly longer than pterostigma, at most 3× as long as its distance from apex of marginal cell. Vein r arising from middle of pterostigma, slightly shorter than width of pterostigma, vein r slightly shorter than vein 2-SR, both veins weakly angled at their meeting, vein 2-M almost half of vein 2-SR. 1st discal cell 1.2× wider than high. 1st submarginal cell of hind wing 1.7× wider than high. Vein cu-a somewhat curved.

Metasoma. As long as thorax. T1 narrowing towards apex, and very long, 2.9× longer than hind broad, basal width 1.4× hind width, weakly concave at base, shiny, mostly polished, except faintly uneven to weakly strigose along sides. T2 subtriangular to trapezoidal, straight apically, 2× wider than long in the middle, slightly uneven but without sculpture. T3 1.7× as long as T2. Tergites after T2 relatively shiny, smooth, less pubescent. Hypopygium not longer than apex of abdomen. Ovipositor sheath shorter, its setaceous part about 3/4 length of hind basitarsus, subfusiform.

Colour. Body black. Palpi white. Tegula and spurs of hind tibia pale yellow. Antenna and ovipositor sheath brown. Labrum and mandible reddish yellow. Legs whitish yellow to yellow, except hind of hind tibia with tarsus somewhat brownish and hind coxa dark brown. Wing membrane hyaline, vein 1-R1, C+SC+R and border of pterostigma yellowish brown, pterostigma pale yellow, alar veins pale yellow to yellowish brown.

Male. Unknown.

Host. Unknown.

Material examined. Holotype: ♀, Wusu Palace, Xinjiang, 2004. VIII.10, Tuerxun , No. 200 600259 . Paratype: 1♀, West Mt. Tianmu, Linan, Zhejiang, 1984. VII.27, Wu Xiaojing , No. 844137.

Distribution. China (Xinjiang, Zhejiang).

Etymology. The specific name “ teresitergum ” derives from Latin adjective “teres” and noun “tergum”, referring to relatively smooth and polished tergites.

Remarks. This species is similar to P. arisba Nixon , except for the following: T1 not marked narrowing towards apex as in P. ar i s b a; apical T1 and T2 mostly smooth (the latter strongly rugose); and spurs of hind tibia of equal size (the latter with inner spur of hind tibia markedly longer than outer spur).

Figures

FIGURE 17. Pholetesor teresitergum Liu & Chen, sp. n. a mesonotum and scutellum, dorsal view; b head, dorsal view; c phragma; d head, frontal view; e habitus, lateral view; f fore wing; g propodeum and T 1 – 3, dorsal view; h hind wing. Scale line = 0.5 mm.

FIGURE 20. Distribution map of circumscriptus - group of Pholetesor species in China. •: Pholetesor acricauda Liu & Chen, sp. n.; ■: Pholetesor argyresthiae Liu & Chen, sp. n.; •: Pholetesor arisba (Nixon, 1973); Δ: Pholetesor circumscriptus Liu & Chen, sp. n.; Ŧ: Pholetesor confusus Liu & Chen, sp. n.; Ɨ: Pholetesor flaviparvus Liu & Chen, sp. n.; *: Pholetesor lithocolletis Liu & Chen, sp. n.; ♥: Pholetesor lyonetiae Liu & Chen, sp. n.; L: Pholetesor teresitergum Liu & Chen, sp. n.