Pristocera levicollis ( Kieffer, 1905 ) Azevedo & Alencar, 2009

Azevedo, Celso O. & Alencar, Isabel D. C. C., 2009, Rediscovery of Pristepyris Kieffer (Hymenoptera, Bethylidae), a new synonym of Acrepyris Kieffer, Zootaxa 2287 (1), pp. 45-54 : 50-51

Pristocera levicollis ( Kieffer, 1905) comb. nov.

( Figs. 10–18 )

Pristepyris levicollis Kieffer 1905 , 29: 120–121 (male description); Kieffer 1908, 76: 21 (list); Kieffer 1914, 41: 421 (key), 422–423 (description); Gordh & Móczár 1990, 46: 139 (catalog); comb. nov.

Material examined. Holotype, male: Madagasc[ar], 20, Collection Ernest André, 1914 ( MNHN).

Diagnosis. Male. This species can be separated from all others by the medial clypeal rounded; the petiole being elongate; the apical margin of the paramere being strongly concave. Female unknown.

Description. Holotype male ( Fig. 10 ). Body length 4.7 mm. LFW 3.8 mm.

Color. Head and mesosoma black except pronotal collar and posterior end of pronotal disc dark castaneous, metasoma dark castaneous, antenna, mandible, legs and veins castaneous, wings sub-hyaline.

Head ( Fig. 11 ). Mandible with five sharpened apical teeth, superior one reduced ( Fig. 12 ). Clypeus large, with median lobe rounded, 0.5x as long as large; median carina conspicuous, high and arched in profile. Antenna short, 1.7 mm, reaching posterior end of pronotum; scape arched, widened distad; flagellomeres short; pubescence sub-erect with some setae erect, setae long. First four antennal segments ~7:2:3:4; segment XI 1.7x as long as wide. Frons coriaceous-punctate to punctulate. Frontal groove absent. Ocellar triangle not compact, elevate, frontal angle obtuse, ocelli small. Anterior ocellus placed slightly before to imaginary line of eye top. LH 1.0x WH; WF 0.6x WH; WF 1.2x HE; OOL 0.8x WOT; DAO 0.4x WOT; posterior ocellus distant from crest of vertex 2.2x DAO. Vertex convex; corner rounded; VOL 0.7 HE. Temple almost parallel. Occipital carina present ventrally and dorsally.

Mesosoma ( Figs. 13–15 ). Thorax dorsum shinny, punctulate, setae long. Pronotal disc trapezoidal; side slightly concave; anterior margin carinate ( Fig. 13 ); anterior region slightly elevate medially with rounded top. Notaulus conspicuous, incomplete anteriorly, convergent posteriorly, gradually wider posteriorly, gradually deeper posteriorly, polished inside, not reaching anterior and posterior margin of mesoscutum. Parapsidal furrow incomplete and inconspicuous anteriorly, straight, narrow, very shallow. Lateral of mesoscutum elevate without fovea anteriorly ( Fig. 13 ). Scutellar groove deep, narrow, concave, dilated laterally. Metanotum with large median elevation; median fovea sub-rectangular; metanotal groove foveolate laterally, first one very large and triangular, not punctulate inside, other ones rectangular and narrower than first one. Propodeal disc 0.8x as long as wide, anterior carina wide, disc rugulose at median anteriorly, strigulate laterally and posteriorly; spiracle bacile-shaped, slightly arched, placed completely at disc. Lateral of propodeum strigulate. Declivity of propodeum weak, convex in lateral view, imbricate and areolate dorsally. Mesopleuron with subtegular groove dilated anteriorly and uniformly narrow posteriorly, foveolate inside; episternal groove continuous to subtegular one, foveolate; mesopleural callus elevate, polished and shinning; anterior region strongly punctuate to puncticulate posteriorly, median region with large and shallow pit ( Fig. 14 ). Pleurosternum with heart-shaped groove weakly defined; acetabular carina wide medially followed by large foveae ( Fig. 15 ). Tarsal claws trifid, teeth sharpened.

Wings. Fore wing with radial vein long and slightly curved forward; metacarpus present, shorter than stigma, 0.7x as long as stigma; basal vein truncate and inclined; stigma wide and elongate. Hind wing with five apical hamuli.

Metasoma. Petiole 2x as long as wide. Gaster shinning, puncticulate to imbricate-puncticulate, setose laterally from IV tergite. Hypopygium deeply divided, densely setose apically, inner margin irregularly dentate, lateral margin with median slight concavity ( Fig. 16 ). Genitalia ( Figs. 17–18 ): paramere bilaminar, placed dorsally, slightly convex, as long as basiparamere; apical margin strongly concave in lateral view, dorsal projection 1.5x as long as ventral one; ventral and dorsal margin sinuous; external surface not densely setose. Basiparamere with dorsal margin slightly concave. Basivolsella surpassing ventral margin of basiparamere, margin almost straight. Digitus large, apical margin dentate, apex sharpened and arched basad. Cuspis long, narrow, sides parallel, apex convex, base elongate and twisted dorsad and basad. Aedeagus divided into two laminae; dorsal lamina with apex divided into two pairs of apical lobes, outer lobe divided medially, lateral margin with subapical concavity, apex narrow and projected ventrad, inner lobe membranous; ventral lamina with lateral margin sinuous, apex hyaline. Genital ring wide ventrally. Basal ring absent. Apodeme extending beyond genital ring.

Remarks. This species is easitly recognized as belonging to Pristocerinae by having the metanotum well developed medially. Within this subfamily, there are several characters, which when combined place this species in Pristocera . Namely, the mandibles are wide apically with five apical teeth, the genal area lacks a spine, the forewings have the subdiscoidal and the cubital veins barely visible and not reaching the apex of the wing, and the hypopygium is divided in lobes.

There are only five genera of Pristocerinae with the hypopygium divided into two lobes ( Dicrogenium Stadelmann , Neodicrogenium Benoit , Diepyris Benoit , Kathepyris Kieffer and Pristocera ). However Dicrogenium , Neodicrogenium and Diepyris are highly autapomorphic and easily recognized. Dicrogenium and Neodicrogenium have a large genal spine on the head, whereas Diepyris has the mandible sickle-shaped with only two apical teeth. Kathepyris and Pristocera are two closely related genera, but Kathepyris has the forewings with subdiscoidal and cubital veins reaching apical margin of the wing, so that the only genus with the combination of all characters cited above is Pristocera .

Given this argument, we propose a new combination of Pristepyris levicollis as Pristocera levicollis .

Figures

FIGURE 10. Habitus of Pristocera levicollis (Kieffer, 1905) comb. nov.

FIGURES 11–15. Pristocera levicollis (Kieffer, 1905) comb. nov. 11, head in dorsal view; 12, mandible; 13–15, mesosoma; 13, dorsal view; 14, lateral view; 15, ventral view.

FIGURES 16–18. Pristocera levicollis (Kieffer, 1905) comb. nov. 16, hypopigium, ventral view; 17–18, genitalia; 17, ventral view; 18, dorsal view.