Pristonesia oracil Azevedo & Colombo, 2022

Azevedo, Celso O. & Colombo, Wesley D., 2022, Revision of Pristonesia (Hymenoptera, Bethylidae, Pristocerinae), an endemic Afrotropical genus, Zootaxa 5124 (3), pp. 321-340 : 326-327

Pristonesia oracil Azevedo & Colombo , sp. nov.

Figs 1D–F , 4D–F

Diagnosis. This species differs from the others of the genus by having the harpe with an extra median apical projection and the lobes of posterior hypopygeal margin the conical spine.

Description. Male. Body 3.9–4.6 mm long. Forewing 3.1–3.7 mm long.Antenna 2.0– 2.3 mm long. Color. Head and mesosoma black; clypeus dark castaneous, lighter subapically; antenna castaneous; palpi light castaneous to castaneous; mandible castaneous with dark castaneous margins; legs pale castaneous to light castaneous; metasoma dark castaneous; wings subhyaline, veins dark castaneous, pterostigma darker.

Head. Heptagonal, about as long as wide. Mandible with five teeth, two ventral most sharpened and larger, otherwise rounded and short, progressively increasing in length ventrad. Clypeus with median lobe rounded, with minute median tooth; median carina complete, somewhat high and straight in lateral. Antenna with dense suberect pubescence, about as long as half flagellomeral diameter, with some outstanding erect setae on first five flagellomeres; first four antennomeres in a ratio of about 20:4:11:12. Vertex crest mostly straight. Temple evenly little outcurved, progressively divergent anterad. Antennal rim about as long as wide, inter-torular space about 2 × torular diameter. Frons polished, with very few small punctures. Ocellar triangle with frontal angle acute, anterior ocellus fully posterior to supra-ocular line. Occipital carina partially visible on dorsal view.

Mesosoma . Dorsal pronotal area polished, with some irregularly sized large punctures, shorter than anteromesoscutum, posterior area much wider than anterior one, surface slightly depressed anterad, transverse pronotal carina crossing all anterior border, somewhat high and slightly twisted; cervical pronotal area vertical, polished. Notauli well impressed, reaching anterior margin of anteromesoscutum and almost reaching posterior one, straight, slightly wider posteriorly, converging posterad. Parapsidal signums well impressed, but missing anteriorly, very poorly S-shaped. Mesoscutum-mesoscutellar sulcus evenly arched, narrower medially. Metascutellum polished, lateral margin incurved, surface convex; metascutellar fovea semicircular, metanotal fovea indistinguishable from metanotal trough; carinae of metanotal trough weak. Metapectal-propodeal disc rugulose on metapostnotal area, and anteriorly polished and posteriorly alveolate on propodeal area, about 1.0 × as long as wide, metapostnotal median carina complete, but not well-delimited posteriorly, lateral marginal carina indistinguishable from background texture. Propodeal declivity irregularly alveolate. Lateral surface of metapectal-propodeal complex mostly confused alveolate strigulate, except strigulate on extreme anterior. Mesopleuron sparsely foveolate on polished background, callus contrastingly smooth, posterior oblique sulcus subvertical, occupying only median third of mesopleural height and not well-delimited. Mesodiscrimen with surface concave. Metasternum with somewhat high posterior margin and with median pair of dentiform projection.

Wings and legs. Forewing with poststigmal abscissa of radial 1 as long as pterostigma, 2r-rs&Rs vein evenly arched, but slightly notched where 2r-rs sector connects to Rs sector; anterior medial flexion line long and posterior medial 1 flexion line short, m-cu flexion line S-shaped, cubital flexion line absent, claval flexion line strong, r-m flexion line almost straight. Hind wing with three equidistant basal hamuli, and six equidistant distal hamuli. Claws bifid, teeth sharp and curved, basal one smaller.

Metasoma. Opening of spiracle of metasomal segment I elliptical and subdorsal. Tergum I 1.8 × as long as tergum II. Sternum II ecarinate. Epipygium unusually wide apically so that its lateral margins touch each other ventrally, posterior margin slightly excavated where epipygium folds ventrad, and with median small emargination. Hypopygium with spiculum long and sharp tip, about half as long as whole hypopygeal plate, anteromedial apodeme spine-shaped and short, anterolateral apodeme sharp expansion-shaped, anterior margin strongly double u-shaped, posterior margin strongly excavated forming two round lobes, excavation about three fourths as long as hypopygeal plate, each lobe with small conical median spine fully dorsad, thick median area of inner surface small and progressively narrowing anterad.

Genitalia. Harpe very narrow basally, progressively widening apicad, apical margin with two large conical expansions ventrad, one at inner corner and other medially; inner margin of ventral side of gonostipes with inconspicuous basal callus, and with conspicuous set of long basal setae; apical basivolsellar expansion large with high conical inner corner projected apicad; cuspis cross-section flat, not cylindrical, S-shaped, apex sharp; digitus angled basally, surface flat and concave, apex finely canaliculate and membranous; aedeagus triangular with wide base in dorsal profile, ventral valve not membranous, very short, apex somewhat truncate with rounded corners, wide and aligned with base of basivolsella, dorsal valve much longer ventral one, its apical membranous extension conspicuously longer than wide, cat whisker-shaped set of setae varying from short to long, and dense; aedeagal apodeme strongly arched mesad, ergot small and sharp; genital ring strongly incurved ventrally.

Material examined. Holotype, Uganda, ♂, Kibale National Park, Kanyawara, Makerere University Biological Field Station , 1494m, 0º34.808’N 30º21.873’E, 12-26.viii.2008, S. van Noort, UG08 -KF5-M15, Malaise trap, secondary mid-altitude Rainforest, marshy area. ( SAMC) . Paratypes: 1♂, same data of holotype ( SAMC) ; 1♂, 1495m, 0º33.996’N 30º21.262’E, 29-31.vii.2005, UG05 -M02, secondary mid-altitude Rainforest; 3♂, 1498m, 0º33.960’N 30º21.267’E, 12-26.viii.2008, UG08 -KF1-M11, secondary mid-altitude Rainforest; 1♂, 1495m, 0º33.871’N 30º21.355’E, 12-26.viii.2008, UG08 -KF2-M12, secondary mid-altitude Rainforest; 2♂, 1506m, 0º33.891’N 30º21.468’E, 12-26.viii.2008, UG08 - KF7-M17, primary mid-altitude Rainforest, all S. van Noort, Malaise trap ( SAMC) 1♂, Kenya, Kakamega Forest , 0º14.13’N 34º51.87’E, 21-28. V .2000, Malaise trap, R . Copeland ( ICIPE); Central African Republic, Prefecture Sangha-Mbaéré, Réserve Spéciale de Forêt Dense de Dzanga-Sangha , 12.7km 326º NW Bayanga , 3º00.27’N 16º11.55’E, 420m, Lowland Rainforest, S. van Noort , 1♂, 17.v.2001, Sweep, CAR 01-S194 , 2♂, 16-17.v.2001, Malaise trap, 12–13.v.2001, Malaise trap, CAR 01-M101, CAR 01-M148 , 1♂, 16-17.v.2001, Malaise trap, CAR 01-M152 ( SAMC) ; 1♂, Prefecture Sangha-Mbaéré, Parc National de Dzanga-Ndoki , Mabéa Bai , 21.4km 53º NE Bayanga, 3º02.01’N 16º24.57’E, 510m, 4-5.v.2001, S. van Noort, Malaise trap, CAR01-M41, Lowland Rainforest , marsh clearing ( SAMC); Gabon, Prov. Ogooué-Maritime, Réserve des Monts Doudou , 25.2km 304º NW Doussala, 2º13.63’S 10º23.67’E, 660m, S. van Noort , 1♂, 15-16.iii.2000, Malaise trap, GA00-M66, Lowland Rainforest, summit ridge SAM-HYM-P0024136 ( SAMC) , 1♂, 15.iii.2000, Sweep, GA 00- S98, Lowland Rainforest, undergrowth, low canopy in forest, SAM-HYM-P0024119 ( SAMC) .

Variations. The paratypes are very similar to the holotype, the specimen from Uganda is smaller, with the body 3.9 mm long.

Distribution. Central African Republic, Gabon, Kenya, Uganda.

Figures

FIGURE 1. A–C. Pristonesia nyamuragira Benoit; D–F. Pristonesia oracil sp. nov.; G–I. Pristonesia parcetil sp. nov.. A, D, G. Habitus, lateral view; B, E, H. Head, dorsal view; C, F, I. Mesosoma dorsal view. Scale bars = 100 µm.

FIGURE 4. A–C. Pristonesia nyamuragira Benoit; D–F. Pristonesia oracil sp. nov.; G–I. Pristonesia parcetil sp. nov., J-L. Pristonesia querfil sp. nov.. A, D, G, J. Hypopygium, external view; B, E, H, K. Genitalia, dorsal view; C, F, I, L. Genitalia, ventral view. Black = cupula; dark grey = ventral valvae; light grey = apical membranous bubble. Scale bars = 100 µm.