Shawius diiorioi Martínez, 2016

Martínez, Juan José, 2016, New records of doryctine wasps (Hymenoptera: Braconidae) from Argentina, with the description of Shawius diiorioi Martínez sp. nov., Zootaxa 4168 (2), pp. 347-352 : 349-352

Shawius diiorioi Martínez sp. nov.

( Figs 4–12 )

Diagnosis. This species can be easily distinguished from S. braziliensis by its mostly smooth vertex and temples with a few shallow striations, the smooth mesoscutal lobes, dorsal surface of the propodeum and basal ¼ of tergum I, and by the darker body colour with center of mesoscutum and apex of metasoma black or blackish.

Female: Body length: 7.5–9.3 mm.

Colour: Head, pronotum, propleuron, subalar area, subalar groove, notauli, central area of mesoscutum, scutellum and apex of metasoma black; lateral lobes and anterior area of central lobe of mesoscutum, central and ventral areas of mesopleuron, center of propodeum and most of metasoma reddish. Antennae and legs dark brown with trochantelli, base and apex of tibiae and tarsi lighter. Wings infuscate except for the bright and yellow parastigma in the fore wing, veins dark brown.

Head: Moderately transverse, about 0.7 × as long as wide ( Fig. 5 ); with 44–45 antennomeres; oral opening, approximately as long as malar space; eye moderate sized, twice as long as malar space; occipital carina reaching hypostomal carina; face rugose to areolate-rugose ( Fig. 7 ); frons strigate; vertex mostly smooth, with very weak transverse striations ( Fig. 6 ); temple smooth.

Mesosoma: More than twice as long as high. Pronotal collar lengthened but slightly shorter than first flagellomere; pronotal groove deep and scrobiculate. Mesoscutum slightly declivous anteriorly; with notauli distinct and scrobiculate, obscured posteriorly in a rugose median area, lateral and median lobes of mesoscutum weakly coriaceous to smooth, dorsal surface of median lobe smooth; prescutellar furrow crossed by several carinae; scutellar disc very weakly coriaceous to smooth; propodeum ( Fig. 6 ) with a poorly defined median carina basally, weakly areolate-rugose medially and laterally with two smooth basolateral areas; mesopleuron smooth, subalar groove deep and scrobiculate, precoxal sulcus almost as long as mesopleuron and scrobiculate; metapleuron smooth anteriorly and rugose posteriorly.

Legs: Fore tibia with a row of five to six spines; hind coxa with a distinct basal tooth.

Wings: Fore wing ( Fig. 8 ) with parastigma swollen and longer than vein r; 3RS slightly longer than vein r; vein 2cu-a absent, thus first subdiscal cell open at apex; vein (RS+M)b short but distinct; hind wing ( Fig. 9 ) with vein M+CU longer than 1M, vein 1M three times the length of vein r-m, hind wing vein m-cu slightly directed towards wing base.

Metasoma: Metasomal tergum I 1.2–1.5 × longer than its apical width; striate-rugose, except on basal ¼ which is smooth; with a raised median area delimited by carinae, dorsope distinct; basal sternal plate about one fifth the length of tergum I; terga II and III costate-rugose and separated by a sinuate furrow; remainder of terga costaterugose basally and coriaceous apically; ovipositor sheaths approximately as long as total body lenght.

Male: The male of Sahwius diiorioi ( Fig. 11 ) is similar to female but is distinctly smaller, 5.4–5.6 mm long, has 35–36 antennomeres and a very large and conspicous pterostigma-like swelling on the hind wing veins ( Fig. 12 ).

Biology. This species was reared from dead branches of Acacia visco (Fabaceae) , Celtis tala and C. spinosa (Celtidaceae) .

Etymology. I am very pleased to name this species after Dr Osvaldo Di Iorio, the collector of most of the specimens studied in this work.

Material examined. ARGENTINA: Holotype female ( MACN)— Buenos Aires, Otamendi , 20-IX-1994, Di Iorio col., from dead branches of Celtis tala Gill . Paratypes ( MACN) — one female, same data as holotype; one female and two males, Buenos Aires, Ruta 2 km 83.5, 8-X-1992, Di Iorio col., from dead branches of Celtis tala Gill. ; one female , Buenos Aires, F.C.G.B. km 26, 20-X-1990, Di Iorio col., from dead branches of Celtis spinosa Spr. ; one female , La Rioja, Anillaco , 22-III-1 998, Di Iorio col., from cut branches of Acacia visco .

Variability. In the males and one female from La Rioja, the propodeum is almost uniformly areolate-rugose with no clearly defined smooth areas, but the weakly sculptured vertex and colour pattern should suffice to separate them from S. braziliensis .

Comments. The male of Shawius runs to couplet 93 in the key to New World genera of the subfamily Doryctinae ( Marsh 1997) , which can be modified as follows:

93. Metasomal tergum II with median semi-circular rugose area at base delimited by divergent grooves laterally and transverse sinuate groove apically................................................................... Leluthia Cameron - Tergum II without clearly delimited semicircular area at base.................................................. 94 94. Parastigma of fore wing large and swollen, longer than r and yellow, pterostigma brown, metasomal tergum II without divergent grooves.............................................................................. Shawius Marsh - Parastigma of fore wing small and brown, shorter than r, metasomal tergum II with a pair of divergent grooves laterally...................................................................................... Glyptocolastes Ashmead

Figures

FIGURES 3 – 9. Shawius spp.; 3, head and mesoscutum of Shawius braziliensis Marsh in dorsal view; 4 – 9 Shawius diiorioi Martínez sp. nov., 4 habitus of female in lateral view; 5, head in dorsal view; 6, head in anterior view; 7 mesoscutum in dorsal view; 8, fore wing; 9, hind wing.

FIGURES 10 – 12. Shawius diiorioi Martínez sp. nov.; 10, metasoma of female in dorsal view; 11, habitus of male in lateral view; 12, hind wing of male.