Occipitotus langpramensis Singh & van Achterberg, 2022

Singh, Longjam Roni Kumar, Achterberg, C. Van & Sheela, S., 2022, Studies on the subfamily Exothecinae (Hymenoptera: Braconidae) with the description of a new genus and a new species from India, Zootaxa 5133 (1), pp. 40-52 : 43-49

Occipitotus langpramensis Singh & van Achterberg sp. nov.

( Figures 2–6 )

Holotype, female, length of body 3.1 mm and of fore wing 2.9 mm and hind wing 2.5 mm.

Head.Antennae with 27–28 flagellomeres (left 28 and right 27), first flagellomere 1.1 times second flagellomere, length of first, second, third and penultimate flagellomeres 5.0, 4.4, 4.0 and 3.5 times their width, respectively ( Figs 2C, 2D ); terminal flagellomere acuminate; head in dorsal view slightly transverse, 1.4 times as broad as long ( Fig. 3A ) and 1.15 times wider than the width of mesoscutum; length of eye 1.9 times length of temple in dorsal aspect; OOL (ocular ocellar line): diameter of ocellus: POL (posterior ocellar line) = 9.5:3:4.5; vertex, temple smooth and conspicuously setose; frons smooth; face finely granulate, medially obscurely scabriculous ( Fig. 2E ); width of face: width of head: height of eye = 3.9: 7.3: 3.7; occipital carina complete ( Fig. 3A ) and reaching base of mandible, occipital flange rather wide ( Fig. 6A ); hypostomal carina raised into an elevated flange ( Fig. 6A ), its height almost equal to length of third segment of labial palp; clypeus slightly convex, dorsally smooth and ventral rim of clypeus finely foveate; hypoclypeal depression small, less than half as wide as face ( Fig. 2E ); malar space as wide as basal width of mandible and 0.4 times as long as the maximum width across mandibles; malar space smooth, anteriorly granulate; first tooth of mandible distinctly longer than second, both teeth of mandible acute, striate on outer side; length of maxillary palp 1.3 times height of head.

Mesosoma. Length of mesosoma 2.0 times its height; pronope deep and large; a narrow anterior marginal pronotal sulcus crenulate; side of pronotum smooth to finely rugulose, with crenulate transverse depression ( Fig. 2F ); propleuron smooth, shiny and striate-rugose anteriorly; mesoscutum glabrous, shiny and anterior margin with a well-developed sulcus; notauli finely crenulate, posteriorly not strongly converging and ending in broad rugose, slightly depressed setose area ( Fig. 3B ); scutellar sulcus wide, deep, 0.3 times length of scutellum and rugose with a mid-longitudinally carina; scutellum weakly convex, setose and rugulose but medio-dorsally smooth; subalar depression smooth; mesopleuron largely smooth but rugose antero-dorsally and conspicuously setose ventrally ( Fig. 2F ); mesosternum with a foveate mid-longitudinal sulcus (mesosternal sulcus) and setose; mesopleural (epicoxal) sulcus extends dorsally and crenulate; metanotum largely smooth with a short fine streak antero-medially and posteriorly with a strongly raised median area and rugulose; propodeum and metapleuron coarsely rugose-reticulate; propodeum with a weak irregular median carina anteriorly.

Wings. Fore wing ( Fig. 5B ): Length 3.65 times its maximum width; angle between veins 1-SR and C+SC+ R ≈ 35°; marginal cell long, vein SR1 almost reaching the wing margin, 0.95 times of distance between apex of pterostigma and wing tip; length of veins r: 3-SR: SR1 = 1.3: 4.0: 6.9; 1-SR+M evenly curved posteriorly, 0.8 times as long as 1-M; second submarginal cell narrow, length of veins 2-SR: 3-SR: r-m = 2.5: 4.0: 1.5; vein cu-a postfurcal and first subdiscal cell elongate; length of veins 1-CU1: 2-CU1: cu-a = 2.2: 7.0: 0.7; 3-CU1: CU1b = 2.2: 1.5. Hind wing ( Fig. 5C ): Length 5.7 times its maximum width; length of veins SC+ R 1: 2-SC+ R: 1r-m = 4.0: 0.9: 1.1; m-cu present, antefurcal; M+CU: 1-M: 1r-m = 1.2: 1.4: 0.35; 1r-m straight.

Legs. Legs slender and relatively long; length of femur, tibia and tarsus of foreleg = 5.4: 7.0: 7.6; length of femur, tibia and basitarsus of hind leg = 6.5: 10.6: 4.4, 4.3, 9.6 and 6.1 times longer than their maximum width, respectively; tibia as long as tarsus; hind coxa medium-sized, without a basoventral tooth, 1.8 times longer than wide, 0.55 times as long as hind femur; length of inner and outer spurs of hind tibia 0.22 and 0.18 times as long as hind basitarsus, respectively; tarsal claws simple.

Metasoma. Length of tergite I 1.2 times its apical width, its dorsal surface coarsely rugose-reticulate; its dorsal carinae not joined with weak mid-longitudinal carina ( Fig. 3C ); dorsope distinct, with continuous crenulate depression posteriorly; laterope absent; tergite II longitudinally striate (nearly complete); second metasomal suture weak, smooth; tergite III basally with weak oblique short striate; remaining tergites entirely smooth, sparsely setose; length of setose part of ovipositor sheath 0.7 times as long as tergite I; ovipositor with dorsal nodus, ventral valves with 3 ventral serrations ( Figs 3D, 3E ).

Colour. Black; antenna dark brown except scapus (ventrally) and annellus yellowish-brown; mandible pale brownish, apical teeth darker; palpi, tegulae, wing veins, metasomal tergites VII and VIII yellowish-brown; pterostigma, parastigma and vein 1-M slightly darker; wing membrane subhyaline; legs yellowish, but apical third of hind tibia and tarsus infuscate; telotarsus darker and hind coxa basally dark brown to yellowish; ovipositor pale yellowish, but apically yellowish-brown.

Variations. Length of body 2.6–3.2 mm (female) or 2.0– 2.8 mm (male), and of fore wing 2.2–2.9 mm (female) or 1.8–2.5 mm (male); antenna of female with 25 (1), 27 (3), 28 (2), 29 (2) or 30 (1) flagellomeres, and of male with 23 (1), 24 (3), 25 (4), 26 (6), 27 (6) or 28 (5) flagellomeres; occipital carina complete and continues up to base of the mandible (8 females; 24 males) ( Figs 6B–E ) or interrupted ventrally above base of mandible (1 female, holotype; 2 males) ( Fig. 6A ); area between occipital and hypostomal carinae smooth ( Figs 6A, 6B, 6E ); a short carina running close to occipital carina ( Fig. 6C ), or with oblique or transverse carinae and weakly crenulate ( Fig. 6D ); face largely smooth or finely granulate; side of pronotum largely smooth in males, with crenulate transverse depression; propodeum coarsely rugose-reticulate, with weak median carina anteriorly ( Fig. 4D ) or entire; vein 3- SR of fore wing 1.6–1.9 times as long as vein 2-SR in females and that of males 1.6–1.7 times; fore wing vein 1-M of male widened, as wide as or wider than the length of vein cu-a ( Fig. 5D ); metasomal tergite I with (feeble) or without median carina; tergite II longitudinally striate (nearly) completely (in female) ( Figs 3C , 4A ) or anterior half striate (mostly in males) ( Fig. 5A ); second metasomal suture weak ( Figs 3C , 4A ) or obsolescent ( Fig. 5A ); length of ovipositor sheath 0.5–0.7 times as long as tergite I; metasomal tergites largely black and sclerotized, but in some males, tergites III and remaining comparatively less sclerotized and dark brown in colour.

Distribution. India.

Type material. Holotype female: INDIA: Manipur, Tamenglong Dist., Langpram Village, Ariangiuky stream, 25°09’27.0”N 93°33’35.0”E; appx. 363 mt. a.s.l., 3.iv.2019, sweep net on Equisetum sp. (Equisetaceae), col. L. R. K. Singh (NZC, ZSI, Kolkata; Registration No. 26520/H3); paratypes: 9 females (NZC, ZSI, Kolkata; Registration Nos. 26521-26529/H3), 26 males (NZC, ZSI, Kolkata; Registration Nos. 26530-26555/H3), data same as the holotype.

Etymology. The species is name after its type locality, Langpram Village, Tamenglong Dist., Manipur.

Figures

FIGURES 2(A–F). Occipitotus langpramensis sp. nov., holotype, female. (A) Head, lateral view; (B) habitus, lateral view; (C) apex of antenna; (D) base of antenna; (E) head, frontal view; (F) mesosoma, lateral view. Scale bars = 0.2 mm (A, C, D, E, F); 0.5 mm (B).

FIGURES 3(A–G). (A–E) Occipitotus langpramensis sp. nov., holotype, female. (A) Head, dorsal view; (B) mesosoma, dorsal view; (C) metasoma, dorsal view; (D) apex of metasoma, showing ovipositor sheath and ovipositor; (E) ovipositor; (F–G) paratype, female. (F) Pronotum, dorsal view, showing pronope; (G) propodeum + metasomal tergite I, dorsal view. Scale bars = 0.2 mm (A, B, C, D, F, G); 0.1 mm (E).

FIGURES 4(A–D). (A) Occipitotus langpramensis sp. nov., paratype, female, metasoma, dorsal view; (B–D), paratype, male; (B) habitus, lateral view; (C) head + pronotum, dorsal view, showing pronope; (D) mesosoma, dorsal view. Scale bars = 0.2 mm (A, C, D); 0.5 mm (B).

FIGURES 5(A–D). (A, D) Occipitotus langpramensis sp. nov., paratype, male. (A) Metasoma, dorsal view; (D) fore wing; (B–C) paratype, female. (B) fore wing; (C) hind wing. Scale bars = 0.2 mm (A); 0.5 mm (B, C, D).

FIGURES 6(A–E). Occipitotus langpramensis sp. nov., head, latero-posterior view. (A) Holotype, female; (B–E) paratypes. (B–D) females; (E) male. Scale bars = 0.2 mm.