Asobara fletcheri Peris-Felipo, 2019

Peris-Felipo, Francisco Javier, Achterberg, Cornelis Van & Belokobylskij, Sergey A., 2019, Revision of the Afrotropical Asobara Foerster, 1863 (Hymenoptera: Braconidae: Alysiinae), with the descriptions of twenty five new species, European Journal of Taxonomy 557, pp. 1-146 : 14-16

Asobara fletcheri Peris-Felipo , sp. nov.

urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:72E86775-3A47-42A0-A4B8-12467BFE2D05

Figs 17–18

Etymology

Named in honour of D.S. Fletcher, British entomologist who collected the type specimens.

Material examined

Holotype

UGANDA • ♀; Ruwenzori Range , Bigo 11; 400 ft a.s.l.; 20– 22 Jul. 1952; D. S. Fletcher leg.; BMNH 1952-566 .

Paratypes

UGANDA • 1 ♂; same locality as for holotype but Misigo ; 8550 ft a.s.l.; 2– 3 Aug. 1952; BMNH • 1 ♂; same locality as for holotype but Mahoma River ; 6700 ft a.s.l.; 13– 16. Aug. 1952; BMNH .

Description

Female (holotype)

LENGTH. Body 1.8 mm, fore wing 2.4 mm, hind wing 1.6 mm.

HEAD. In dorsal view, 1.5 times as wide as long, 1.5 times as wide as mesoscutum, smooth, with temple rounded behind eyes. Eye in lateral view 1.3 times as high as wide and 1.4 times as wide as temple medially. POL 1.1 times OD; OOL 3.7 times OD. Face 1.3 times as wide as high, with sparse setae; inner margins of eyes subparallel. Clypeus 2.0 times as wide as high. Anterior tentorial pits short, far not reaching inner margin of eye. Mandible almost parallel-sided, 1.8 times as long as its maximum width. Upper tooth wide; middle tooth rather wide and short; lower tooth short. Antennae 24-segmented, 2.0 times as long as body. Scape 0.9 times as long as pedicel. First flagellar segment 4.1 times as long as its apical width, 0.7 times as long as 2 nd segment. Second flagellar segment 6.5 times, 3 rd– 4 th segments 6.0 times, 5 th– 10 th segments 5.0 times, 11 th segment 4.5 times, 12 th– 18 th segments 3.8 times, 19 th– 20 th segments 3.3 times, 21 st segment 1.4 times and 22 th (apical segment) 3.5 times as long as its maximum width.

MESOSOMA. In lateral view 1.1 times as long as high. Mesoscutum (dorsal view) about as long as its maximum width, smooth. Notauli present on horizontal surface of mesoscutum reaching half distance of mesoscutum disk. Mesoscutal pit present, oval. Prescutellar depression smooth, without carinae, as long as its maximum width. Precoxal sulcus present, weakly crenulate, reaching anterior and posterior margins of mesopleuron. Posterior mesopleural furrow smooth. Propodeum weakly and sparsely sculptured, with several smooth panches, with large, wide and mainly smooth pentagonal areola; basolateral areas smooth, sparse rugose along carinae. Propodeal spiracle small, its diameter 0.3 times distance from spiracle to anterior margin of propodeum.

WINGS. Length of fore wing 3.1 times its maximum width. Marginal cell ending at apex of wing, 4.3 times as long as its maximum width. Vein r longer than pterostigma width. Vein 3-SR 5.4 times as long as vein r, 2.5 times as long as vein 2-SR. Vein SR1 2.9 times as long as vein 3-SR. Hind wing 7.5 times as long as its maximum width.

LEGS. Hind femur 6.0 times as long as its maximum width. Hind tibia weakly widened to apex, 8.5 times as long as its maximum subapical width, about as long as hind tarsus. First segment of hind tarsus 2.2 times as long as 2 nd segment.

METASOMA. First tergite weakly widened towards apex, 2.0 times as long as its apical width, weakly rugose. Visible part of ovipositor sheath 2.5 times as long as 1 st tergite, 0.8 times as long as metasoma, as long as hind femur.

COLOUR. Body, head and pterostigma brown to dark brown. Mandible, antenna, legs and mesoscutum light brown. In dorsal view, head darker than mesoscutum. First metasomal tergite paler than 2 nd and 3 rd tergites. Wings almost hyaline.

Male

Length. Body 1.8–2.1 mm, fore wing 2.7–2.8 mm, hind wing 1.8 mm. Antennae 27-segmented. First flagellar segment 3.4 times as long as its maximum width; 2 nd segment 7.0 times and 3 rd segment 6.3 times as long as their maximum width. Hind femur 5.0–5.5 times as long as its maximum width. Otherwise similar to female.

Comparative diagnosis

This new species is similar to A. turneri Peris-Felipo, 2014 , but differs from it in having the 1 st metasomal tergite paler than 2 nd and 3 rd tergites (similarly coloured in A. turneri ), eye in lateral view 1.1 times as wide as temple medially (1.4 times in A. turneri ), face 1.3 times as wide as high (1.6 times in A. turneri ), antennae without pale apical flagellar segments (with paler apical segments in A. turneri ), precoxal sulcus reaching anterior and posterior margins of mesopleuron (not reaching in A. turneri ), vein 3-SR 2.7 times as long as vein 2-SR (1.9–2.0 times in A. turneri ), vein m-cu distinctly antefurcal (intestitial in A. turneri ), and visible part of ovipositor sheath 0.8 times as long as metasoma in lateral view (1.3 times in A. turneri ).

Distribution

Uganda.

Figures

Fig. 17. Asobara fletcheri Peris-Felipo, sp. nov.,A, C–F: ♀, holotype (BMNH 1952-566); B: ♂ (BMNH). A–B. Habitus, lateral view. C. Head and mesosoma, lateral view. D. Mandible. E. Antenna. F. Head, front view.

Fig. 18. Asobara fletcheri Peris-Felipo, sp. nov., ♀, holotype (BMNH 1952-566). A. Head and mesoscutum, dorsal view. B. Propodeum and first metasomal tergite, dorsal view. C. Hind leg, metasoma and ovipositor, lateral view. D. Fore and hind wings.