Promicrogaster apharea Nixon, 1965

Fernandez-Triana, Jose, Boudreault, Caroline, Dapkey, Tanya, Smith, M. Alex, Rodriguez, J., Hallwachs, Winnie & Janzen, Daniel H., 2016, Revision of the genus Promicrogaster (Hymenoptera, Braconidae, Microgastrinae) from Area de Conservacion Guanacaste, Costa Rica, with a key to all species previously described from Mesoamerica, Journal of Hymenoptera Research 50, pp. 25-79 : 35

Promicrogaster apharea Nixon, 1965

Promicrogaster apharea Nixon, 1965: 234. Original description.

Holotype.

Female, BMNH (examined). MEXICO, Guerrero, Omilteme, 2400 m.

Distribution.

Mexico, Brazil. The two Mexican specimens were collected at altitudes of 1,400 and 2,400 m respectively, whereas the Brazilian specimen was collected at around 500 m ( Nixon 1965).

Comments.

The relatively long flagellomere 15, as well as body length and fore wing length over 4.0 mm are the most useful characters to separate the species from a few Costa Rican species that are otherwise similar morphologically (e.g., P. brandondinartei , P. liagrantae and P. tracyvindasae ). P. apharea is only known from three female specimens, as mentioned in the original description Nixon (1965). The strange geographic and ecological distribution reported suggests it might actually comprise two different species, one from Mexico and one from Brazil. Because we only examined the holotype we cannot conclude about that.