Rhogadopsis macrusa, Gupta & Achterberg & Ballal & Maczey & Djeddour & Bhutia & Rajeshwari, 2019

Gupta, Ankita, Achterberg, Cornelis Van, Ballal, Chandish R., Maczey, Norbert, Djeddour, Djami, Bhutia, Sangay Gyampo & Rajeshwari, S. K., 2019, Two new species of Rhogadopsis Brèthes (Braconidae: Opiinae) as solitary parasitoids of Merochlorops species complex (Diptera: Chloropidae) from India, Zootaxa 4550 (2), pp. 268-276 : 270-274

Rhogadopsis macrusa n. sp. Gupta & van Achterberg

Figs 3–4

Type material. Holotype, ♀ (NBAIR), India: Sikkim: Kanchenjunga National Park, 12.x.2017, ex puparium of Merochlorops cf. dimorphus in stem of Hedychium gardnerianum, Sangay Bhutia & Norbert Maczey , (Hed- 1-12- 10-2017). Paratype, 1 ♂ (NBAIR), same data as holotype (Hed- 1-12-10-2017).

Female. Length of body in lateral view 2.6 mm excluding ovipositor 1.6 mm (holotype, Fig. 3A ); antenna 2.6 mm (holotype) and fore wing 2.9 (holotype).

Male. Length of body in lateral view 3.3 mm (paratype, Fig. 3B ).

Colour. Body black. Antenna black except yellowish brown scape and bicoloured pedicel. Legs yellowish (except apices of tarsi), coxae and trochanters testaceous. Head black including eyes and ocelli, tip of mandible dark brown and remainder brown. Tegula dark brown; pterostigma dark brown.

Head ( Figs 4F, 4G ). Width 1.3× median length in frontal view, 2.2× in dorsal view; head with pale setae, vertex and clypeal region remotely setose. Malar space 0.3× eye length in frontal view. Eye 2.1× as long as temple in dorsal view. Occipital carina present ventrally, remaining far removed from hypostomal carina; anterior margin of clypeus slightly curved inwards; hypoclypeal depression present ( Fig. 4F ); antenna with 31 antennomeres, subequal to fore wing in length, third antennomere 1.5× as long as wide, penultimate antennomere approx. twice longer than wide; relative measurements OOL: diameter of median ocellus: POL= 15: 7: 5; vertex smooth and shiny; frons, clypeus and malar space smooth without prominent sculpture; malar suture present; length of malar space 0.9× basal width of mandible. Mandible triangular, ventrally slightly curved; with narrow ventral carina; twisted apically and gradually narrowed.

Mesosoma ( Figs. 4C, 4D ). In dorsal view 1.5× as long as wide, 1.6× in lateral view; pronotum smooth and short; precoxal sulcus impressed and crenulate, absent anteriorly and posteriorly; pleural sulcus smooth; notauli present anteriorly and absent posteriorly; mesoscutum smooth, largely glabrous and shiny, with a deep circular medio-posterior depression; scutellar sulcus with six costulae; scutellum smooth and shiny, weakly convex; metanotum long and distinctly crenulate; propodeum with median carina, smooth and shiny in anterior half; median carina transected by transverse carinae in posterior half. Fore wing: 2.6× as long as wide; r oblique, issued before middle of pterostigma, 0.6× as long as width of pterostigma and twice as long as wide; pterostigma 3.9× longer than wide and elliptical; 2-SR:3-SR:SR1 = 36:64:76; m-cu straight, angled with 2-CU1, postfurcal and much longer than 2-SR+M; 1-SR 0.3× as long as 1-M; CU1b present and about 0.8× as long as 3-CU1. Hind wing: 1r-m 0.8× 1-M; m-cu absent. Length of hind femur 3.9× its maximum width ( Fig. 4H ).

Metasoma ( Fig. 4H ). Oval in dorsal view and 2.3× as long as wide (excluding ovipositor), almost as long as mesosoma in lateral view. First tergite (T1) strongly and more or less longitudinally rugose, with four longitudinal carinae, 0.8× longer than its maximum width, 0.6× basal width. T2, with longitudinal striations in the middle, 0.9× longer than T3. Remaining tergites smooth and shiny. Setose part of ovipositor sheath 4.1× longer than hind basitarsus and 1.8× as long as hind tibia.

Male ( Fig. 3B ). Similar to female except for the genitalia; third antennomere 2.3× as long as wide; length of hind femur 4.9× its maximum width.

Biology. Solitary endoparasitoid of Merochlorops sp. ( Diptera : Chloropidae ) in stem of H. gardnerianum (Zingiberaceae) ( Fig. 5 ).

Etymology. The species epithet is from “makrós” (Greek for "long") and “oùrá” (Greek for “tail”) because of the long ovipositor.

Notes. The new species does not run well in any of the keys available ( Fischer, 1987; Chen & Weng, 2005, Li et al., 2013; Chen et al., 2016). In Fischer (1987) it runs to Opius (Utetes) pseudonepalensis Fischer, 1966 , from Nepal, but R. macrusa has antenna with about 31 antennomeres and 1.3× as long as body (about 18 segments and as long as body in O. pseudonepalensis ), medio-longitudinal carina of propodeum long (short), veins m-cu and 2- M of fore wing angled (forming a nearly straight line), vein 3-SR 1.8× as long as 2-SR (1.4×), first tergite 0.8× longer than wide apically (1.2–1.3×) and ovipositor sheath as long as metasoma (half as long). In Chen et al. (2016) (for NW China) it ends up near R. moniliata Chen & van Achterberg, 2016 , if the second tergite is considered mainly smooth and to R. aciculifera Chen & van Achterberg if the second tergite is considered to be striate. The new species differs from R. moniliata by having the third antennomere about 3× as long as wide (2.3× in O. moniliata ), setose part of ovipositor sheath 1.8× as long as hind tibia (0.8×), first tergite about as long as wide apically (1.2–1.4×), length of mesosoma about 1.7× its height (about 1.3×), second tergite striate basally (smooth) and vein m-cu of hind wing absent (present). It differs from R. aciculifera by having the ovipositor sheath 1.8× longer than hind tibia (0.2× in R. aciculifera ), third metasomal tergite smooth (largely striate medially), face dorsally, frons laterally and temple ventrally black (yellowish brown), and vein m-cu of fore wing narrowly postfurcal (far postfurcal). In the key by Chen & Weng (2005) it may run to R. apii ( Chen & Weng, 2005) or R. sculpta ( Chen & Weng, 2005) but R. macrusa has the ovipositor sheath much longer than the first tergite (0.7× in R. apii and 0.9–1.3× in R. sculpta ), basal half of third tergite smooth (striate medially in both spp.) and third antennal segment about 3× as long as wide (1.8 or 2.5× in R. sculpta and R. apii , respectively). In addition, R. sculpta has vein 2-SR+M of fore wing slightly shorter than vein m-cu or subequal, and in R. macrusa vein 2-SR+M is much shorter than vein m-cu.

Figures

FIGURE 3. Rhogadopsis macrusa sp. n. A. holotype, in habitus, B. male paratype, in habitus.

FIGURE 4. Rhogadopsis macrusa sp. n., female- A. fore wing, B. hind wing, C. mesopleuron, D. mesosoma dorsal, E. first and second metasomal tergites dorsal F. head frontal, G. head dorsal, H. metasoma with hind leg and ovipositor, I. antenna, K. basal part of antenna.

FIGURE 5. A. Puparium of Merochlorops sp. host of Rhogadopsis macrusa sp. n., B. Emergence hole on H. gardnerianum, C. Puparium of Merochlorops sp. inside stem of H. gardnerianum.