Lytopylus colleenhitchcockae Sharkey

Sharkey, Michael J., Clutts, Stephanie, Tucker, Erika M., Janzen, Daniel, Hallwachs, Winnie, Dapkey, Tanya & Smith, M. Alex, 2011, Lytopylus Foerster (Hymenoptera, Braconidae, Agathidinae) species from Costa Rica, with an emphasis on specimens reared from caterpillars in Area de Conservacion Guanacaste, ZooKeys 130, pp. 379-419 : 389

Lytopylus colleenhitchcockae Sharkey sp. n. Figs 56

Description.

Body length 5.2 mm. Gena acute posterolaterally, or rounded or with an obtuse angle posterolaterally. Longitudinal groove on interantennal prominence present. Protuberances on occiput absent. Propodeum with carinae forming areolae, median areola not rounded anteriorly. Notauli well-impressed, with one or two crenulae restricted to extreme anterior apex along border of mesoscutum. Posterior margin of syntergum 2+3 straight. Median syntergite 2 + 3 longitudinally striate except extreme apex smooth. Forewing mostly or entirely infuscate. Color as in Figs 5, 6.

Molecular data.

BOLD process ID/Janzen parasitoid voucher/GenBank accession:

ASHYF042-09/DHJPAR0028280/JN034689.

Distribution.

Guanacaste Province, Costa Rica.Click here for a distribution map.

Biology.

The single rearing is from Antaeotricha biolep46 ( Elachistidae , Stenomatinae ) feeding on rain forest Inga chocoensis ( Fabaceae ). It is the only Lytopylus reared from Inga -eating caterpillars in ACG. The caterpillar lightly webs two overlapping leaves as described for the elachistid hosts of Lytopylus robpringlei . The flimsy white wasp cocoon (Fig. 7) is spun between the same two leaves and the wasp eclosed 10 days after spinning.

The inventory has reared 101 wild-caught Elachistidae from Inga chocoensis and this is the sole agathidine wasp obtained. The score for all 1,846 rearings of Elachistidae from all species of Inga during 33 years is this single Lytopylus plus five Austroearinus spp. (to be treated elsewhere).

Etymology.

Named in honor of Colleen Hitchcock of Boston, Massachusetts, who has enthusiastically supported the conservation of the ACG forest occupied by this parasitoid wasp.

Material examined.

Holotype: ♂, H6836 (DHJPAR0028280) Costa Rica: Guanacaste: Area de Conservación Guanacaste: Sector Pitilla: Ingas: 11.0031N, 85.4204W, 580m, 2.x.2007 [AEI].