Cryptopimpla fernkloofensis Reynolds Berry & van Noort

Berry, Terry Reynolds & van Noort, Simon, 2016, Review of Afrotropical Cryptopimpla Taschenberg (Hymenoptera, Ichneumonidae, Banchinae), with description of nine new species, ZooKeys 640, pp. 103-137 : 113-116

Cryptopimpla fernkloofensis Reynolds Berry & van Noort sp. n. Fig. 2

Type material.

HOLOTYPE ♂: South Africa, Western Cape, Fernkloof Nature Reserve, 33°39.941'S, 21°53.505'E, 300-340m, 13 May 1995, S. van Noort, Sweep, Mesic Mountain Fynbos, SAM-HYM-P008237 (SAMC).

Description.

Body subpolished. Colour. Body mostly fulvous, mesosoma ventrally black. Head black. Clypeus fulvous. Mandibles fulvous to black at apex. Mesoscutum and mesonotum dorsolaterally black. Submetapleural lobe black with various dark markings on legs. Metasomal terga 6-8 and male genitalia brown.

Head. Densely punctate. Frons unarmed. Setae on head and clypeus short and sparse. Clypeus profile weakly convex with a curved lip on the ventral margin. Clypeus edge convex. Flagellum tapered to a slender apex. Tentorial pits small and indistinct. Eye in lateral view 0.67 times as wide as long, moderately sized in anterior view with maximum width 0.54 times the shortest inter-ocular distance. Upper tooth of mandible longer than the lower tooth.

Mesosoma. Mesoscutum moderately punctate. Scutellar and metanotal margins tapered towards medial area. Epicnemial carinae present ventrally and dorsally, dorsally converging toward anterior edge of mesopleuron. Propodeum with carination reduced to medial area, its anterior margin with medial tooth. Wings hyaline. Fore wing with two bullae closely situated appearing as one; vein 2m-cu sinuate; areolet anteriorly truncate-shaped. Hind wing with one basal hamulus and six (left wing) to seven (right wing) distal hamuli.

Metasoma. Depressed; tergum 1 with a single carina ventrad of spiracle, densely punctate with posterior margin weakly convex; tergum 2 as long as it is broad posteriorly, spiracle situated at basal 0.24 of tergum (measured in lateral view), gastrocoeli moderately large and circular.

CT 2.0; ML 0.9; IO 1.7; OO 1.4; Fl1 3.5; body length 9.4 mm; antenna length 9.9 mm; fore wing length 7.2 mm.

Differential diagnosis.

Cryptopimpla fernkloofensis can be distinguished from all other Afrotropical Cryptopimpla species by having a mostly fulvous body with the mesosoma black ventrally, the head is black and the clypeus and mouthparts are fulvous in colour; the species is the largest of the Cryptopimpla species in the Afrotropical region with a body length of 9.4 mm, compared to other species that have body sizes less than 8.7 mm; the anterior propodeal margin of the species has a medial tooth; the scuto-scutellar groove is narrow, without deep lateral indentations; and the scutellar and metanotal margins distinctly taper towards the medial area. The gastrocoeli on the metasomal tergum 2 are moderately large and circular, which distinguishes Cryptopimpla fernkloofensis (and Cryptopimpla elongatus ) from all other closely-related species in the rubrithorax species-group. The presence of a single carina ventrad of the spiracle on the metasomal tergum 1, without wrinkles, separates Cryptopimpla fernkloofensis from closely-related species in the rubrithorax species-group.

Etymology.

Named after the type locality. Noun in apposition.

Distribution.

South Africa (Western Cape).

Comments.

This is a rare species known only from one male specimen collected in Mesic Mountain Fynbos. Intensive sampling in other areas of the Cape Floral Kingdom, including Mesic Mountain Fynbos at various other localities, has produced no further specimens.