Chakra galathea Veenakumari, 2022

Veenakumari, Kamalanathan, Sreedevi, Kolla & Mohanraj, Prashanth, 2022, Additions to the genus Chakra Rajmohana and Veenakumari, 2014 (Hymenoptera: Platygastroidea: Scelionidae) from India, Journal of Natural History 56 (41 - 44), pp. 1657-1707 : 1670-1673

Chakra galathea Veenakumari sp. nov.

urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:819BB9CE-20CB-4AF6-A8C6-A4DC01F1BB27

( Figures 6 (a–f), 7(a–b), 23(d))

Female body length = 1.42–1.63 mm (n = 10); male body length = 1.32– 1.56 mm (n = 10).

Colour

Entire body brown with uneven patches of black, metasoma paler than head and mesosoma; metascutellar spine and lateral propodeal area with black margins; ocelli with black patches on inner margin; entire antenna yellow brown; all legs yellow, with black apical tarsomeres.

Head

1.3× as wide as high, 1.4× as high as long. Setation on head: dense. IOS: 0.6× head width, 1.2× eye length. POL> LOL> OOL: 8.0:6.2:4.5. OOL: 1.7× MOD. Compound eye: large (L: W = 18.6:13.7). Sculpture of vertex: with setose protuberances, furrows between protuberances with coriaceous reticulations posteriorly. Sculpture of frons: with setose protuberances except for short transverse and oblique carinae on either side of imaginary central keel. Central keel: absent, instead a smooth longitudinal area indicated. Sculpture of gena: longitudinally carinate, interspersed with setose protuberances. Facial and malar striae: prominent. Interantennal process: smooth, basal half wide, abruptly narrowing in distal half.

Mesosoma

L:W of mesoscutum: 19.6:28.9. Setation of mesoscutum: dense. Sculpture of mesoscutum: with setose protuberances. Mesoscutal humeral sulcus: not foveate. Mesoscutal suprahumeral sulcus: not foveate. Scutoscutellar sulcus: entirely foveate. L:W of mesoscutellum: 10.7:21.4. Sculpture of mesoscutellum: with setose protuberances. Setation of mesoscutellum: dense. Sculpture of metascutellum: smooth with sparse longitudinal carinae. Armature of metascutellum: triangular medial spine, 0.5× length of mesoscutellum. Sculpture of metanotal trough: foveate. Sculpture of lateral propodeal area: smooth with weak foveae. Posterior propodeal projection: pointed, directed laterad. Sculpture of lateral pronotal area: with setose protuberances dorsally, obliquely striate posterodorsally, medially smooth, intricate sculpture posteriorly and ventrally. Pronotal cervical sulcus: not foveate. Netrion sulcus: with weak depressions. Speculum of mesopleuron: transversely carinate. Episternal sulcus: foveate. Postacetabular sulcus: not foveate. Prespecular sulcus: foveate ventrally. Mesepimeral sulcus: not foveate. Mesepimeral area: smooth, wider than mesepimeral sulcus. Mesopleural carina: present. Sculpture of femoral depression: dorsally smooth, ventrally obliquely carinate. Mesopleural pit: present. Sculpture of ventral mesopleuron: with setose protuberances. Sculpture of metapleuron: dorsally with intricate sculpture, ventrally with setose protuberances. Metapleural sulcus: foveate. Paracoxal sulcus: foveate. Metapleural epicoxal sulcus: not foveate. L:W of fore wing: 82.0:28.7. L:W of hind wing: 74.7:13.3. Marginal cilia on posterior margin of proximal fore wing: absent.

Metasoma

L:W of metasoma: 62.9:34.6. Sculpture of T1: longitudinally costate with weak basal foveae. Length of T1: 0.6× the length of T2. Horn on T1: absent. Length of T2: 0.6× the length of T3. Sculpture of T2: with elongate basal foveae, followed by longitudinal costae and smooth area posteriorly. Sculpture of T3: medially smooth, submedially longitudinally striate culminating in reticulation, remainder coriaceous reticulate. Sculpture of T4–T6: medially smooth, remainder reticulate.

Male

Similar to female except for colour. Head and mesosoma black, metasoma brown-black. Shape of antennomeres: elongate.

Material examined

Holotype. Female ( ICAR / NBAIR / P4500 ), INDIA: Andaman and Nicobar Is: Great Nicobar I.: Campbell Bay , 7.013°N 93.934°E, 13 m, YPT, 22 March 2016.

Paratypes. 14 females ( ICAR / NBAIR / P4501 – P4514 ), Andaman and Nicobar Is: Great Nicobar I.: Campbell Bay , 7.013°N 93.934°E, 13 m, YPT, 22 March 2016; 15 males ( ICAR / NBAIR / P4515 – P4529 ), Andaman and Nicobar Is: Great Nicobar I.: Campbell Bay , 7.013°N 93.934°E, 13 m, YPT, 22 March 2016 .

Etymology

The species is named ‘galathea’, after Galathea, the southernmost Indian river on the east coast of Great Nicobar, the island where this species was collected. The name is treated as a noun in apposition.

Diagnosis

Chakra galathea sp. nov. resembles C. alexandra sp. nov. The distinguishing characters are given above under the latter species.

Figures

Figure 6. Chakra galathea sp. nov. (♀): (a) Habitus, dorsal view; (b) frons; (c) head and pleuron; (d) head and mesoscutum; (e) wings; (f) antenna.