Rhacontsira saigonensis, Belokobylskij & Zaldívar-Riverón, 2021

Belokobylskij, Sergey A. & Zaldívar-Riverón, Alejandro, 2021, Reclassification of the doryctine tribe Rhaconotini (Hymenoptera, Braconidae), European Journal of Taxonomy 741, pp. 1-168 : 148-152

Rhacontsira saigonensis sp. nov.

urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:3561576B-7C4D-428E-B210-B389648FD1F3

Figs 54–55

Etymology

Named after the type locality of the species, Saigon (former name for Ho Chi Minh City).

Material examined

Holotype VIETNAM • ♀; “ Saigon [= Ho Chi Minh City], IV.[19]50, J. Barbier ”, “2305”; MNHN.

Paratypes VIETNAM • 2 ♀♀; same collection data as for holotype, but numbers 2304, 2309; MNHN, ZISP • 1 ♂; same collection data as for holotype, but number 2308; MNHN .

Description

Female

MEASUREMENTS. Body length 1.7 mm; fore wing length 1.4–1.5 mm.

HEAD. Width 1.5–1.7 times its median length, 1.3–1.4 times maximum width of mesoscutum. Head behind eyes (dorsal view) distinctly roundly narrowed. Transverse diameter of eye 2.3–2.4 times as long as temple (dorsal view). Ocelli medium-sized, arranged in triangle with base 1.2–1.3 times its sides. POL about 1.5 times OD, 0.4–0.5 times OOL. Eye glabrous, 1.20–1.25 times as high as broad. Malar space 0.30–0.35 times height of eye and almost equal to basal width of mandible. Face width 0.85–0.90 times height of eye and 1.0–1.1 times height of face and clypeus combined. Malar suture absent. Clypeus rather high, with distinct lower flange. Clypeal suture distinct. Hypoclypeal depression round, its width 0.9–1.0 times distance from edge of depression to eye, 0.4 times width of face. Occipital carina coarse, complete dorsally, fused below with hypostomal carina above base of mandible. Hypostomal flange rather wide. Head in front view distinctly and weakly-roundly narrowed below eyes. Antennae slender, filiform, 18–20-segmented, 1.2–1.3 times as long as body. Scapus 1.4–1.6 times as long as its maximum width. First flagellar segment 5.0–6.0 times as long as its apical width, 0.9–1.0 times as long as second segment. Penultimate segment 4.0–4.5 times as long as width, 0.8–0.9 times as long as first flagellar and apical segments; the latter weakly acuminate apically.

MESOSOMA. Mesosoma not depressed, 1.7–1.9 times as long as its high. Pronotum with distinct pronotal carina situated more closely to mesoscutum, but not fused with it. Mesoscutum highly and almost perpendicularly elevated above pronotum. Median lobe of mesoscutum not protruding forward. Notauli complete, rather deep anteriorly and shallow posteriorly, crenulate-rugulose. Prescutellar depression rather deep, short medially and longer laterally, with high median and two weak and curved lateral carinae, almost smooth between carinae, 0.3–0.4 times as long as weakly convex scutellum. Metanotum with very short and subpointed dorsal tooth (lateral view). Subalar depression shallow, wide, rugosestriate. Sternaulus distinct, rather deep, crenulate and with fine rugulosity, weakly curved, oblique, connected anteriorly with prepectal carina, running along anterior 0.6 of lower part of mesopleuron.

WING. Fore wing 3.2–3.3 times as long as its maximum width. Pterostigma 3.6–4.2 times as long as wide. Radial vein (r) arising almost from middle of pterostigma. Metacarpus (1-R1) 1.3–1.5 times as long as pterostigma. Second radial abscissa (3-SR) 1.8–2.3 times as long as first abscissa (r), 0.35 times as long as the straight third abscissa (SR1), 0.9–1.0 times as long as first radiomedial vein (2-SR). Second radiomedial (submarginal) cell not widened towards apex, 2.8–3.0 times as long as maximum width, 1.4–1.5 times as long as narrow brachial (subdiscal) cell. Recurrent vein (m-cu) weakly antefurcal. Parallel vein (CU1a) arising distinctly before middle of distal margin of brachial (subdiscal) cell, sometimes almost interstitial. Distance from nervulus (cu-a) to basal (1-M) vein 0.5–0.7 times nervulus (cu-a) length. Hind wing 6.2–6.5 times as long as wide. First costal abscissa (C+SC+R) 0.5–0.7 times as long as second abscissa (1-SC+R). First abscissa of mediocubital vein (M+CU) about 0.7 times as long as second and third abscissae combined (1-M). Recurrent vein (m-cu) weakly curved, strongly oblique, distinctly antefurcal.

LEGS. Hind femur 3.2–3.5 times as long as wide. Hind tarsus 0.9–1.0 times as long as hind tibia. Hind basitarsus 0.7 times as long as second–fifth segments combined; second tarsal segment 0.45–0.50 times as long as basitarsus, 1.1 times as long as fifth segment (without pretarsus).

METASOMA. Length 0.9–1.0 times as long as mesosoma and head combined. First tergite with distinct dorsope, with very short rounded and directed downwards basolateral processes, without spiracular tubercles, distinctly and linearly widened from base to apex. Maximum width of first tergite 2.0–2.3 times its minimum width; length 1.0–1.1 times its apical width. Second tergite with rather distinct shallow and transverse furrow in posterior third separating relatively long transverse apical area. Length of second tergite 0.6 times its basal width, almost equal to length of third tergite. Second suture rather deep, weakly curved and crenulate. Ovipositor sheath 1.3–1.5 times as long as metasoma, 1.6–1.9 times as long as mesosoma, 0.6–0.8 times as long as fore wing.

SCULPTURE AND PUBESCENCE. Vertex entirely distinctly curvedly transverse striate, sometimes with additional weak rugulosity between striae, finely striate to smooth posteriorly; frons laterally weakly transversely striate with rugulosity between striae, widely smooth medially; area around ocelli sometimes reticulate-granulate. Face entirely transversely striate, sometimes smooth in median vertical stripe; temple smooth. Mesoscutum densely granulate with reticulation, rugose with longitudinal undulate striation in its medio-posterior third. Scutellum entirely densely granulate. Mesopleuron densely rugose-reticulate, becoming finer towards its medial part or almost smooth on small or large median area. Propodeum with areas delineated by distinct carinae, basolateral areas densely granulate-reticulate with rugulosity along carinae or sometimes weakly reticulate-coriaceous; areola long and rather narrow or wide and reticulate; rest part of propodeum coarsely rugose-reticulate. Hind coxa densely curvedly transversely striae with reticulation. Hind femur mainly smooth, dorsally finely reticulate-coriaceous and sometimes with striation. First tergites entirely and second mostly (except smooth apical area) evenly and densely longitudinally striate with weak reticulation between striae. Third tergite laterally in basal half or two thirds densely striate, smooth on remaining part. Remaining tergites smooth. Vertex with very sparse short semi-erect white setae, almost glabrous anteriorly. Mesoscutum entirely with short, dense and semi-erect white setae. Metapleural flange posteriorly with sparse white pubescence. Hind tibia with short and dense semi-erect white setae; length of these setae about half maximum width of hind tibia.

COLOUR. Body entirely brownish yellow. Antenna yellow in basal quarter or half, brownish yellow to brown on other part. Palpi pale yellow. Legs entirely yellow, apical segments of tarsi mainly dark brown. Fore wing hyaline. Pterostigma brown, pale in basal third and apically.

Male

MEASUREMENTS. Body length 1.7 mm; fore wing length 1.3 mm.

HEAD. Antennae weakly setiform, 19-segmented.

SCULPTURE AND PUBESCENCE. Vertex almost smooth in posterior third.

METASOMA. First tergite longer and narrow; its length 1.4 times apical width. Length of second tergite 0.75 times its basal width, 0.9 times length of third tergite. Fourth tergite shortly crenulate basally. Otherwise very similar to female.

Diagnosis

This new species is similar to the Vietnamese Rh. sculpturator , but distinctly differs from it by having the vertex evenly transverse striate and with fine reticulation (vs undulately striate with coarse reticulation), temple smooth (vs rugose-reticulate), parallel vein (CU1a) of fore wing arising distinctly before middle of distal margin of brachial (subdiscal) cell (vs almost from middle), hind femur mainly smooth, only dorsally finely reticulate-coriaceous and sometimes with striation (vs densely striate), fourth and fifth metasomal tergite laterally almost smooth (vs distinctly widely striate), body entirely brownish yellow (vs mainly black with reddish tint), and pterostigma brown, pale in basal third and apically (vs almost entirely dark brown).

Distribution

Vietnam.

Figures

Fig. 54. Rhacontsira saigonensis sp. nov., ♀, holotype, MNHN. A. Habitus, lateral view. B. Head, front view. C. Head, dorsal view. D. Basal segments of antenna. E. Apical segments of antenna. F. Head and mesosoma, dorsal view. G. Head and mesosoma, lateral view. H. Hind leg, lateral view.

Fig. 55. Rhacontsira saigonensis sp. nov., ♀, holotype, MNHN. A. Wings. B. Propodeum and metasoma, dorsal view. C. Metasoma, lateral view.