Rhogadopsis gratia Gupta & van Achterberg, 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 : 269-270

Rhogadopsis gratia Gupta & van Achterberg , sp. n.

Figs 1–2

Type material. Holotype, ♀ (NBAIR), India: Sikkim: Kanchenjunga National Park, 12.x.2017, ex puparium of Merochlorops sp. in stem of Hedychium gardnerianum, Sangay Bhutia & Norbert Maczey , (Hed- 1-12-10-2017). Paratype, ♀ (NBAIR), India: Sikkim: Damthang, 11.x.2017, ex puparium of Merochlorops sp. in stem of Hedychium gardnerianum, Sangay Bhutia & Norbert Maczey , (Hed- 1-11-10-2017).

Female. Length of body in lateral view 2.9 mm (holotype, Fig. 1 ), 2.8 mm (paratype), antenna 3.1 mm (holotype) and fore wing 2.5 mm (holotype).

Colour. Body black. Antenna black except yellowish brown scape and pedicel. Legs yellowish, coxae and trochanters testaceous. Head black including eyes and anterior ocellus, posterior ocelli and tip of mandible dark brown and remainder of mandible yellow. Tegula dark brown; pterostigma dark brown.

Head ( Fig. 2F ). Width 1.3× median length in frontal view, 2.3× in dorsal view; head with pale setae; frons sparsely setose anteriorly and densely so in posterior half. Malar space 0.25× eye length in lateral view. Eye 2.3× as long as temple in dorsal view. Occipital carina present ventrally, straight, remaining far removed from hypostomal carina and absent medio-dorsally; anterior margin of clypeus rounded; hypoclypeal depression present ( Fig. 2F ); antenna with 22 flagellomeres, 1.25× as long as fore wing, third antennomere 2.9× as long as wide, penultimate antennomere approx. twice longer than wide; relative measurements OOL: diameter of median ocellus: POL= 51:14:15; vertex smooth and shiny; frons, clypeus and malar space smooth without prominent sculpture; malar suture present; length of malar space 0.8× basal width of mandible. Mandible triangular, ventrally straight; ventral narrow absent; tilted apically and gradually narrowed.

Mesosoma ( Fig. 2D ). In dorsal view 1.5× as long as wide, 1.6× in lateral view; pronotal side largely smooth posteriorly; precoxal sulcus distinctly crenulate, absent anteriorly and posteriorly; pleural sulcus smooth; pronotum smooth and short, with deep round pronope; 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, weakly convex and shiny; metanotum long and distinctly crenulate; propodeum coarsely rugose with median carina present (except posteriorly) and transected by transverse carinae, median areola absent. Fore wing: 2.2× as long as wide; r oblique, about 3× as long as wide, issued before middle of pterostigma, as long as width of pterostigma; pterostigma largely parallel-sided, 5.9× longer than wide; 2-SR:3-SR:SR1 = 29:47:56; m-cu distinctly postfurcal, straight and angled with 2-CU1, postfurcal and much longer than 2-SR+M; 1-SR 0.4× as long as 1-M; CU1b present and about 0.3× as long as 3-CU1. Hind wing: 1r-m 0.7× 1-M; m-cu weakly developed. Length of hind femur 3.8× its maximum width ( Fig. 2H ).

Metasoma ( Fig. 2E ). Oval in dorsal view and 1.5× as long as wide (excluding ovipositor), as long as mesosoma in lateral view. First tergite (T1) medially strongly rugose, 0.8× longer than its maximum width, 0.6× basal width. T2 1.2× longer than T3; T2 with weak striations; remaining tergites smooth and shiny. Setose part of ovipositor sheath 2.1× longer than hind basitarsus and 0.8× as long as hind tibia.

Male. Unknown.

Etymology. Name derived from “gratia” (Latin “mercy, beauty”) because of the beauty of the parasitoid.

Notes. The new species does not run well in any of the available keys (see 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. gratia has antenna with about 24 antennomeres and 1.1× as long as body (about 18 antennomeres 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 1.6× as long as 2-SR (1.4×), first tergite about as long as wide apically (1.2–1.3×) and vein m-cu of hind wing present (absent). In both later keys (for parts of China) it ends up near R. pratellae ( Weng & Chen, 2005) if the sculpture of second tergite is considered to be neglectable. If the few striae are considered enough for the condition “second tergite striate” then it runs to R. aciculifera Chen & van Achterberg, 2016 . The new species differs from R. pratellae by its entirely black mesosoma and metasoma (partly brown in R. pratellae ), antenna with 29–34 flagellomeres, posterior margin of pterostigma straight (curved), tegula black (pale yellowish) and first tergite finely sculptured medially (coarsely rugose). It differs from R. aciculifera by having the ovipositor sheath 0.8× 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 runs to R. sculpta ( Chen & Weng, 2005) but R. macrusa has the ovipositor sheath much longer than the first tergite (0.9–1.3× in R. sculpta ), vein 2-SR+M is much shorter than vein m-cu (vein 2-SR+M of fore wing slightly shorter than vein m-cu or subequal), basal half of third tergite smooth (striate medially) and third antennomere about 3× as long as wide (1.8×).

Figures

FIGURE 1. Rhogadopsis gratia sp. n., holotype, in habitus.

FIGURE 2. Rhogadopsis gratia sp. n., female- A. fore wing, B. hind wing, C. mesopleuron, D. mesosoma dorsal, E. metasoma, F. head frontal, G. head dorsal, H. hind leg and ovipositor, I. mandibles, J. basal part of antenna, K. antenna.