Pristomerus herero, Rousse & Noort, 2015

Rousse, Pascal & Noort, Simon van, 2015, Revision of the Afrotropical species of Pristomerus (Ichneumonidae: Cremastinae), with descriptions of 31 new species, European Journal of Taxonomy 124, pp. 1-129 : 48-50

Pristomerus herero sp. nov.

urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:A7126D35-043A-429F-B1CB-9F13C3D0FAA4

Fig. 11

Diagnosis

Large; mottled yellow to reddish-orange with numerous variable black markings on entire body; face deeply and densely punctate, punctation slightly sparser on clypeus; clypeus weakly transverse; malar line long; remainder of head coriaceous except inter-ocellar area deeply and densely punctate; antenna with 31–33 flagellomeres, penultimate flagellomere shorter than wide; mesosoma coarsely and densely punctate but pronotum mid-dorsally and speculum ventrally smooth; area superomedia elongate and not carinate postero-laterally; female femoral tooth strongly reduced, reduced to a subapical point followed by denticles; ovipositor very long, its apex sinuous. Male with mesosoma more shallowly punctate, inner margins of eyes distinctly diverging ventrally, ocelli enlarged, femur and femoral tooth strongly stouter, and area superomedia fully carinate.

Differential diagnosis

Large and mostly yellow and reddish-orange; differentiated from all other Afrotropical species by the combination of the coarse punctation on face and mesosoma, the near absence of the femoral tooth in the female and the very long ovipositor. Probably related to P. roberti in Madagascar, which is, however, far smaller with a stronger femoral tooth and a fully delimited area superomedia in both sexes.

Type material

Holotype

NAMIBIA: ♀, “ Kaoko Otavi S. W. A. Mus. exp. Mar. 1926, SAM–HYM–P001203” ( SAMC).

Paratypes

NAMIBIA: 1 ♀, 2 ♂♂, same label data ( SAMC).

Description

Female (2 specimens)

B 9.8–10.2; A 6.3–6.9; F 7.9–8.2; CT 1.6; ML 0.7; POL 1.0; OOL 1.3; Fl n–1 0.8; ASM 2.3; OT 2.3; FFT 1.

COLOUR. Background colour mottled yellow and reddish-orange with face brown and variable black markings (sometimes strongly reduced) on: frons, ocellar area, occiput, anterior margin of mesosternum and mesopleuron, ventral margin of metapleuron, axillar trough, metanotum and basal margin of propodeum, and basal half of tergites 1–3; legs yellowish orange, hind tibia somewhat darker and hind tarsus strongly infuscate; flagellum and ovipositor sheath strongly infuscate; wings hyaline, venation brown.

HEAD. Face very densely and deeply punctate, punctation slightly sparser on median bulge; inner margins of eyes weakly diverging ventrally; clypeus weakly transverse, long, punctation sparser and shallower than on face; malar line long; frons, vertex and temple coriaceous except inter-ocellar area deeply and densely punctate; occipital carina joining hypostomal carina at mandible base; antenna with 32–33 flagellomeres, rather thick, penultimate flagellomere shorter than wide.

MESOSOMA. Entire mesosoma unusually deeply and densely punctate, except pronotum mid-dorsally and speculum ventrally smooth; notaulus moderate; propodeum coarsely transversely punctate-rugose medially; area superomedia fairly elongate and not delimited postero-laterally. Legs. Femoral tooth hardly distinct, reduced to a weak subapical point, followed by some denticles.

METASOMA. Tergite 2 and apical half of tergite 1 coarsely aciculate, following tergites coriaceous; thyridium subcircular; ovipositor very long and apically slightly sinuous.

Male (paratype)

B 8.8–9.9; A 6.0–6.4; F 7.3–7.9; POL 0.8; OOL 0.7. Inner margins of eyes distinctly diverging ventrally; ocelli and hind femur enlarged; femoral tooth long and acute, followed by strong denticles; mesosoma

more shallowly punctate, lateral lobes of mesoscutum largely coriaceous; area superomedia fully carinate; otherwise similar to female.

Distribution

Namibia.

Figures

Fig. 11. Pristomerus herero sp. nov. Holotype, ♀. A. Habitus, lateral view. B. Mesosoma, dorsal view. C. Head, anterior view. D. Propodeum, dorsal view. E. Mesosoma, lateral view. F. Hind tibia, lateral view (inset: data labels).