Chrysis brachyceras Bischoff, 1910

Rosa, Paolo, Wei, Na-sen & Xu, Zai-fu, 2017, One new species and three new records of Chrysis Linnaeus from China (Hymenoptera, Chrysididae), ZooKeys 669, pp. 65-88 : 66

Chrysis brachyceras Bischoff, 1910 Fig. 1

Chrysis (Tetrachrysis) brachyceras Bischoff, 1910: 474. Holotype, ♀; Malaysia (MNHU) (examined).

Chrysis (Tetrachrysis) brachyceras : Bischoff 1913: 48 (Malaysia).

Chrysis brachyceras : Kimsey and Bohart 1991: 337 (Malaysia, Laos), 390 (Malaysia).

Type material.

Holotype, ♀, MALAYSIA, Malacca (MNHU). Additional material: 5♀♀, CHINA, Guangxi, Maoershan National Nature Reserve, 3.VIII.2005, leg. Liu-sheng Chen, ANT001-ANT005 (SCAU); 2♀♀, CHINA, Guizhou, Tianzhu, VIII.2009, leg. Yang-wen Wang, ANT006, ANT007 (SCAU).

Diagnosis.

Chrysis brachyceras is a large species, with the following distinctive characteristics: flagellomeres broad and flat; metanotum with small and stout postero-median tooth; T3 with four short apical teeth.

Description.

Female. Body length 10.0-11.0 mm.

Head. Scapal basin fully punctate. TFC medially straight, slightly downcurved at both ends and with two weak branches extending upwards (Fig. 1B). Relative length of P:F1:F2:F3 = 1.0:2.3:0.9:0.9. OOL = 1.5 MOD; BOL = 1.0 MOD; POL = 1.5 MOD; MS = 1.8 MOD; subantennal space 1.0 MOD. Anterior margin of clypeus emarginate. F3-F11 broadened and flattened. Genal carina sharp all over its length (Fig. 1D).

Mesosoma. Pronotal groove deep and almost reaching posterior margin; sublateral carina distinct and complete (Figs 1A, 1D); pronotal side with depression. Mesoscutum evenly punctate (Fig. 1C). Mesoscutellum simple, without anterior depression or fovea. Metanotum with a small, stout tooth pointing upwards (Figs 1A, 1C). Mesopleuron with broad episternal and scrobal sulci; the latter similar to elongate foveae (Fig. 1D).

Metasoma. Metasoma evenly punctate; the punctures as large as on mesoscutum. T2 and T3 without median ridge; T3 weakly saddled in female, with weak transversal prepit bulge over deep pit row; T3 with four apical teeth and simple lateral margins (Figs 1A, 1E). Black spots on S2 triangular, almost fused along the midline (Fig. 1F).

Colouration. Body blue, with dark blue to green metallic reflections, dark blue on ocellar area, mesoscutum medially, T1 medially, T2 and T3 antero-laterally.

Male. Not available for this study.

Distribution.

China (new record). Malaysia and Laos ( Bischoff 1913; Kimsey and Bohart 1991, not Indonesia).

Remarks.

Kimsey and Bohart (1991) noticed some similarities between the species of the antennata species-group and those of the genus Praestochrysis Linsenmaier, 1959. The former ones are included in the genus Chrysis because of the four apical teeth on T3. Nevertheless, C. brachyceras shares with Praestochrysis the following characteristics: general habitus, shape of head distinctly broader than high, broadened flagellomeres, subantennal space 1.0 MOD and shorter than MS, TFC weakly indicated across strongly developed brow, scapal basin not microridged, pronotum with deep lateral depressions, metanotum with a short, stout tooth, scrobal and episternal sulci well developed and expanded ventrally, black spots on S2 small and almost fused along the midline. Several of above features (excluding broadened flagellomeres, weak TFC, metanotum with a small tooth) and pronotal sublateral carina distinct and complete are shared with the T. lusca species-group, which was considered belonging to the genus Praestochrysis by Kimsey and Bohart (1991) and Trichrysis by Linsenmaier (1994), Madl and Rosa (2012) and Rosa et al. (2014, 2016b). Trichrysis lusca is considered as belonging to Trichrysis not only morphologically but also biologically. Praestochrysis are well known parasitoids of moth prepupae ( Limacodidae ) ( Kimsey and Bohart 1991), whereas species in the T. lusca species-group are parasitoids of Sphecidae ( Mocsáry 1889, 1912b; Tsuneki 1955; Linsenmaier 1959) or Eumeninae ( Vespidae ) ( Kimsey and Bohart 1991). Unfortunately, the biology of C. brachyceras is unknown; therefore, we consider C. brachyceras as a member of the genus Chrysis until new biological or molecular evidence is available.