Platyscelio pulchricornis

Taekul, Charuwat, Johnson, Norman F., Masner, Lubomir, Polaszek, Andrew & Rajmohana K.,, 2010, World species of the genus Platyscelio Kieffer (Hymenoptera: Platygastridae), ZooKeys 50, pp. 97-126 : 108-113

Platyscelio pulchricornis Figures 25-60Morphbank34

Platyscelio pulchricornis Kieffer 1905: 13 (original description); Kieffer 1926: 553 (description, keyed); Bin 1974: 458 (type information); Kononova and Kozlov 2008: 319 (description).

Platyscelio abnormis Crawford 1910: 126 (original description), syn. n.; Kieffer 1926: 553, 554 (description, keyed); Yasumatsu 1941: 76 (description, synonymy); Masner and Muesebeck 1968: 42 (type information); Lê 2000: 149 (description); Rajmohana K. 2006: 128 (description).

Platyscelio dunensis Mukerjee 1993: 78 (original description), syn. n.

Platyscelio mirabilis Dodd 1913: 132 (original description), syn. n.; Dodd 1915: 444 (description); Kieffer 1926: 553, 554 (description, keyed); Galloway 1976: 101 (type information); Galloway and Austin 1984: 75 (description).

Platyscelio punctatus Kieffer 1913: 321 (original description), syn. n.; Kieffer 1926: 553, 555 (description, keyed); Mani 1936: 337 (variation); Kelner-Pillault 1958: 151 (type information, error).

Platyscelio wilcoxi Fullaway 1913: 283 (original description); Kieffer 1926: 553, 555 (description, keyed); Yasumatsu 1941: 76 (junior synonym of Platyscelio abnormis Crawford); Masner and Muesebeck 1968: 42 (type information).

Description. General:

Body length of male: 3.24-4.71 mm (n=20). Body length of female: 3.31-5.59 mm (n=20).

Head:

Length between anterior ocellus and posterior ocellar line in frontal view: less than 0.5 times POL. Striae within ocellar triangle: dense (greater than 20). Vertex sculpture between inner orbit and posterior ocellus: smooth or with few faint striae. Frontal sculpture between inner orbit and central keel: smooth. Submedial ventral area of head anterior to fossa: smooth, finely longitudinally striate posteriorly. Orbital carina: absent. Sculpture of malar region: smooth, longitudinally striate or with few faint striae. Color of female antenna: dark brown to black throughout, A1-A7 yellow to light brown, A8-A12 dark brown to black, or A1-A7 brown, A8-A12 dark brown to black, in some antennae sequentially darker from scape to apex. Female outer lateral apex of scape: sharply pointed. Claval shape: apical margin of A9-A11 concave, closely fitting basal margin of following antennomere. Color of male antenna: brown.

Mesosoma:

Sculpture on medial lobe of mesoscutum: longitudinally striate with elongate punctures. Setation of medial lobe of mesoscutum: moderately dense, even. Notaulus: present. Notaulus form: mesal and lateral margin arched. Length of notaulus: percurrent or nearly so, or abbreviated, clearly not reaching anterior margin of mesoscutum. Width of notaulus anteriorly: parallel-sided. Pilosity of notaulus: absent. Number of lateral carinae on mesoscutum: 0. Medial carina of mesoscutum: absent. Parapsidal line: present or absent or faint. Posterior scutellar sulcus: interrupted medially. Setation of posterior half of ventral metapleural area: dense (more than 25 setae). Metascutellum size: wide, metanotum lateral to metascutellum reduced, with 0-3 foveae. Sculpture on ventral metapleural area: smooth to faintly longitudinally striate, or longitudinally striate or with few reticulations. Median propodeal sulcus: narrow throughout length, widened posteriorly. Sculpture of submedian propodeal field: smooth throughout or with few faint striae or longitudinally striate. Posterolateral margin of propodeum: smooth laterally, longitudinally striate to rugulose posteriorly. Color of legs: coxae dark brown to black, otherwise brown, or coxae dark brown to black, otherwise yellow throughout.

Wings;

Postmarginal vein: absent. Fore wing: hyaline, infuscate.

Metasoma:

Sculpture on T1: longitudinally striate laterally, uniformly setigerous punctate medially. Sublateral carina on T2-T4: present, percurrent. Sculpture on T2-T4: uniformly setigerous punctate.

Diagnosis.

Platyscelio pulchricornis can be separated from Platyscelio africanus by the medial absence of the posterior scutellar sulcus and the smoothness of submarginal propodeal field (Figs 33, 39, 45, 48).

Link to distribution map.

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Material examined.

Holotype female, Platyscelio pulchricornis : PAPUA NEW GUINEA: Madang Prov., Dilo, VI.1890-VII.1890, none specified, Loria, MCSN 0004 (deposited in MCSN). Holotype male, Platyscelio abnormis :PHILIPPINES: R.E. Brown, (deposited in USNM Cat. No. 12895). Holotype male, Platyscelio dunensis : INDIA: Uttarakhand, Rishiskesh, 24.VI.1991, Mukerjee & party (deposited in NZSI). Holotypefemale, Platyscelio mirabilis : AUSTRALIA: Queensland, Nelson, 16.II.1912, sweeping open forest (deposited in SAMA). Syntype male, Platyscelio punctatus : PHILIPPINES: Los Baños (deposited in USNM). Holotype male, Platyscelio wilcoxi : GUAM: USNM No. 26186 (deposited in USNM).

Other material: (121 females, 71 males, 6 unknowns) AUSTRALIA: 1 female, 4 males, BMNH(E)#790202-790203, 790208 (BMNH); OSUC 250637 (CNCI); OSUC 141949 (OSUC). BANGLADESH: 1 female, OSUC 173855 (CNCI). CHINA: 2 females, 4 males, BMNH(E)#848537-848540 (BMNH); OSUC 321841-321842 (CNCI). GUAM: 3 females, 1 male, 3 unknowns, OSUC 250638 (CNCI); OSUC 207850-207852, 207856-207858 (USNM). INDIA: 7 females, 2 males, BMNH(E)#790185, 790206-790207, 848518-848519 (BMNH); OSUC 230648 (OSUC); OSUC 207838-207840 (USNM). INDONESIA: 13 females, 9 males, BMNH(E)#790210 (BMNH); OSUC 207859-207874, 207876, 207893-207894, 207896 (CNCI); OSUC 204851 (UCDC). JAPAN: 1 female, OSUC 173082 (UASK). MALAYSIA: 9 females, 5 males, BMNH(E)#790193, 790204 (BMNH); OSUC 207877-207883, 207885-207887, 207892 (CNCI); OSUC 207884 (SCAU). PAPUA NEW GUINEA: 24 females, 21 males, BMNH(E)#790205, 848511-848517 (BMNH); CASENT 2137992-2138022 (CASC); OSUC 207897, 250626-250628 (CNCI); OSUC 160037-160038 (EMEC). PHILIPPINES: 3 females, 7 males, BMNH(E)#790184 (BMNH); OSUC 207875 (CNCI); OSUC 207842-207849 (USNM). SOLOMON ISLANDS: 1 female, BMNH(E)#848543 (BMNH). TAIWAN: 18 females, 11 males, OSUC 173803-173831 (TARI). THAILAND: 36 females, 2 males, 2 unknowns, BMNH(E)#790190, 790192, 790194, 848502-848505, 848541-848542 (BMNH); OSUC 207888-207890 (CNCI); OSUC 207837, 215797, 253701-253721, 253760-253762, 253764 (OSUC); OSUC 207891 (SCAU). VANUATU: 2 males, 1 unknown, BMNH(E)#790183, 790186, 790198 (BMNH). VIETNAM: 2 females, 3 males, OSUC 277708-277709 (RMNH); OSUC 184378-184380 (ZMAS).

Comments.

Some specimens show variability in antenna and leg color. Because of the uniformity of the principal characters - notaulus form and length, interrupted posterior scutellar sulcus, and the propodeal sculpture - we consider these specimens to be conspecific with Platyscelio pulchricornis .