Brachymeria bengalensis (Cameron, 1897)

Narendran, T. C. & van Achterberg, Cornelis, 2016, Revision of the family Chalcididae (Hymenoptera, Chalcidoidea) from Vietnam, with the description of 13 new species, ZooKeys 576, pp. 1-202 : 27-28

Taxon classification Animalia Hymenoptera Chalcididae

Brachymeria bengalensis (Cameron, 1897) Figs 29-30

Chalcis bengalensis Cameron, 1897: 39 (♀, India (BMNH) (examined)).

Brachymeria bengalensis ; Mani 1938: 54; Narendran 1989: 243, 261.

Brachymeria yasumatsui Habu, 1963 (holotype ♀, Japan (KYUN); (synonymised with Brachymeria bengalense (Cameron) by Joseph, Narendran & Joy, 1973)).

Brachymeria scrobatae Joseph, Narendran & Joy, 1970: 286-289 (♀, holotype, India (DZUC); synonymised with Brachymeria bengalense (Cameron) by Joseph, Narendran & Joy, 1973).

Stypura variabilis Mani, 1935: 250 (♀, lectotype (NZSI) (designated and synonymised with Brachymeria bengalensis (Cameron) by Narendran 1986).

Material.

1 ♀ + 1 ♂ (RMNH, IEBR), "Vietnam: Ninh Thuân, Núi Chúa N. P., northeast part, Malaise traps, 90-150 m., 23-30.v.2007, C. v. Achterberg & R. de Vries, RMNH’07”; 1 ♂ (RMNH), "S. Vietnam: Dóng Nai, Cát Tiên N. P., c 100 m, 13-20.v.2007, Botanical Garden, Mal[aise] traps 14-19, C. v. Achterberg & R. de Vries, RMNH’07”; 3 ♀ (BPBM), "Vietnam, 8.xii.1960, C.M. Yoshimoto".

Diagnosis.

This species comes near Brachymeria deesensis (Cameron, 1905) in the key to species by Narendran (1989) but differs in having the hind femur reddish or orange brown (often with dark patches) with the apex yellow whereas in Brachymeria deesensis the hind femur is black with the apex yellow. The shape of the apical emargination of the scutellum is also a little different in both species. It is possible that Brachymeria deesensis Cameron will become a form of Brachymeria bengalensis when it is better known.

Description.

♀, length of body 4.5-4.6 mm.

Colour. Black with following parts as follows: tegula yellowish brown; distal half of fore femur, fore tibia and fore tarsus, distal margin of mid femur, mid tibia and mid tarsus yellow or pale yellow. Coxae black or blackish brown, occasionally reddish brown or blackish red; hind trochanter reddish brown or blackish brown; hind femur red or brownish red with apex yellow and ventral row of teeth black; hind tibia yellow with base black or reddish brown which extends to distal end along ventral margin with a slightly increased width in middle part; tarsi pale yellow or whitish yellow with telotarsi black; metasoma black with lateral part reddish or brownish. Wings hyaline with veins dark brown; pubescence silvery.

Head. Width of head in anterior view a little wider than its height; wider than mesosoma in dorsal view; surface distinctly and shallowly pitted, interstices carinate; scrobe reaching anterior ocellus, smooth and shiny; POL 3.3 × OOL; width of ocellar area three-fourths as wide as interocular space; interocellar space twice as wide as major axis of hind ocellus; face with pre-orbital carina absent; post-orbital carina present connecting geno-temporal margin and malar ridge; height of malar space 0.09-0.25 × height of eye in profile. Antenna not longer than mesosoma; scape not exceeding anterior ocellus; as long as F1, F2 and F3 combined; F1 a little wider than long or hardly a little wider than long; F1 to F5 almost equal in length; F6 and F7 equal in length and each slightly shorter than F5; clava a little less than twice length of F7.

Mesosoma. Mesosoma compactly pitted dorsally, interstices narrow and somewhat carinate, shagreened throughout; scutellum apex explanate and reflexed, distinctly emarginated and bi-lobed, with dense pubescence; propodeum with an obtuse, rather distinct tooth behind spiracle on either side.

Wings. Fore wing 2.5 × longer than wide; relative lengths of fore wing veins: SMV = 37; MV = 21; PMV = 8.

Legs. Hind coxa pubescent on ventral side, without an inner ventro-mesal tooth; hind femur 1. 8 × longer than wide, outer side finely punctate, not reticulate, with dense relatively short pubescence, inner side without a protuberance or tooth at base, outer ventral margin with a row of 11 to 12 black differently sized teeth.

Metasoma. Metasoma a little shorter than pronotum, mesoscutum and scutellum combined, high in profile, widest a little before middle, abruptly declined posteriorly; T 1 smooth, T2 with dense small pits with large setigerous pits at dorso-basal, latero-dorsal and dorso-lateral areas; T6 with close pits, interstices carinate and shagreened. Ovipositor sheath visible in dorsal view.

Male. Resembles female in almost all features except width of head equal to mesosoma and antenna slightly stouter.

Hosts.

Pieris brassicae (Linnaeus) ( Lepidoptera : Pieridae ) ( Devi and Singh 2002), Erias vitella Fabricius ( Lepidoptera : Noctuidae ) ( Narendran 1989).

Distribution.

India, Malaya, Indonesia, New Guinea, Vietnam, Laos, Thailand, Japan (including Ryukyu Islands), China (Taiwan) and Philippines (Joseph, Narendran & Joy 1973; Narendran 1989).

Variation.

The hind femur often has a black patch on outer disc and in some specimens a weak carina is found produced from ventral scrobal margin as in Brachymeria bengalensis scrobatae Joseph, Narendran & Joy.