Elampus gladiator Rosa, 2021

Rosa, Paolo, Aswathi, Pokkattu Gopi & Bijoy, Chenthamarakshan, 2021, An annotated and illustrated checklist of the Indian cuckoo wasps (Hymenoptera: Chrysididae), Zootaxa 4929 (1), pp. 1-100 : 12-14

Elampus gladiator Rosa , sp. nov.

( Figs 7 A–7D)

Material examined. Holotype: ♂; India: Himachal Pradesh, Manali / Mahri , 3300–3600m, 21.–22.vi.1989, leg. A. Riedl, GBIF_ Chr 00002090 ( MNLU) . Paratypes: 1 ♂: Jammu, Kishtwar, Inshan , ca. 33.30N, 75.30E, 2200m, 17.– 19.vii.1980, leg. J. & K., H., U. & Ch. Aspöck & H. Rausch, GBIF_ Chr 00002090 ( MNLU) ; 1 ♀, Uttar Pradesh, 15km S Badarinath , 30 km N Joshimath, 2800m, 10.vii.1994, leg. M. Šnizek ( MHC) .

Diagnosis. Blue coloured species with elongate, transversal depression running on antero-lateral pronotal area ( Fig. 7A ) and on metasomal tergum I antero-laterally ( Fig. 7A ); posterior propodeal projections markedly diverging ( Fig. 7A ); metascutellar projection narrow and elongate; posterior truncation of apical margin of tergum III narrow, falcate ( Figs 7G, 7H ).

Description. Male. Body length 7.0 mm. Forewing length 5.2 mm. OOL 3.6 × MOD; POL 2.0 × MOD; MS 0.5 × MOD; relative length of P:F1:F2:F3 = 1.0:1.6:0.3:0.5.

Head. Vertex and frons with medium-sized (up to 0.5 × MOD) and contiguous punctures, without polished interspaces, with impunctate area lateral to posterior ocelli and along eye margin on temple and gena; scapal basin striate, with distinct, fine striations, closed together and curved, following basin contour; scapal basin medially impunctate below frons and close to clypeus ( Fig. 7D ); subantennal space about 1.0 × MOD; apical margin of clypeus almost straight; temple enlarged, in lateral view, about 2.7 × MOD; post-ocellar line faint.

Mesosoma. Pronotum with elongate, transverse depression running on antero-lateral pronotal area; punctation on pronotum deep and dense, with polished interspaces, 0.1–1.0 × PD apart; lateral pronotal area irregularly striate; mesoscutum with larger punctures, deep with large and polished interspaces on lateral area; notauli deep, as fine lines; parapsidal signum [= parapsidal line] fully developed; mesoscutellum with deep, larger and contiguous punctures, without polished interspaces in the holotype, with some polished interspaces along anterior margin in the paratype; metanotum with large, irregular foveate punctures without interspaces; metascutellar projection narrow and elongate, apically lanceolate ( Fig. 7A ); posterior propodeal projections [= propodeal teeth] triangular, large and divergent ( Fig. 7A ); mesopleuron ventrally angulated and carinate with large, contiguous foveate punctures, without polished interspaces ( Fig. 7B ). Profemur ventrally carinate, not angled or toothlike. Wings with nervures unmodified.

Metasoma. Tergum I antero-laterally depressed; punctation on terga I and II shallow, with scattered and small punctures dorsally with large polished interspaces, up to 5.0–6.0 × PD apart or even larger medially; on terga I and II laterally with double punctation, narrow and corrugated interspaces, on tergum II apically with tiny dots on interspaces; on tergum III with double punctation and closer punctures, laterally denser with corrugated interspaces; lateral margin of tergum III sinuate anterior to apical truncation; apical truncation narrow and falcate, with pointed margins ventrally ( Figs 7G, 7H ).

Colouration. Body dark blue, with some violet reflections on mesosoma and black metanotal projection; scape blue, pedicel shining black, flagellum black; tarsi dark brown, tarsomere V lighter; tegula dark brown. Wing membrane brown, with dark brown veins. Metasoma ventrally metallic green.

Vestiture. Head with whitish, erect, and short setae, about 1.0 × MOD long; longer on mesosoma and metasoma, about 1.5 × MOD.

Female. Similar to male in habitus and colouration, with similar body punctation, metascutellar projection and apical truncation of tergum III. It can be easily recognized for dimorphic sexual characters such as: gena with row of dense, short and aligned setae, head in frontal and dorsal view differently shaped ( Figs 7 E–F), showing the same dimorphic difference between male and female of the Euroasian species Elampus bidens (F̂rster, 1853); flagellomeres distinctly longer than in male (median segments l/w = 3; in male l/w = 2); anterior femur ventrally carinate ( Fig. 7C ).

Distribution. India (Palaearctic part: Himachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir, Uttar Pradesh).

Etymology. The specific name gladiator (masculine, noun in apposition) derives from the Latin word gladiator (swordsman), an armed combatant who fights with the gladius, an elongate sword similar to the metascutellar projection of this species.

Remarks. The genus Elampus Spinola needs revision. Currently several blue species occur in Asia, namely Elampus assamensis ( Mocsáry, 1911) , E. caeruleus Dahlbom, 1854 , E. hyrcanus ( Semenov-Tian-Shanskij, 1967), E. komarovi ( Radoszkowski, 1893) , E. montanus ( Mocsáry, 1890) , E. pliginskii ( Semenov-Tian-Shanskij, 1967), and E. ussurensis ( Semenov-Tian-Shanskij, 1967). Among them, the only similar species for its general habitus is the latter. Elampus gladiator is separated from E. ussurensis by pronotum with antero-lateral depressions (vs. unmodified); deep, dense and coarse punctures on pronotum (vs. shallow and sparser, with polished interspaces); second metasomal tergum with scattered small punctures (vs. dense small punctures). All the other species have different shape of metanotal projection, metasomal truncation, and posterior propodeal projections.

Genus Hedychridium Abeille de Perrin, 1878

Hedychridium Abeille de Perrin, 1878: 3 . Type species: Hedychrum minutum Lepeletier, 1806 [= Hedychridium ardens ( Coquebert, 1801) ], by subsequent designation of Ashmead 1902: 227.

Figures

FIGURE 7. Elampus gladiator Rosa, sp. nov., holotype, male.A. Habitus, dorsal view. B. Habitus, lateral view. D. Head, frontal view. G. Third tergum, posterior view. Elampus gladiator Rosa, sp. nov., paratype, female. C. Habitus, lateral view. E. Head, frontal view. F. Head, dorsal view. H. Third tergum, posterior view. Scale bars 1.0 mm.