Proterosceliopsis wingerathi Talamas, Shih & Ren, 2019

Talamas, Elijah J., Johnson, Norman F., Shih, Chungkun & Ren, Dong, 2019, Proterosceliopsidae: A new family of Platygastroidea from Cretaceous amber, Journal of Hymenoptera Research 73, pp. 3-38 : 3

Proterosceliopsis wingerathi Talamas, Shih & Ren sp. nov.

Figures 6 , 62-64

Diagnosis.

Proterosceliopsis wingerathi is most similar to P. nigon , from which it can be separated by having eight clavomeres and the presence of longitudinal striation in the anteromedial portion of T2.

Description.

Head: Number of antennomeres in female: 14. Number of clavomeres in female: 8. Claval formula in female: 1-2-2-2-2-2-2-1. Number of mandibular teeth: 3 on right mandible. Number of labial palpomeres: not visible. Number of maxillary palpomeres: at least 5. Shape of clypeus: narrow, transverse, medially concave. Central keel: absent. Antennal scrobe: undifferentiated sculpturally from remainder of frons. Anterior margin of occipital carina: crenulate.

Mesosoma: Pronotal prespiracular depression: present, without striation. Netrion: present. Skaphion: present. Posterior notaulus: not reaching posterior margin of mesoscutum. Width of notaulus: uniform. Parapsidal lines: present. Mesoscutal suprahumeral sulcus: indicated by smooth furrow. Scutoscutellar sulcus: crenulate. Postacetabular carina: absent. Postacetabular sulcus: absent. Episternal foveae: absent. Metapleural sulcus: present as a transverse furrow. Lateral propodeal carina: present and continuous dorsally, forming lamella surrounding metasomal depression. Metasomal depression: excavate, interior surface with striae dorsomedially.

Metasoma: Horn on T1 in female: absent. Sculpture of T1: longitudinally striate medially. Macrosculpture of T2-T5: anteromedial T2 longitudinally striate, otherwise absent. Anterior tergal depressions: visible on T1-T6. Median keel on S2: absent. Macroculpture of S3-S6: absent. Anterior sternal depressions: visible on S1-S6.

Etymology.

This species is named for Jonathan Wingerath, Deputy Collections Manager for Paleobotany at the National Museum of Natural History, Washington, DC, to express our thanks for contributing his time and skills in preparing amber specimens for this and other projects.

Link to distribution map.

[http://hol.osu.edu/map-large.html?id=451152]

Material examined.

Holotype female: MYANMAR: CNU-HYM-MA-2016101 (deposited in CNU).

Comments on Cretaceous Platygastridae

The specimen illustrated in Figures 65-66 is the oldest representative of Platygastridae known to us. It complies with the current and historical concepts of the family: 10-merous antennae; T2 as the largest tergite; malar sulcus absent; pronotal cervical sulcus is a furrow with what appears to be solidified exudate; transepisternal line present (not clear in photographs); S1 and anterior S2 with setal patches. Perhaps most interesting, this specimen has marginal, stigmal and (short) postmarginal veins, as in Orwellium enigmaticum Johnson, Masner & Musetti, which Johnson et al. (2009) considered to be the sister to the rest of Platygastridae . This specimen is not sufficiently well preserved to be described at the species level, but we consider it relevant to this paper because it supports our contention that the transepisternal line and glandular nature of the pronotal cervical sulcus are plesiomorphies for Platygastridae .

Figures

Figures 1 - 6. 1 Sceliomorpha Ashmead (DPI _ FSCA 00008723), female antenna, ventral view 2 Electroteleia (DPI _ FSCA 00010129), female antenna, ventral view 3 Proterosceliopsis plurima (CNU-HYM-MA- 2016102), female antenna, ventral view 4 Nixonia watshami Johnson & Masner (OSUC 149432), female antenna, ventral view 5 Proterosceliopsis nigon (CNU-HYM-MA- 2017566), female antenna, ventral view. 6 Proterosceliopsis wingerathi (CNU-HYM-MA- 2016101), female antenna, lateral view. Scale bars in millimeters.

Figures 62 - 64. Proterosceliopsis wingerathi (CNU-HYM-MA- 2016101) 62 habitus, dorsal view 63 habitus, lateral view 64 habitus, ventrolateral view. Scale bars in millimeters.

Figures 65, 66. Platygastridae, female (KU-NHM-ENT Bu- 007) 65 head, mesosoma, metasoma, dorsolateral view 66 head, mesosoma, metasoma, ventrolateral view. Insets are portions of image that have had the color altered to emphasize wing venation. Scale bars in millimeters.