Leptacis cylindrica Buhl 2014, n. sp.
Creators: name: Buhl, Peter Neerup
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2014
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Hymenoptera
Platygastridae
Leptacis
Leptacis cylindrica

description: Leptacis cylindrica n. sp.
Fig. 18
Etymology: From Latin cylindrus (cylindric), in reference to the characteristic, rather cylindrical metasoma.
Diagnosis: Scutellum with one tiny translucent spine; female metasoma 1.25–1.30× as long as rest of body, with only one tergite behind the long T2.
Description:
Female.
Body length 0.75–1.00 mm. Blackish, T1 medium brown, A1–A6 and legs including coxae light brown, A7–A10 and tegulae dark brown, A2 and A4–A6 sometimes darkened. Head from above (Fig. 18) 1.7–1.9× as wide as long, 1.20–1.25× as wide as mesosoma; occiput distinctly and transversely reticulate-coriaceous; hyperoccipital carina evident medially; vertex and frons distinctly and more or less irregularly reticulatecoriaceous, with rather large meshes. Eyes virtually bare. OOL equal to diameter of lateral ocellus; LOL about 4× as long as OOL. Head in frontal view 1.1× as wide as high. Antenna with A1 0.85–0.90× as long as height of head, 1.2–1.5× as long as distance between inner orbits; A2 slightly longer than A3–A4 combined, sometimes A3–A4 combined only 0.7× as long as A2; A4–A5 subequal, each only slightly longer than A3 and A6; A7 1.3–1.5× as long as wide; A8 1.00–1.33× as long as wide; A9 about as long as wide. Mesosoma (Fig. 18) 1.6–1.9× as long as wide, 1.25× as high as wide. Sides of pronotum reticulate-coriaceous (slightly longitudinally so), in upper 0.6 smooth in about posterior half. Mesoscutum evenly and moderately densely setose, finely and uniformly reticulate-coriaceous; notauli absent (sometimes very faintly evident, visible from certain angles in about posterior 0.7); hind margin straight, covering front edge of scutellum; scuto-scutellar grooves diminutive, without conspicuous setae. Mesopleuron smooth. Scutellum sculptured and setose much as mesoscutum, with a tiny translucent spine. Metapleuron with pilosity over most of surface, but very sparse at anterior margin, sometimes bare in anterior 0.4. Propodeal carinae brownish, very close together. Fore wing 0.75–0.85× as long as entire body, 3.1–3.4× as long as wide, almost clear, with fine and dense microtrichia; marginal cilia almost 0.3× width of wing. Hind wing 10–11× as long as wide; marginal cilia about as long as to slightly longer than width of wing. Metasoma (Fig. 18) 1.25–1.30× as long as head and mesosoma combined, 0.7× as wide as mesosoma, 1.3× as wide as high. T1 with a transverse depression around midlength and several weak longitudinal carinae. T2 with a few crenulae in basal 0.1, rest of T2 as well as T3 smooth and bare, T2 4.5× as long as T3; T3 about 1.3× as long as wide, rest of tergites hidden or fused.
Comparison:Easily recognised on account of the combination of the two characters mentioned in the diagnosis. The Leptacis species of the Indonesian subgenus Cylindrotacis Buhl, 2008, also have only three visible tergites, but these species have two scutellar spines, one on each posterior corner of scutellum.
Holotype: ♀ TOGO: Région des Plateaux, Manma­Kopé N of Gbadi Nkougna, SE of Badou (07°27'02"N 00°41'59"E), 25.iv. 2008, 660 m, plantation (coffee, oilpalm, Acacia), swept above sawdust, M. von Tschirnhaus.
Paratypes: 2♀ Région des Plateaux, Plateau de Danyi, road from Atigba to Danyi–Apéyémé, at a tributary creek of river Danyi (07°11'04"N 00°41'31"E), 14.iv. 2008, 710 m, creek bank and below shrubs and bamboo, plantation, swept; 2♀ Région des Plateaux, Plateau de Danyi, near Dzogbégan, Monastière de l’Ascension, at river/creek Danyi (07°14'30"N 00°40'45"E), 14.iv. 2008, 725 m, abandoned plantation ground with three dominant plants (Eleusine indica (L.) Gaertn., Rhynchelytrum repens (Willd.) C.E. Hubb., Cyperus sp.), swept; 1♀ Région des Plateaux, Plateau de Danyi, near Atigba (07°09'52"N 00°41'33"E), 14.iv. 2008, 775 m, remains of secondary rainforest, underwood, forest plantation, road side with much Sida acuta Burm. F., swept; 1♀ Région des Plateaux, Kpélé Bémé SW of Adagali (07°06'02"N 00°43'28"E), 290 m, 16.iv.2008, cultured land in a wide plain with Stachytarpheta indica Vahl (dominant weed) and grasses, swept. All M. von Tschirnhaus.
description: Published as part of Buhl, Peter Neerup, 2014, New species and new records of Platygastrinae and Sceliotrachelinae from Togo (Hymenoptera: Platygastridae), pp. 68 in African Invertebrates 55 (1) on pages 80-82, DOI: 10.5733/afin.055.0106, http://zenodo.org/record/7649696