Chelonus (Microchelonus) leious Zhou & Achterberg & Tang & Chen 2024, sp. nov.
Creators: name: Zhou, Jin-Jin
name: Achterberg, Cornelis Van
name: Tang, Pu
name: Chen, Xue-Xin
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2024
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Hymenoptera
Braconidae
Chelonus
Chelonus leious

description: Chelonus (Microchelonus) leious sp. nov.
Figs 39–40
Material examined. Holotype: male, Shaoguan, Guangdong Prov., China, 9.V.1992, Xuexin Chen, No. 921261 (ZJUH). Paratypes: 2 males, same label data but Nos. 921259, 921260; 3 males, Fengkai, Guangdong Prov., China, 18. V.1992, Xuexin Chen, Nos. 924265, 924266, 924264; 1 male, Fengkai, Guangdong Prov., China, 19. V.1992, Yun Ma, No. 921194; 1 male, Nanning, Guangxi Prov., China, 15. V.1982, Junhua He, No. 821287.
Diagnosis. This new species is similar to C. (M.) sochiorum (Tobias, 2005), both species having the metasomal carapace slightly widened posteriorly in dorsal view (Fig. 40E) and maximum height posteriorly in lateral view (Fig. 40D), but can be separated by the following characters: width of apical aperture of male <0.4 × metasomal width (Fig. 40F) (versus 0.4–0.7 × metasomal width in C. (M.) sochiorum); frons and vertex smooth (Fig. 40H) (versus coarsely striate-rugose) and width of face 1.7 × wider than high (Fig. 40G) (versus 2.0 ×).
Description. Holotype, female, length of body 5.7 mm, of fore wing 4.2 mm.
Head. Head transverse, width of head 2.3 × its dorsal length; occiput slightly excavated; antennomeres largely missing; eye in dorsal view 1.6 × as long as temple; OOL: OD: POL=28: 11: 19; temple narrowed behind eyes; frons and vertex smooth and shiny (Fig. 40H); face flat, coarsely transverse-longitudinally reticulate-rugose, width of face 1.7 × its height; eyes about parallel; clypeus dense punctulate, shiny and 2.1 × wider than high, apical margin convex medially, clypeus extending below lower level of eyes, distance between tentorial pits 1.5 × distance between pits and eyes (Fig. 40G).
Mesosoma. Length of mesosoma 1.4 × its height; side of pronotum densely coarsely punctate; mesopleuron completely coarsely reticulate-rugose, ventral part of it densely setose (Fig. 40B); notauli slightly developed; mesoscutum densely setose; scutellum evenly convex, rugose medially and reticulate-rugose laterally; scutellar suture comparatively deep, narrow, with carinae; propodeum coarsely rugose and tubercles distinct and strongly developed (Fig. 40C).
Wings. Vein r somewhat arched; marginal cell 0.9 × as long as pterostigma; pterostigma 2.7 × longer than wide; r: 3-SR: SR1=25: 22: 99; SR1 slightly curved towards pterostigma; marginal cell 2.8 × longer than second submarginal cell; 1-CU1: 2-CU1=21: 50; 2-R1 absent (Fig. 40A).
Legs. Hind coxa mainly setose; length of hind femur, tibia and basitarsus 3.0 ×, 4.7 × and 6.0 × their maximum width, respectively; length of inner hind tibial spur 0.5 × hind basitarsus.
Metasoma. Length of carapace 2.3 × its maximum width in dorsal view, widest after middle, apically rounded; carapace longitudinally rugose up to middle, but coriaceous apically (Fig. 40E); in lateral view carapace 2.8 × longer than high and posterior height of metasoma 1.9 × its anterior height, carapace apically distinctly incurved (Fig. 40D); apical aperture in posterior view small, nearly round and median process of aperture horizontal and oval (Fig. 40F).
Colour. Black; palpi dark brown; pterostigma light brown; wing and its veins light brown; legs almost entirely brown but coxa, hind femur and apex of tibia black; carapace with yellowish 2 lateral, small spots in basal 1/3.
Female. Unknown.
Biology. Unknown.
Distribution. China (Guangdong, Guangxi).
Etymology. Named after the smooth, shiny frons and vertex: “ leios ” is Greek for smooth, bald.
description: Published as part of Zhou, Jin-Jin, Achterberg, Cornelis Van, Tang, Pu & Chen, Xue-Xin, 2024, A review of the subgenera Carinichelonus, Microchelonus, Parachelonus and Stylochelonus of the genus Chelonus Panzer (Braconidae: Cheloninae) with descriptions of twenty-one new species from China, pp. 1-127 in Zootaxa 5412 (1) on pages 49-51, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.5412.1.1, http://zenodo.org/record/10675974