Aleiodes farasanensis Gadallah & Edmardash 2022, sp. nov.
Creators: name: Abu El-Ghiet, Usama M.
name: Edmardash, Yusuf A.
name: Gadallah, Neveen S.
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2022
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Hymenoptera
Braconidae
Aleiodes
Aleiodes farasanensis

description: Aleiodes farasanensis Gadallah & Edmardash sp. nov. (apicalis -gp.)
Figs 12 A–F, 13 A–C, 14 A, B
urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act: BEAF16FD-9CCF-4EE7-AFB1-7DD8E6638C0C
Type material: Holotype, ♀ (EFC), Saudi Arabia (Farasan Archipelago, Al-Sajid), 16.86026N, 41.932564E, 25.i.2017, light trap, leg. Usama Abu El-Ghiet & Tarek M. El-Sheikh.
Diagnosis. Body pale reddish to orange, with metasomal T1 and T2 reddish, rest of metasoma black (Figs 12A, 14A). Antenna with 64 antennomeres (Fig. 12F); maximum width of hypoclypeal depression 0.54× as long as maximum width of face (Fig. 12B); OOL 0.9 × as long as diameter of median ocellus, finely punctate; F4 distinctly longer than wide (1.66×) (Fig. 12F); clypeus in the form of a narrow transverse band, with the same width medially and laterally (Figs 12B, E); mesoscutum reticulate-rugose (Fig. 13A); tarsal claws without pectens; marginal cell of fore wing ending rather close to wing apex (Fig. 13C); vein 1–CU1 of fore wing 0.26× as long as 2–CU1 (Fig. 13C); SMC2 medium-sized (Fig. 13C); marginal cell of hind wing gradually widened to apex, apical width about 1.8× its width at level of hamuli (Fig. 13C); distal end of hind femur with black hue (Fig. 12A); palpi and tegula pale red to yellowish, antenna dark brown to black (scape reddish) (Fig. 12F).
Description. Holotype, ♀, length of body 10mm; length of fore wing 6.5mm.
Colour (Figs 12A–C; 13A, B, 14A, B). Head dark ferruginous to black, with clypeus, mandible (except black tip), and palpi reddish brown; antenna dark brown to black, with scapus dark reddish brown; mesosoma and first two metasomal segments reddish brown to orange, remainder of metasoma black. Legs as body colour, with hind femur darker, with black tint apically, tarsal claws yellowish. Wings (Fig. 13C) hyaline, with black pterostigma and veins (except bases of veins paler).
Head (Figs 12B–F). Antenna with 64 antennomeres, F4 distinctly longer than wide, 1.66× as long as wide, scapus oblique apically, longer dorsally than ventrally; face (behind antennal bases) bulged (when seen in lateral view), with a middle longitudinal carina,densely finely punctate;face just above antennal bases until behind ocelli strongly depressed, obliquely striated; OOL 1.3× as long as posterior ocellus diameter, reticulate rugose; vertex finely or superficially rugose, shiny; clypeus coarsely punctate, with interspaces between punctures equal to puncture diameter, with sharp, nearly straight ventral margin; width of hypoclypeal depression 0.54× as wide as maximum width of face; eye 1.6× as long as temple in dorsal view; vertex behind stemmaticum with radiated rugae; clypeus located below lower level of eye; mandible bidentate, with two blunt teeth; malar space 0.22× length of eye in lateral view; occipital carina sharp, not reaching genal carina.
Mesosoma (Figs 13A, B, 14B). Mesoscutum reticulate rugose; precoxal area of mesopleuron rugose-foveolate above, punctate ventrally, remainder of mesopleuron as well as metapleuron densely foveolate; scutellum flat, superficially punctate, without lateral carina; propodeum irregularly foveolate, foveola small, with distinct median longitudinal carina, not reaching posterior declivity.
Wings (Fig. 13C). Fore wing: vein r 0.6× 3–SR; marginal cell ends close to wing apex; 1–CU1 nearly horizontal, 0.26× as long as 2–CU1; r-m 0.58× as long as 3–SR; SMC2 medium-sized; 3-SR 1.6× as long as 2-SR; cu-a slightly oblique, straight; vein 1-M slightly curved posteriorly. Hind wing: marginal cell distinctly gradually widened to apex, apical width about 1.8× its width at level of hamuli; vein M +CU 1.6× as long as 1-M; 1r–m 1.1× as long as 1–M; vein m–cu very short, more or less interstitial with vein 1r–m.
Legs (Fig. 12A). Tarsal claws simple (not pectinate), swollen at base; metacoxa densely superficially punctate dorsally; hind trochantellus slender, sparsely punctate; metafemur 1.8× as long as hind basitarsus; length of inner metatibial spur 0.34 × as long as hind basitarsus.
Metasoma (Figs 12A, 14A). Metasomal T1 rather flattened, 1.1× as long as its apical width; T1 and T2 with medio-longitudianl carina not reaching apical margin on T2, both tergites with coarse, longitudinal rugosity, that is somewhat weaker on T2; medio-basal area of T2 with wide, smooth triangle; basal half of T3 finely longitudinally striate, remainder of metasoma nearly smooth and shiny, with short, fine whitish setae; ovipositor sheath finger-like, very short, with fine setae throughout, rounded apically, 0.1× as long as metatibia.
Remarks. The species belongs to apicalis -sp. group as its characters strongly agrees with van Achterberg and Shaw’s key (2016; first part of couplet 3, p. 12). It is very similar to the formerly known species (now invalid species, van Achterberg, pers. comm.) Aleiodes africanus (Enderlein, 1920). Based on van Achterberg’s brief description (1991), the new species differs from A. africanus in the following combination of characters: head dark ferruginous, with some parts red (Figs 12B–D), metasoma (except first two segments red) black (Fig. 14A) (in A. africanus body reddish); 64 antennomeres (Fig. 12F) (70 antennomeres in A. africanus).
Etymology. The name farasanensis is derived from the locality (Farasan Islands) from which the specimen was collected and described.
description: Published as part of Abu El-Ghiet, Usama M., Edmardash, Yusuf A. & Gadallah, Neveen S., 2022, New species and records of braconid wasps from Farasan Archipelago (Jazan) Saudi Arabia, with notes on Diolcogaster mayae Shestakov, pp. 49-79 in Zootaxa 5104 (1) on pages 68-72, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.5104.1.3, http://zenodo.org/record/6257841