Perilampus cabecar Yoo and Darling 2025, sp. nov.
Creators: name: Yoo, Jeong Jae
name: Darling, D. Christopher
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2025
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Hymenoptera
Perilampidae
Perilampus
Perilampus cabecar

description: Perilampus cabecar Yoo and Darling sp. nov.
Figs 5 [♀], 6[♂]
Type Material. Holotype [♀]. Costa Rica: Cartago. Turrialba. "COSTA RICA: Cartago Turrialba 4 August 1965 Herman G. Real. From aggregation of larvae, pupae, and reared C.A.S. Acc. 1967". The holotype is point-mounted (♀: ROME162500 - CAS), with the host remains in a gelatin capsule. ROM Online Collection.
Paratypes [3 ♀, 3 ♂]. Costa Rica: Cartago. Turrialba (3 ♀: HG Real, ROME162496 - CAS; HG Real, ROME162497 - CAS; HG Real, ROME162498 - CAS. 1 ♂: HG Real, ROME162499 - CAS). Guanacaste. ACG (1 ♂: D Martinez, 15-SRNP-70572, DHJPAR0057711 - CNC; BOLD: ACW6281 / ITS2). Peru: Huánuco. Tingo María, Rio Huallaga (1 ♂: W Weyrauch, ROME162299 - IFML).
Description. FEMALE (Fig. 5). Length: 3.5–3.7mm Color: head iridescent greenish blue or violet, with black coloration on vertex (Fig. 5F); mesosoma and metasoma iridescent greenish blue or violet; clypeus ventral margin black; antenna with scape and pedicel weakly iridescent greenish blue or violet, flagellum dark brown or black, lighter ventrad and distad.
Head (Fig. 5E–I): in dorsal view transverse, width equal to or slightly greater than twice length, HW/HL 2.0– 2.1. Frontal carina: in anterior view weakly to strongly sinuate below midlevel of eye; in dorsal view gradually narrowed V shape around median ocellus, FC/MOD 1.5–1.6 (Fig. 5E); distance from lateral ocellus short, FCLO/ LOD 0.6–0.7 (Fig. 5E). Scrobal cavity (Fig. 5G): in anterior view wide, SW/HW about 0.5. Ocelli (Fig. 5E): a line between anterior margin of lateral ocelli reaching anterior margin of median ocellus. POL/OOL 1.9–2.4. Ocellar ratios LOD: POL: OOL: LOL: 1, 3.0–3.1, 1.4–1.5, 1.0–1.1. Vertex: smooth to wrinkled or with weak transverse striations, with or without large piliferous punctures. Parascrobal area: in lateral view abruptly narrowed slightly below mid-eye height, about 0.4 EH above lower eye margin (Fig. 5I); width narrow, PSW/EL about 0.3; sculpture smooth or wrinkled, with or without large piliferous punctures. Gena: with wide and long smooth area along outer eye margin, striate behind. Malar space: MSL/EH about 0.2. Lower face: with setae sparse laterad torulus, and sparse below. Clypeus (Fig. 5H): CW/ CH 1.3–1.4; ventral margin concave; setae evenly distributed.
Mesosoma (Fig. 5B–D): Lateral panel of pronotum: slightly narrower than prepectus, LPP/PPT 0.6–0.8; without flange or with small, rounded flange below level of mesothoracic spiracle in posterior oblique view (Fig. 5C). Mesofemoral depression: smooth. Mesoscutum: punctures angulate, with narrow and weakly coriarious interspaces (Fig. 5B); lateral lobe smooth along notaulus; parascutal carina broadly curved, acuminate. Mesoscutellum: apex with inner margins gradually diverging; punctures angulate, with narrow and weakly coriarious interspaces. Axilla (Fig. 5D): in lateral view imbricate dorsad, and carinate ventrad. Axillula: smooth dorsad. Fore wing: stigma small, 2.0–2.5× as wide as postmarginal vein width.
MALE (Fig. 6). Length: usually smaller, 3.0– 3.8 mm. As in female, except: Color: mesonotum nearly black. Frontal carina (Fig. 6B): distance from lateral ocellus shorter, FCLO/LOD 0.4–0.5. Scape (Fig. 6F, G): pits sparse, covering about 0.2× scape length. Scrobal cavity in anterior view narrow or wide, SW/HW 0.4–0.5.
Etymology. The specific epithet is derived from Cabécar, the indigenous people whose territory falls within Cartago, Costa Rica, where the holotype was collected.
Diagnosis. Perilampus cabecar can be recognized by a parascrobal area that is abruptly narrowed slightly below the midlevel of the eye (Figs 5I, 6E), a wide frontal carina around the median ocellus (Figs 5E, 6B), a wide female scrobal cavity in anterior view (Fig. 5G), and a male scape with a short pitted area (about 0.2× scape length, Figs 6F, G).
Distribution. Neotropical: Costa Rica (Cartago, ACG), and Peru (Huanuco).
Host association. Perilampus cabecar is a hyperparasitoid, parasitizing dipteran parasitoids of Lepidoptera. Hosts: Tachinidae (Diptera). Leptostylum pulchellum Macquart from Hylesia rubrifrons Schaus (Saturniidae) on Virola koschnyi Warb (Myristicaeceae).
Remarks. See P. carolinensis. The only sequenced P.cabecar specimen is a male from ACG (DHJPAR0057711), which also has a BIN (BOLD:ACW6281). There is another sequenced specimen with the same BIN and host records, also from ACG (DHJPAR0057463), but the specimen is missing, and its species identity could not be verified with morphology. Unsequenced females and a male reared from the single rearing event in Cartago, Costa Rica, were used to describe the female of P. cabecar. The known parasitoid host, caterpillar associate, and plant host of this species are not shared within P. carolinensis. More reared specimens are needed to confirm this apparent niche differentiation.
description: Published as part of Yoo, Jeong Jae & Darling, D. Christopher, 2025, Taxonomic revision of the Perilampus carolinensis species complex (Hymenoptera: Chalcidoidea: Perilampidae), and the description of five new species, pp. 151-195 in Zootaxa 5621 (2) on page 173, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.5621.2.1, http://zenodo.org/record/15262606