Trigastrotheca carinata Ranjith 2024, sp. nov.
Creators: name: Quicke, Donald L. J.
name: Van Noort, Simon
name: Ranjith, Avunjikkattu Parambil
name: Friedman, Ariel L. L.
name: Mejlon, Hans
name: Butcher, Buntika A.
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2024
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Hymenoptera
Braconidae
Trigastrotheca
Trigastrotheca carinata

description: Trigastrotheca carinata Ranjith sp. nov.
Figs 5, 6
Type material.
Holotype ♀, India: Kerala, Palakkad, Silent Valley, 17. iv. 2018, Malaise trap, coll. Sinu P. A. (AIMB).
Diagnosis.
Similar to T. braeti sp. nov. from Africa, in having the body including stemmaticum entirely ochreous yellow, but differs in the shape of the head with the eye only 2.1 × as long as temple in dorsal view. In addition, fore wing vein C + SC + R brown-yellow, fore wing veins r-rs and rs-m are not wavy, and the T 5 is relatively broader with deeper posterior emarginations and a more acute medio-posterior projection. Similar also to T. freidbergi sp. nov. but stemmaticum yellow and T 5 relatively far longer (Fig. 6 C cf. Fig. 16 A).
Description.
Holotype female. Length of body 4.0 mm, fore wing 3.0 mm. Head. Antenna with 42 flagellomeres. Terminal flagellomere, short, sub-triangular, acuminate. First flagellomere 1.0 × longer than 2 nd and 3 rd, the latter 1.3 × longer than wide. Width of head: width of face: height of eye = 2.5: 1.4: 1.0. Face transversely striate-rugose; with weak mid-longitudinal ridge. Inter-tentorial distance 1.4 × longer than tentorio-ocular distance. Malar suture impressed. Malar space 2.1 × as long as basal width of mandible. Antennal sockets strongly produced. Frons strongly impressed behind antennal sockets, with mid-longitudinal carina. Shortest distance between posterior ocelli: transverse diameter of posterior ocellus: shortest distance between posterior ocellus and eye = 1.0: 1.0: 2.1. Mesosoma 1.4 × longer than high. Mesoscutum rugose; notauli not impressed except very short anterior part with few weak crenulations. Scutellar sulcus shallow, narrow, finely crenulate, very shallow posteriorly. Scutellum sparsely punctate, setose without small pit medially behind sulcus. Median area of metanotum with complete mid-longitudinal carina. Propodeum faintly rugose; mid-longitudinal carina complete, lamelliform, bordered narrowly by fine crenulations; posteriorly propodeum with short longitudinal carinae associated with longitudinal wrinkles. Wings. Fore wing. Lengths of fore wing veins r-rs: 3 RSa: 3 RSb = 1.0: 1.3: 4.5. Lengths of vein 2 RS: 3 RSa: rs-m = 1.0: 1.1: 1.0. Base of hind wing with sparse setae. Legs. Lengths of fore femur: fore tibia: fore tarsus = 1.1: 1.2: 1.0. Lengths of hind femur: hind tibia: hind tarsus = 2.0: 2.3: 1.0. Claws with small acutely pointed basal lobe. Metasoma. T 1 2.8 × wider than long. T 2 1.1 × as long as T 3. T 1 coriaceous. TT 1–5 with coarse reticulate sculpture. Second metasomal suture and basal grooves of TT 4 and 5 deep, strigose. T 5 with postero-lateral margin of convex, unevenly denticulate; medial protuberance acutely rounded posteriorly. Coloration. Body mostly yellow except antenna, apex of mandible, tarsi, ovipositor sheath brown.
Male. Unknown.
Distribution.
Oriental (India).
Host.
Unknown.
Etymology.
The species is named after the presence of mid-longitudinal carina of frons which will separate the species from other Indian species.
description: Published as part of Quicke, Donald L. J., Van Noort, Simon, Ranjith, Avunjikkattu Parambil, Friedman, Ariel L. L., Mejlon, Hans & Butcher, Buntika A., 2024, Revision of Trigastrotheca Cameron (Hymenoptera, Braconidae, Braconinae) with descriptions of 13 new species, pp. 115-167 in ZooKeys 1205 on pages 115-167, DOI: 10.3897/zookeys.1205.125014