Apanteles phantasmatus Slater-Baker, Fagan-Jeffries, Fernandez-Triana, Portmann & Oestmann 2025, sp. nov.
Creators: name: Slater-Baker, Mollie-Rosae
name: Fagan-Jeffries, Erinn P.
name: Oestmann, Katherine J.
name: Portmann, Olivia G.
name: Bament, Tiahni M.
name: Howe, Andy G.
name: Guzik, Michelle T.
name: Bradford, Tessa M.
name: McClelland, Alana R.
name: Woodward, Alice
name: Clarke, Sylvia
name: Ducker, Nathan
name: Fernández-Triana, José
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2025
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Hymenoptera
Braconidae
Apanteles
Apanteles phantasmatus

description: Apanteles phantasmatus Slater-Baker, Fagan-Jeffries, Fernández-Triana, Portmann & Oestmann sp. nov.
Fig. 5 B (distribution), Fig. 53 (holotype)
Type material.
Holotype. Australia • ♀; QLD, Samsonvale Cemetery, 8.5 km SSE Dayboro; - 27.2703, 152.856; 5–22 Oct. 2014; S. Wright leg.; Malaise trap; Casuarina / open forest; BOLD Process ID: AUMIC 087-18; QM: T 208361. Paratypes. Australia • ♀; NSW, Hat Head; - 31.063, 153.052; 26 Dec. 2009; Paul D. N. Hebert leg.; Malaise trap; BOLD Process ID: HYAS 060-10; QM: T 261269. • ♂; as previous except: 18 Feb. 2018; Trap # 4; BOLD Process ID: NSWHO 4562-18; QM: T 261270. • ♀; as holotype except; 23 Sep. – 05 Oct. 2014; BOLD Process ID: AUMIC 071-18; QM: T 208357. • ♀; as holotype except; 14 Nov. – 16 Dec. 2014; S. Wright leg.; Malaise trap; BOLD Process ID: AUMIC 090-18; QM: T 208362. • ♀; as previous except: BOLD Process ID: AUMIC 091-18; QM: T 208358. • ♀; as holotype except: 22 Oct. – 14 Nov. 2014; BOLD Process ID: AUMIC 410-18; QM: T 208363. • ♀; as holotype except: BOLD Process ID: AUMIC 413-18; QM: T 208359. • ♀; as holotype except: 6 Jan. – 8 Feb. 2015; BOLD Process ID: AUMIC 414-18; QM: T 208360. • ♂; as previous except: BOLD Process ID: AUMIC 1437-24; QM: T 261171. • ♂; as previous except: BOLD Process ID: AUMIC 1439-24; QM: T 261172. • ♂; as previous except: BOLD Process ID: AUMIC 1441-24; QM: T 261173. • ♂; as previous except: BOLD Process ID: AUMIC 1443-24; QM: T 261174. • ♂; as previous except: BOLD Process ID: AUMIC 1444-24; QM: T 261175. • ♂; as previous except: BOLD Process ID: AUMIC 1445-24; QM: T 261176. • ♂; as previous except: BOLD Process ID: AUMIC 1442-24; QM: T 261177.
Diagnostic description.
Size: Total body length: 2.3 mm; fore wing length: 2.3 mm. Head: anterior scape colour similar or only very slightly paler than head colour; F 2 L / W ratio: 3.1; F 14 L / W ratio: 1.3. Mesosoma: scutoscutellar sulcus with eight pits; mesoscutellar disc mostly smooth, or with very shallow scattered indentations; propodeal areola complete, or mostly so; propodeum mostly rugose; coxae colour (pro, meso, meta): dark all; metafemur colour mostly dark. Wings: centre of pterostigma pigmented to same degree as the outer edges; fore wing r vein length / 2 RS vein length ratio: 1.1. Metasoma: T 1 shape mostly parallel, T 1 medial length / anterior width between 1–2 × longer than wide; mostly rugose; T 2 mostly smooth; ovipositor sheath length / metatibia length ratio: 0.6.
Apanteles phantasmatus can be separated from the other species of Apanteles in Australia that have a dark metacoxa and metafemur, ovipositor sheaths> 0.5 × metatibia length, antennae of similar size or longer than the length of the body, a completely hyaline fore wing membrane, and a uniformly pigmented pterostigma (no paler centre region, and no large pale spot on proximal corner), by the metatibia mostly dark with a very pale (almost white) band discrete and restricted to proximal 1 / 3 of the tibia, T 3 with setae not reduced to a single row (setae more irregularly arranged), and T 2 posterior width / medial length ratio ~ 4.1). The species could be confused with the individuals of A. magicus that lack fore wing infuscation, but the DNA barcodes of the two species cluster discretely in a phylogeny.
Etymology.
The species epithet is an adjective formed from the Latin noun phantasma meaning ghost and relates to the collection of most of the specimens from a cemetery.
Distribution.
Apanteles phantasmatus is currently known from the east coast of Australia.
Molecular information.
Sequences of Apanteles phantasmatus are currently in BIN BOLD: AAU 8268. The COI sequences are at least 9 % divergent from any of the other species treated here, or any available sequence on BOLD. The wg sequences of the species are at least 8 bp different to any other species. All delimitation methods resolved A. phantasmatus as a discrete species.
description: Published as part of Slater-Baker, Mollie-Rosae, Fagan-Jeffries, Erinn P., Oestmann, Katherine J., Portmann, Olivia G., Bament, Tiahni M., Howe, Andy G., Guzik, Michelle T., Bradford, Tessa M., McClelland, Alana R., Woodward, Alice, Clarke, Sylvia, Ducker, Nathan & Fernández-Triana, José, 2025, DNA barcoding, integrative taxonomy, citizen science, and Bush Blitz surveys combine to reveal 34 new species of Apanteles (Hymenoptera, Braconidae, Microgastrinae) in Australia, pp. 1-128 in ZooKeys 1227 on pages 1-128, DOI: 10.3897/zookeys.1227.130467