Cheiloneurus ection Noyes 2023, sp.nov.
Creators: name: Noyes, John Stuart
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2023
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Hymenoptera
Encyrtidae
Cheiloneurus
Cheiloneurus ection

description: Cheiloneurus ection sp.nov.   
(Figs 576-580)  
 DIAGNOSIS: Female (overall length about 1.5mm): body black with a weak to moderate metallic sheen; anterior one-third or so of mesoscutum clothed in dark brown setae, posterior two-thirds clothed in moderately dense, slightly silvery, translucent setae; fore wing (Fig. 578) hyaline; fore coxa mostly white, proximally brown; head about 5X as wide as frontovertex; antenna (Fig. 576) with pedicel about as long as F1-F2 combined; all funicle segments very slightly longer than broad, F1-F3 smaller and subquadrate; linear sensilla on F4-F6; clava slightly longer than F2-F6 combined, with apex rounded; mandible with a long, acute lower tooth, rounded middle tooth and short, obtuse upper tooth; mesoscutum (Fig. 580) mostly with slightly longitudinally elongate, polygonally reticulate sculpture, some rounded, polygonally reticulate sculpture medially near posterior margin; scutellum with coarse, fairly regular, polygonally reticulate sculpture in middle, laterally and apically striate-reticulate; scutellum without a subapical tuft of setae; fore wing (Fig. 578) about 2.4X as long as broad; parastigma slightly swollen and very weakly downcurved; apex of stigmal vein with 3 campaniform sensilla; gaster with “glands” on TV separated by about one-third their own lengths; syntergum broader than long. Male: unknown.   
Female (holotype): length, including ovipositor, 1.47mm; excluding ovipositor, 1.41mm (CPD).  
Head black with a moderate, metallic green sheen on frontovertex with slight purplish reflections, slightly coppery in ocellar area and near occipital margin; scrobal area mostly with a distinct, deep, purple sheen; lower part of interantennal prominence and mouth margin metallic green to blue-green; frontovertex with inconspicuous dark brown setae; temple adjacent to eye metallic green; posterior part of temple and gena purple, mixed coppery; antenna (Fig. 576) with radicle dark brown; scape dark brown with extreme apex pale orange; pedicel dark brown in proximal two-thirds or so, apex pale orange; funicle pale brown, distal segments mixed pale orange, especially ventrally; clava dark brown; thorax mostly dark brown to black; pronotum with a dull purple sheen; mesoscutum with a dull purple sheen mixed with blue reflections, especially laterally; anterior one-third or so clothed in dark brown setae, posterior two-thirds clothed in moderately dense, slightly silvery, translucent setae, posterior margin dark purple; tegula dark brown; scutellum clothed with dark brown setae and with a distinct metallic green sheen that contrasts with the relatively dull mesoscutum, this mixed with coppery reflections, especially medially and posteriorly, sides and apex shining metallic green with some coppery reflections; metanotum with slight purple sheen; mesopleuron dark purple-brown with a weak, but distinct blue-green sheen in anterior two-thirds or so; fore coxa mostly white, but proximally brown; fore femur dark brown with apices white; tibia brown, distally pale orange-brown, narrowly white proximally; mid coxa dark brown, slightly metallic; mid femur white with a dark brown, subapical band; mid tibia white with a brown subbasal band, spur white; hind coxa dark brown, slightly metallic; hind femur almost completely dark brown but with extreme apices white; hind tibia dark brown with apices narrowly white; fore tarsi pale orange-brown; mid and hind tarsi white; pretarsi brownish; fore wing (Fig. 578) completely hyaline, venation pale yellow-brown; propodeum dark purple-brown; sides weakly metallic green with conspicuous silvery setae in spiracular area; gaster dark purple-brown, Gt1 distinctly metallic blue; remainder of gaster mixed purple and brassy; gonostylus dark brown.  
Head about 5X as wide as frontovertex, subtriangular in profile, occipital margin more or less rounded, occiput with a shallow groove from middle of occipital margin to foramen; ocelli forming an angle of about 45°; frontovertex slightly shiny, with conspicuous reticulate sculpture of mesh size generally slightly smaller than diameter of eye facet; scrobes, interantennal prominence and mouth margin with shallower sculpture; temple and gena with distinct irregular, reticulate sculpture, of larger mesh than the frontovertex and distinctly elongate posteriorly; scrobes shallow, not meeting, dorsal and lateral margins indistinct, weakly rounded; antenna as in Fig. 576; scape slightly broadened and flattened, about 3.6X as long as broad; funicle segments subquadrate, F1- F3 quadrate, F4-F6 larger and slightly longer than broad; linear sensilla present only on F4-F6; clava slightly longer than F2-F6 combined, sutures not oblique, sensory area moderately large, about half as wide as clava, at apex only giving it a rounded appearance; eye slightly overreaching occipital margin and clothed with inconspicuous, short setae that are each slightly shorter than diameter of facet; frontovertex narrowest near posterior ocelli, slightly wider near anterior ocellus; malar sulcus absent; mandible with a long, acute lower tooth, rounded middle tooth and short, obtuse upper tooth. Relative measurements: HW 66, HH 57, FV 14.5, OD 4.5, POL 6.5, OOL 0.5, OCL 9.5 AOL 9, EL 39, EW 35, MS 27, SL 29, SW 8.  
Thorax (Fig. 580) with shallow, irregular, polygonally reticulate sculpture on pronotum, generally of mesh size subequal to diameter of facet; sculpture on anterior part of mesoscutum slightly coarser and finer than that on pronotum and more longitudinally elongate, but posterior part with polygonally reticulate sculpture similar to that on pronotum; sculpture on axilla slightly coarser and reticulate; scutellum with coarse, fairly regular, polygonally reticulate sculpture in middle, laterally and apically striate-reticulate, extreme apex and sides completely smooth; visible part of mesoscutum about 1.5X as broad as long; scutellum about as long as broad, subapical tuft sparse composed only 5 or 6 setae and indistinct, but setae about one-third as long as scutellum; hind femur about 3.8X as long as broad; fore wing with venation and setation as in Figs 577, 578; costal cell with 6 setae dorsally at apex; propodeum (Fig. 580) with about 15 setae in spiracular area, side naked, medially about 0.1X as long as scutellum and smooth. Relative measurements: FWL 83, FWW 34; HWL 61, HWW 17.  
Gaster with hypopygium reaching about half-way to apex; ovipositor hardly exserted, the exserted part about one-quarter as long as mid tibial spur; “glands” present on TV, separated by about one-third their own lengths; syntergum about as long as mid tibia; ovipositor as in Fig. 577, gonostylus about 0.6X as long as mid tibial spur. Relative measurements: OL 48, GL 10 [MT 36].  
Variation. Only holotype examined.  
Male. Unknown.  
DISTRIBUTION. Costa Rica.  
HOSTS. Unknown.  
MATERIAL EXAMINED.  
 Type material. Holotype E: COSTA RICA, Guanacaste, Sta, Rosa NP, Bosq. Hum. 9-0, 23.iii-13. iv.1986 (Janzen, Gauld). Holotype in NHMUK.   
COMMENTS. Unfortunately, it is not possible to identify Gt1 of the gaster on the slide mounted holotype and therefore the presence or absence of “glands” on this tergite is unknown.
description: Published as part of Noyes, John Stuart, 2023, ENCYRTIDAE OF COSTA RICA (HYMENOPTERA: CHALCIDOIDEA), 4 Subfamily Encyrtinae: tribes Arrhenophagini, Habrolepidini, Cerapterocerini, Cheiloneurini, Trechnitini, Cercobelini, Polaszekiini, Protyndarichoidini, Gahaniellini and Syrphophagini (part), mainly primary parasitoids and hyperparasitoids of Coccoidea and Psylloidea (Hemiptera), pp. 1-921 in Taxonomic Monographs on Neotropical Hymenoptera (Oxford, England) (Oxford, England) 2 (11) on pages 232-233, DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.8074943