Parancistrocerus similiandrocles Li & Carpenter 2019, sp. nov.
Creators: name: Li, Tingjing
name: Carpenter, James M.
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2019
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Hymenoptera
Vespidae
Parancistrocerus
Parancistrocerus similiandrocles

description: Parancistrocerus similiandrocles Li & Carpenter, sp. nov.
(Figs 44–51)
Material examined. Holotype, 1♀, China, Yunnan prov., Xishuangbanna State, Mengla County, Mengban Town, Mengha Village, 21°24'56.0"N, 101°18'40.4"E, 30.VII.2015, Wenkai Zhou, No. 10041011 (CQNU). Paratypes: 2♀♀, China, Yunnan prov., Xishuangbanna State, Gasa Town, Mandian Village, 21°57'02.7"N, 100°45'04.1"E, 3.VIII.2017, Tingjing Li & Pan Huang, Nos. 10 0 41012, 10041013 (CQNU); 1♂, China, Yunnan prov., Puer City, Mojiang County, Mengnong Town, Xiaogandong Village, 23°417'13.9"N, 101°31'09.6"E, 23.VII.2015, Pan Huang & Yan Peng, No. 10041014 (CQNU).
Diagnosis. This species is similar to the widespread species P. androcles (Meade-Waldo). It differs from P. androcles and other congeners by the following combination of characters: S2 strongly and sharply depressed basally (Fig. 51); apical yellow bands of T1 and T2 narrower (Fig. 50) than those in P. androcles; superior and submarginal carinae of propodeum not forming long and thick, round and black complete enclosure; and body without ferruginous markings.
Description. Female (Fig. 44). Body length 6.0– 6.5 mm. Head slightly wider than long in frontal view; clypeus (Fig. 46) coriaceous, with minute punctures, clypeal maximum width 1.16× its length, somewhat convex, without plattened area at subapex, apex emarginated forming two lateral teeth, apical width 0.93× distance between antennal sockets; inter-antennal area with longitudinal carina; frons weakly swollened, densely and coarsely punctate and reticulate, punctures on vertex and tempora somewhat sparser and smaller than those of frons; cephalic foveae present, unobvious and just slightly bigger than surrounding punctures; interocular distance on vertex 1.39× that at clypeus; POL 1.28× OOL; distance between anterior ocellus and posterior ocelli 1.67× diameter of anterior ocellus; occipital carina complete.
Median sloping area of anterior face of pronotum polished, with two small and seperated foveae mesally, laterally with pubescence; pronotal carina just present laterally; posterior and lateral sides of pronotum, mesoscutum and scutellum irregularly punctate, interspaces these punctures not uniform, punctures generally sparser than those on frons and vertex of head; mesoscutum not swollen mesally, median length of mesoscutum as long as its maximum width; scutellum medially with longitudinal groove; metanotum with sparse punctures; mesopleuron closely punctured except large area of epicnemium and posterior margin coriaceous; epicnemial carina present; metapleuron coriaceous; dorsal face of propodeum (Figs. 48–49) forming horizontal area behind midline of metanotum and coarsely punctate, interspaces between punctures with reticulate carinae; posterior face concave, with median carina, with long and dense setae laterally, punctures on upper part and finely striate on lower part; lateral sides of propodeum coriaceous inside and irregularly punctate outside; superior carina of propodeum moderately developed and lamellate at top, clearly separating horizontal dorsal face from posterior face, submarginal carina moderately projecting as lobe above propodeal valvula. Tegula smooth with minute punctures, evenly rounded posteriorly, emarginate adjoining parategula and almost extending to apex of latter posteriorly.
T1 (Fig. 50) with regular, strong transverse carina separating vertical face from dorsal face, transverse carina 0.86× as wide as dorsal horizontal face; vertical anterior face distinctly shorter than dorsal horizontal face, with scattered punctures on the upper part, dorsal face 1.42× as wide as median length, moderately punctate and with about 3–4 irregular rows of punctures at apical band; T2 sparsely punctate, much sparser than those of T1, with about 2–3 irregular puncture rows apically, 1.32× as wide as median length; maximum width of T2 1.2× that of T1, T2 not reflexed at apex, with apical margin normal, not prolonged mesally; S2 (Fig. 51) obviously lowered basally; following metasomal segments normal.
Body black. Following parts yellow: two lateral arched spots basally and two small lateral apical spots of clypeus, mandible except apex, a median spot on lower frons, apical spot in ocular sinus, a band on tempora, ventral side of scape, median band on dorsal surface of pronotum, anterior and posterior spots of tegula, parategula, metanotum, apex of fore femur, long band of fore and mid tibiae, wide apical bands on T1, T2 and S2; apical margin of clypeus, apex of mandible, all tibiae excluding yellow markings and tarsi dark brown.
Male (Fig. 45). Body length 6.0 mm. Sculpture, punctuation, setae, and coloration as in female except as follows: clypeus (Fig. 47) entirely yellow,apical spot in ocular sinus much larger and extending to clypeal base, clypeus much wider, maximum width 1.24× its length, apex of A13 approaching base of A11, interocular distance on vertex 1.76× that at clypeus; POL 1.35× OOL; distance between anterior ocellus and posterior ocelli 1.23× as long as diameter of anterior ocellus; T1 1.32× as wide as its median length; T2 1.46× as wide as its median length; maximum width of T2 1.27× that of T1; punctures on T1 denser than those in female.
Distribution. China (Yunnan).
Etymology. The species is named after the similar species P. androcles, combined with the Latin word similis (=similar).
FIGURES 57–63. Parancistrocerus samarensis, 57, 59, 61–63, ♀; 58, 60, ♂. 57–58. Habitus, dorsal view; 59–60. Clypeus; 61. Pronotum, dorsal view; 62. Propodeum and T1, dorsal view; 63. T2–T3, dorsal view.
description: Published as part of Li, Tingjing & Carpenter, James M., 2019, Descriptions of eight new species of the genus Parancistrocerus Bequaert (Hymenoptera: Vespidae: Eumeninae), with a key to the Oriental species, pp. 251-274 in Zootaxa 4551 (3) on pages 269-272, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4551.3.1, http://zenodo.org/record/2622855