Moritiella Buffington
Creators: name: Buffington, Matthew L.
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2006
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Hymenoptera
Figitidae
Moritiella

description: Moritiella Buffington, new genus
(Figs 1–2)
Type species: Moritiella elegans Buffington n. sp., by present designation.
Diagnosis
The following combination of characters separate Moritiella from the other previously described genera within the Zaeucoila group of eucoiline genera: Orbital furrows entirely lacking. Genal carina present along ventral ½ to 1/3 of head. Conical projections absent on malar space. Pronotal plate broad; pronotal struts absent. Mesoscutum lacking any sculpture. Scutellar plate with two rows of postero­dorsally oriented tubercles surrounding glandular release pit. Scutellar disk lacking projections. R1 of forewing always tubular and pigmented; radial cell always closed.
Differs from Moneucoela Kieffer by lacking lateral and posterior projections of the scutellum. Differs from Agrostocynips Diaz by the presence of a genal carina ventrally, the lack of inner orbital furrows on the face and having the tubercles on the scutellar plate much more developed. Differs from Zaeucoila Ashmead by the lack of the mesoscutal carina as well as having the tubercles on the scutellar plate much more developed. Differs from Preseucoela Buffington by lacking clypeal protuberances, lacking pronotal struts and by having several more tubercles on the scutellar plate (only two tubercles present in Preseucoela). Differs from Ganaspidium Weld by the possession of a large pronotal plate (pronotal plate in Ganaspidium 1/3 to 1/4 as wide as head) and by having several more tubercles on the scutellar plate (as in Preseucoela, only two tubercles present in Ganaspidium).
Description
General appearance. Shiny black to extreme dark brown all over body.
Head. Glabrous except for sparse setae along edge of eyes and malar space. Ocellar hair patches lacking. Orbital furrows lacking (Fig. 1 A). Malar sulcus simple. Malar space smooth with protuberances. Genal carina present along ventral ½ to 1/3 of head (Fig. 2).
Antenna. Female: 13 segments, moniliform, semi­clavate; segment 3 slightly longer than remaining flagellomeres; rhinaria present on segments 3–13 (Fig. 1 B). Male: unknown.
Pronotum. Pronotal plate large, half as wide as head, with sparse setae along dorsal margin; pronotal fovea open laterally. Pronotal struts lacking (Fig. 2 A). Pronotum in lateral view smooth and sparsely setose. Lateral pronotal carina absent.
Mesoscutum. Smooth with a few sparse setae along anterior margin (Fig 2 C). Mesoscutal keel absent. No other sculpture present.
Mesopectus. Upper and lower parts of mesopleuron smooth and glabrous (Fig. 1 A). Dorsal and ventral margins of mesopleural triangle indistinct. Mesopleural carina simple, well defined. Lower portion of mesopleuron bordered by a ventral carina with a distinct anterior, elongate, surcoxal depression.
Scutellum. Scutellar plate large, covering ½ of dorsal sculpted surface of scutellar disk (Fig. 2 C); mid­pit of scutellar plate situated centrally to posteriorly. Mid­pit surrounded by series of dorso­postero projecting tubercles (Figs 2 B–C). Dorsal surface of scutellum coarsely alveolate with setiferous pits; lateral and posterior margins rounded (Fig. 2 B). Scutellar plate close to surface of scutellar disk (not greatly raised). Lateral and posterior projections absent.
Metapectal­propodeal complex. Metapectus glabrous (Fig. 1 A); dense setal patch present, ventrally located in antero­ventral cavity; scattered setae along posterior margin.
Spiracular groove with distinct dorsal and ventral margin. Posterior margin of metapectus ridged. Metapleural ridge present, reduced; submetapleural ridge reduced. Anteroventral cavity present, densely setose. Propodeum covered in short, dense setae. Propodeal carinae (Fig. 2 C) subparallel, well developed, running from posterior margin of scutellum to dorsal margin of nucha, meeting each other at nucha; auxiliary propodeal carinae indistinct. Nucha glabrous.
Wings. Hyaline, densely covered with setae (Fig. 2 D). R1 of forewing always tubular and pigmented; radial cell always closed; radial cell as deep as long. Apical fringe present, short.
Legs. Procoxae slightly smaller than either meso­ or metacoxae. Patches of long setae present on all coxae, mostly along anterior margin. Remaining leg segments with sparse, evenly distributed setae, becoming slightly more dense and appressed on tarsomeres.
Metasoma. Female: larger than mesosoma. Hairy ring present at base of syntergum, broken at extreme dorsal margin and incomplete ventrally; hairy ring comprised of smaller, dense setae anteriorly and longer, singly spaced setae posteriorly; remainder of metasoma glabrous. Micropores present on terga 5–8 (terga posterior to syntergum). Terga posterior to syntergum directed ventrally at 70 degree angle relative to syntergum. Male: unknown
Biology
Unknown.
Distribution
Neotropical Region: Brazil, Colombia, Dominica, Ecuador, Venezuela.
Etymology
Named in honor of Shelah I. Morita who inspires my work on Figitidae.
description: Published as part of Buffington, Matthew L., 2006, The description of Moritiella Buffington, new genus (Hymenoptera: Figitidae: Eucoilinae), pp. 61-68 in Zootaxa 1237 on pages 62-66, DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.273453