Xenomerus melleus Miko &amp; Masner 2010, new species
Creators: name: Mikó, I.
name: Masner, L.
name: Deans, A. R.
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2010
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Hymenoptera
Scelionidae
Xenomerus
Xenomerus melleus

description: <i>Xenomerus melleus</i> Mikó &amp; Masner, new species Figures 94, 96, 98, 110 <b>MALE</b> (Holotype): Length= 1.02 mm. Honey brown, antenna, excluding yellow radicle and metasoma, excluding honey-brown petiole, dark brown, mandible yellow, metapectal-propodeal complex light brown. <b>FCI</b> =1.42; <b>LCI</b> =1.59; <b>HW/IOS</b> =1.48; head less than 1.5 times as wide as mesosoma (<b>HW/TSL</b> = 1.32); facial striae extending to vertex obscuring frontal patch; frontal patch distinct; frons bare; central keel complete; toruli triangle shorter than clypeus height, not reaching midlevel of eye; POL shorter than OOL (<b>POL/OOL</b> =0.75); OOL more than 2.5 times as long as LOL (<b>OOL/LOL</b> =2.85); hyperoccipital carina absent; interocellar area transversely crenulate, crenulae radiating from the lateral and posterior margin of lateral ocellus, vertex patch present; genal patch present separated from vertex sculpture; A1 more than 4 times as long as radicle (<b>A1/r</b> =4.37), A2–A5 unibottled, A6–A11 dibottled. Epomial carina absent; cervical pronotal area finely reticulate, lateral pronotal area reticulate dorsomedially, crenulate ventrolaterally; netrion sulcus complete; netrion sculpture not extending onto lateral pronotal area; pronotal suprahumeral and cervical sulci not foveolate; mesoscutum more than 1.5 times as wide as long (<b>TSL/ML</b> =1.65); notaulus reaching transscutal line; mesoscutum with sparse, thin setae, sculpture reaching to posterior margin on internotaular area; mesoscutellum more than 2.0 times as wide as long (<b>SW/SL</b> =2.27); scuto-scutellar sulcus slightly diminishing medially, 2 times as wide laterally as in the middle; mesoscutellum finely coriaceous anteriorly, with sparse marginal setae; posterior scutellar sulcus not extending onto axillula; sternaulus not separated from anterior row of foveae of mesopleural carina; mesopleural carina incomplete; sulcus along metapleural carina foveolate; metascutellum bluntly triangular, basal striation extending apically; propodeal lateral carinae inverted V-shaped, shafts straight; propodeal lateral and plical areas obscured by pale, sparse setae; marginal striation extending medially; posterior propodeal projection distinct; mesoscutum about as wide as fore wing (<b>TSL/WW</b> =0.96); marginal vein more than 4 times as long as stigmal vein (<b>m/st</b> =3.3); hind wing about 1.5 times as wide as marginal cilia (<b>HWW/ HWS</b> =1.53). T1 less than 1.5 times as wide as T1+T2 length (<b>T1W/T1+T2L</b> =1.26); T3 as wide as mesoscutum (<b>T3W/ TSL</b> =0.96), almost 2 times as wide as long (<b>T3W/</b> T3L=1.86); costae on T3 reaching 2/3 length of tergum submedially; reticulate sculpture extending from lateral patch medially, covering posterior 2/3 of tergum, not reaching posterior margin, obscuring posterior patch; anterior 2/3 of T4 reticulate. <b>Variability</b> (n=7): Length= 0.88–1.05 mm (m=0.96, SD =0.05); <b>FCI</b> =1.30–1.42 (m=1.36, SD =0.04); <b>LCI</b> =1.47–1.59 (m=1.52, SD =0.03); <b>HW/IOS</b> =1.46–1.53 (m=1.48, SD =0.02); <b>HW/TSL</b> =1.28–1.36 (m=1.32, SD =0.02); <b>POL/OOL</b> =0.69–0.78 (m=0.74, SD =0.03); <b>OOL/LOL</b> =2.52–2.85 (m=2.74, SD =0.12); <b>A1/r</b> =4.37–5.16 (m=4.67, SD =0.30); <b>TSL/ML</b> =1.57–1.70 (m=1.64, SD =0.04); <b>SW/SL</b> =2.05–2.29 (m=2.21, SD =0.09); <b>TSL/WW</b> =0.78–0.96 (m=0.87, SD =0.05); <b>m/st</b> =3.2–3.5 (m=3.41, SD =0.13); <b>HWW/ HWS</b> =1.53–1.66 (m=1.62, SD =0.06); <b>T1W/T1+T2L</b> =1.19–1.5 (m=1.28, SD =0.1); <b>T3W/TSL</b> =0.94–0.96 (m=0.95, SD =0.01). <b>FEMALE</b>: Unknown. <b>Diagnosis.</b> Differs from all other species of <i>Xenomerus</i> by dibottled A6. Most closely related to <i>X. halteratus</i>, differing by lack of rugulous sculpture on upper frons, sculpture of vertex, longer notaulus, incomplete mesopleural carina. Differs from <i>X. ochraceus</i> in having facial striae extending to vertex, incomplete mesopleural carina and posteriorly reticulate T3. <b>Etymology.</b> From the latin mellis, meaning honey, referring to the body color. <b>Material examined.</b> <i>Holotype male</i>: <b>AUSTRALIA:</b> Australian Capital Territory, Canberra, Black Mountain, 27.I–07.II.1984, L.Masner, MT [ANIC:####]. <i>Paratypes</i>: <b>AUSTRALIA</b>: Australian Capital Territory, Canberra, Black Mountain, 27.I–07.II.1984, L.Masner, MT. 1&amp;male; [ANIC], 1&amp;male;; Australian Capital Territory, Canberra, Black Mountaint -35.2666, 149.01, 23–30.V.1998. G.A.P.Gibson, YPT, 1&amp;male;; New South Wels, Monga State Forest, 19–24.I.1984, L. Masner, dry sclerophyl Eucalyptus forest, MT, 600m, 1&amp;male;; New South Wels, Monga State Forest, 24.I–4.II.1984, L. Masner, dry sclerophyl Eucalyptus forest, MT, 600m, 2&amp;male;; New South Wels, Kosciusco National Park, Wilson’s Valley, 1490m, Maintenance depot area, 7–21.II.1993, -36.35,148.5333, A.Newton &amp; M.Thayer, open Eucalyptus pauciflora forest, 3&amp;male;; Queensland, Mount Glorious National Park, 630m, 28.II.1984, L.Masner, tropical rain &amp; sclerophyl forest, mixed, 1&amp;male;; Queensland, Kuranda, 1000m, 21.II.1984, L.Masner, rain forest underground, 1&amp;male;; Queensland, Mount Lewis Road, -16.5886, 145.2869, 900m, 16.IX.2004, L.Masner, rainforest (Q16), 1&amp;male;. Holotype is deposited in ANIC. Paratypes are deposited in ANIC (1) and in CNCI (11).
description: Published as part of <i>Mikó, I., Masner, L. &amp; Deans, A. R., 2010, World revision of Xenomerus Walker (Hymenoptera: Platygastroidea, Platygastridae) 2708, pp. 1-73 in Zootaxa 2708</i> on pages 34-36