Chelonus (Microchelonus) brachykeraiatus Zhou & Achterberg & Tang & Chen 2024, sp. nov.
Creators: name: Zhou, Jin-Jin
name: Achterberg, Cornelis Van
name: Tang, Pu
name: Chen, Xue-Xin
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2024
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Hymenoptera
Braconidae
Chelonus
Chelonus brachykeraiatus

description: Chelonus (Microchelonus) brachykeraiatus sp. nov.
Figs 13–14
Material examined. Holotype: female, Baishanzu, Zhejiang Prov., China, 15.VIII.2003, Jinxian Liu, No. 20047591 (ZJUH). Paratype: 1 female, Guangnan, Yunnan Prov., China, VI.1975, Jiasheng Gan, No. 760720.
Diagnosis. This new species is similar to the male of C. (M.) latifunis (Tobias, 1986) both species having the metasomal carapace slightly depressed medio-posteriorly in lateral view (Fig. 14D) and widest after the middle in dorsal view (Fig. 14E). The species can be separated by the following characters: carapace apically slightly incurved (Fig. 14D) (versus distinctly incurved in C. (M.) latifunis); wing base and veins light brown to brown (Fig. 14A) (versus dark brown or blackish); and basal third of carapace with yellowish band (Fig. 14E) (versus entirely black).
Description. Holotype, female, length of body 3.1 mm, of fore wing 2.4 mm.
Head. Head transverse, width of head 2.5 × its dorsal length, occiput deeply excavated; antennomeres 16, clearly widened after middle; length of 3 rd and penultimate antennomeres 4.2 × and 1.0 × their width, respectively; eye in dorsal view 1.0 × as long as temple; OOL: OD: POL=18: 5: 11; temple parallel-sided behind eyes; frons and vertex transversely striate-rugose (Fig. 14G); face flat, densely setose, transverse-longitudinally punctate-rugose, width of face 1.8 × its height; clypeus sparsely punctulate medially, 1.8× wider than high, distance between tentorial pits 1.6 × distance between pits and eyes (Fig. 14F).
Mesosoma. Length of mesosoma 1.7 × its height; side of pronotum finely punctate; mesopleuron areolate-rugose (Fig. 14B); notauli distinct; mesoscutum alveolate-rugose; scutellum rugose; scutellar suture comparatively deep, narrow, with carinae; tubercles very small and weak (Fig. 14C).
Wings. Vein r somewhat arched; marginal cell 0.7 × as long as pterostigma; pterostigma 3.5 × longer than wide; r: 3-SR: SR1=9: 10: 49; SR1 slightly sinuate; marginal cell 1.8 × longer than second submarginal cell; 1-CU1: 2- CU1=6: 15; 2-R1 indistinct; (Fig. 14A).
Legs. Hind coxa punctate and densely setose laterally; length of hind femur, tibia and basitarsus 3.3 ×, 3.5 × and 3.0 × their maximum width, respectively; length of inner hind tibial spur 0.5 × hind basitarsus.
Metasoma. Length of carapace 2.1 × its maximum width in dorsal view, widest after middle, apically rounded; base of carapace longitudinally rugose, up to middle, posteriorly coriaceous (Fig. 14E); carapace in lateral view 3.1 × longer than high, posteriorly truncate and medio-posteriorly slightly depressed (Fig. 14D); ventral opening of carapace 0.9 × as long as carapace, apically carapace slightly incurved.
Colour. Body dark; antenna bicoloured, 3 rd –6 th antennomeres yellow and remainder of antenna brown; palpi light brown; pterostigma brown; middle of wing and its veins medium dark brown, below pterostigma similarly darkened as apical quarter of fore wing, wing base and its veins light brown; legs almost entirely brown, but hind tibia with wide light ring; carapace with yellowish band in basal 1/3.
Male. Unknown.
Biology. Unknown.
Distribution. China (Yunnan, Zhejiang).
Etymology. Named after its very short antenna: “ brachys ” is Greek for short; “ keraia ” is Greek for antenna.
description: Published as part of Zhou, Jin-Jin, Achterberg, Cornelis Van, Tang, Pu & Chen, Xue-Xin, 2024, A review of the subgenera Carinichelonus, Microchelonus, Parachelonus and Stylochelonus of the genus Chelonus Panzer (Braconidae: Cheloninae) with descriptions of twenty-one new species from China, pp. 1-127 in Zootaxa 5412 (1) on pages 23-25, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.5412.1.1, http://zenodo.org/record/10675974