Eucremastus arabicus Gadallah, Soliman & Dhafer, 2017, sp. nov.
Creators: name: Gadallah, Neveen S.
name: Soliman, Ahmed M.
name: Al Dhafer, Hathal M.
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2017
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Hymenoptera
Ichneumonidae
Eucremastus
Eucremastus arabicus

description: Eucremastus arabicus sp. nov. Gadallah & Soliman
(Figs 2 A–F, 3A–D)
Material examined. Holotype ♀: Saudi Arabia, Al-Aflag, Wadi Ghaihab [22°19'23"N, 46°26'07"E] (641m), light trap, 10.iv.2015 (leg. Al Dhafer et al.) [KSMA]. Paratypes 1♀: Saudi Arabia, Al-Aflag, Wadi Ghaihab [22°19'23"N, 46°26'07"E] (641m), light trap, 10.iv. 2015 (leg. Al Dhafer et al.) [EFC]; 1♀: Saudi Arabia, Al- Aflag, Rawdhat Farshet Sheaal [22°24'57"N, 46°35'17"E] (602 m), light trap, 10. iv. 2015 (leg. Al Dhafer et al.) [EFC].
Description. FEMALE (holotype). Body length 15.0 mm, fore wing length 6.0 mm, ovipositor length 6.0 mm.
Head. Antenna with 34 flagellomeres; F1 4.3 × as long as wide (Fig. 2 C). Gena narrow, constricted behind eyes; occipital carina incomplete dorso-medially (Fig. 2 C). Occiput, face and vertex shallowly densely punctate (Fig. 2 B, C), that are closer and finer laterally, somewhat spaced on lower face (behind antennal bases) and clypeus; gena and malar space with scattered punctures. Ocelli distinctly large; MOD 1.6 × OOD; IOD 2.5 × OOD (Fig. 2 B, C). Inner eye orbits parallel-sided. Clypeus slightly convex in profile, wider than height, with rounded ventral margin (Fig. 2 B). Malar space 0.5 × as long as basal width of mandible (Fig. 2 E); mandibular teeth not equal, outer tooth slightly longer than inner relatively broader tooth (Fig. 2 B).
Mesosoma. Densely punctate, distance between punctures on mesoscutum and mesopleuron less than puncture diameter (Fig. 2 D, E); distance between punctures on scutellum about the same as puncture diameter. Epicnemial carina present, thin and reaching hind edge of pronotum. Posterior transverse carina of mesosternum present but shortly interrupted medially above distance between middle coxae. Propodeum transversely wrinkled, densely punctate in between (Fig. 2 D, E). Legs slender, femora longitudinally shallowly punctate; hind femur more than 5.0 × as long as broad; both mid tibiae with a single long spur (Fig. 3 C); claws small and thin, each with three inner teeth. Wings. Wing membrane with dense short setae apically and less dense on marginal cell (Fig. 2 F); fore wing with vein cu-a interstitial, vein 2m-cu postfurcal, with a single short bulla near to its upper side (Fig. 2 F); vein Rs slightly concave ventrally; pterostigma narrowly triangular, 4.0 × as long as broad; vein R1 shorter than pterostigma (0.8 ×) (Fig. 2 F). Hind wing with scattered short setae apically (Fig. 3 A), with 6 hamuli.
Metasoma. First metasomal tergum (T1) 1.2 × T2; posterior margin of T1 and T2 very finely longitudinally striated, T3 finely coriaceous. Ovipositor sheath flexible, curled, rounded in cross section, with dispersed fine sensory setae along its whole length, ending with two very fine unequal setae. Ovipositor straight, with slight subapical notch (Fig. 3 D).
Colour. Body generally whitish to ivory (Fig. 2 A–E), antenna with scape and pedicel whitish, flagellum very pale yellow (Fig. 2 C), base of metasomal T2 and T3 reddish brown from which extends a broad longitudinal band reaching the middle of T2 and very short on T3; ovipositor sheath black, ovipositor black with reddish apex (Fig. 3 D); mandibular teeth reddish brown (Fig. 2 B); eyes reddish brown to brownish (Fig. 2 B). Wings hyaline (Figs 2 F, 3A) with bright yellow pterostigma and brownish veins (Fig. 2 F).
MALE. Unknown.
Remarks. One specimen (female paratype) from this species belongs to type 0 of Mazón & Bordera (2015) based on the presence of a long single spur on both mid tibiae (cf. Fig. 3 C), which is normal of this genus. However, anomalous asymmetry is seen in two female specimens (female holotype and female paratype), in which one long single spur on one of the mid tibiae, with the other tibia having a long spur clearly developed with another well-developed but distinctly thinner and shorter spur (type 4, new type state in the present study) (Fig. 3 B). It resembles to a large degree type 2 of Mazón & Bordera (2015) which has one single spur on a mid tibia and a long spur clearly develop jointly with a very small stump on the other mid tibia, but differs in having two welldeveloped spurs on one of the mid tibiae instead of stump joining the long one as in type 2.
Etymology. The name arabicus is derived from the locality (Arabian Peninsula) from which the specimens were collected and described.
description: Published as part of Gadallah, Neveen S., Soliman, Ahmed M. & Al Dhafer, Hathal M., 2017, First record of the genus Eucremastus Szépligeti, 1905 (Hymenoptera: Ichneumonidae: Cremastinae) from the Arabian Peninsula, with the description of three new species, pp. 339-354 in Zootaxa 4216 (4) on pages 341-344, DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.242266