Ephedrus zaikai Davidian & Manukyan & Belokobylskij 2023, sp. nov.
Creators: name: Davidian, Elena M.
name: Manukyan, Andranik R.
name: Belokobylskij, Sergey A.
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2023
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Hymenoptera
Braconidae
Ephedrus
Ephedrus zaikai

description: Ephedrus zaikai Davidian, sp. nov.
Figs 1, 2
http://zoobank.org/ D01A4010-5A09-4206-9447-679B43FF88A5
Type material. Holotype: female, BX 8760/1; sininclusion Diptera, Sciaridae (in a separated piece 8760/2).
Type locality and horizon. Baltic amber; Late Eocene, Prussian Formation, Priabonian range (33.9–37.2 Ma). Southeast coast of the Baltic Sea, Primorskiy quarry, Yantarnyi, Kaliningrad Province, Russia.
Etymology. This species is named in honour of gemologist Mr Vadim Zaika (Kaliningrad, Russia), who provided valuable assistance during study of the amber examples.
Description. Female. Body length 1.5 mm, fore wing length 1.4 mm, antenna length 0.8 mm.
Head (Figs 1C–F) transverse (dorso-lateral view), wider than mesoscutum, covered by dense and short setae. Eye oval, convex, glabrous. Mandible bidentate. Clypeus convex, with 6–8 long setae, 2.0 × wider than its median height. Tentorial index = 0.4. Face entirely covered by setae; width of face 1.7 × its height.
Antenna (Figs 1C–F) with 11 antennomeres, evenly widened towards apex started from F2, covered by dense and semi-erect setae, which are shorter than antennomere width. F1 subcylindrical, 4.6 × longer than its median width, rhinaria (multiparous plate-like sensillae) not visible, F1 1.8 × longer than F2. F2 weakly widened towards apex, with single rhinarium on its visible side, 2.5 × longer than its medial width. F3–F8 subequal, their length ~ 2.0 × larger than width, all with single rhinarium on visible side. F9 and F10 each with three rhinaria on visible side. Apical two antennomeres tightly connected with each other forming a structure similar to clava.
Mesosoma (Figs 1C, D; 2C). Mesoscutum with notauli divided into three distinct lobes. Propodeum smooth, probably with narrow central areola delineated by weak carinae.
Wings. Fore wing (Figs 1A, B; 2A, B) with complete venation and with seven complete cells closed by veins: namely, radial (marginal), first and second radiomedial (submarginal), discoidal (discal), brachial (subdiscal), medial (basal), and submedial (subbasal) cells (see designation in Davidian et al. 2023; Fig. 2B). All veins well sclerotised and pigmented. Pterostigma triangular, 3.6 × longer than its maximum width. Radial vein (r) arising before middle of pterostigma. Third abscissa of radial vein (SR1) 3.0 × longer than first radiomedial vein (2-SR) and 1.8 × longer than second abscissa of radial vein (3-SR); second abscissa of radial vein (3-SR) 2.2 × longer than second radiomedial vein (r-m) and 1.6 × longer than first radiomedial vein (2-SR). Distal margin of fore wing with distinct setae, which are longer than setae on wing membrane. Hind wing with closed medial (basal) cell.
Legs (Figs 1A–C). Femora and tibiae of fore and middle legs almost similar length. Hind femur 7.0 × longer than its maximum width; hind tibia 9.5 × longer than its maximum width, 1.1 × longer than hind femur.
Metasoma (Figs 1A–C; 2C). Metasoma elongate, lanceolate. All metasomal tergites clearly visible. Petiole distinctly convex, with two postero-lateral excavations, approximately 2.0 × longer than its width at level of spiracular tubercles situated in basal one-third. Ovipositor sheath straight, narrowed from base towards subapex and widened apically, ~ 4.6 × longer than its maximum width (Figs 2D, E).
Pubescence. Head, antenna, legs, as well as entire body, covered by rather sparse setae.
Colour (Figs 1A, B). Body mainly monochrome dark brown.
Male. Unknown.
Comparative diagnosis. According to our opinion, this new fossil species belongs to the subgenus Ephedrus of the genus Ephedrus Haliday, 1833 and to the species group E. (E.) plagiator (Nees, 1811). The members of this species group are characterised by the following features: antenna with 11 antennomeres (except the female of E. (E.) antennalis Tomanović, 2020 having 12 antennomeres), venation of fore wing complete and with seven complete closed cells, second abscissa of radial vein (3-SR) longer than first radiomedial vein (2-SR), ovipositor sheaths more or less distinctly elongate, straight or weakly upcurved and usually with sparse setae, although the sheaths are densely pubescent in E. (E.) validus (Haliday, 1833), E. (E.) carinatus Tomanović, 2020 and E. (E.) rasnitsyni Davidian & Kaliuzhna, 2021 (Davidian et al. 2021a).
Ephedrus zaikai sp. nov. differs from the fossil E. primordialis Brues described from Baltic amber by the following characters: F1 4.6 × longer than its medial width (only ~ 2.0 × in E. primordialis), the radial vein (r) of fore wing arising from the middle of pterostigma (behind middle in E. primordialis), the second abscissa of the radial vein (3-SR) 1.6 × longer than the first radiomedial vein (2-SR) (1.3 × in E. primordialis), and the ovipositor sheath weakly widened apically (not widened apically in E. primordialis).
The new species differs from the fossil E. mirabilis Timon-David by the following characters: the second abscissa of the radial vein (3-SR) 1.6 × longer than first radiomedial vein (2-SR) (2.7 × in E. mirabilis), the pterostigma ~ 3.6 × longer than its width (3.0 × in E. mirabilis), the ovipositor sheath narrowed from the base to subapex and widened apically, 4.6 × longer than its maximum width (not widened apically and 4.0 × longer than its width in E. mirabilis).
Also E. zaikai sp. nov. differs from E. rasnitsyni Davidian & Kaliuzhna from Sakhalinian amber in having F1 4.6 × longer than its medial width (2.5 × in E. rasnitsyni), ovipositor sheath narrowed from base to subapex and then widened apically, 4.6 × longer than its maximum width (ovipositor sheath subtriangular, narrowed and widely rounded apically, 3.0 × longer than its maximum width in E. rasnitsyni).
Finally, the new species differs from the fossil E. carsteni Davidian, 2023, also described from Baltic amber, by the radial vein (r) of fore wing arising from the middle of pterostigma (distinctly before middle in Е. carsteni), the second abscissa of radial vein (3-SR) 1.6 × longer than first radiomedial vein (2-SR) (2.0 × longer in Е. carsteni), petiole 2.0 × longer than width at level of spiracular tubercles (1.2 × longer in Е. carsteni), and the ovipositor sheath 4.6 × longer than its maximum width (2.4 × longer in Е. carsteni).
Among the extant species of Ephedrus the fossil E. zaikai sp. nov. is most similar to the shape of the ovipositor sheaths of E. niger Gautier, Bonnamour & Gaumont, 1929 and E. chaitophori Gӓrdenfors, 1986. However it differs from both species by the following characters: F1 4.6 × longer than its medial width and F2 2.5 × longer than its medial width; F1 1.8 × longer than F2, F1 without rhinaria and F2 with only one rhinarium; the second abscissa of the radial vein (3-SR) 1.6 × longer than the first radiomedial vein (2-SR); petiole 2.0 × longer than its width at level of spiracular tubercles; the ovipositor sheath 4.6 × longer than its maximum width. In E. niger F1 4.1–4.8 × longer than its medial width and F2 3.0 × longer than its medial width; F1 1.2–1.4 × longer than F2, F1 and F2 with 4–6 and 5–10 rhinaria correspondingly; the second abscissa of the radial vein (3-SR) approximately equal to the first radiomedial vein (2-SR); petiole 2.2–2.6 × longer than its width at level of spiracular tubercles; the ovipositor sheath 4.0 × longer than its maximum width. In turn, in E. chaitophori, F1 3.6–4.0 × longer than its medial width and F2 2.7 × longer than its medial width; F1 1.4 × longer than F2, F1 and F2 with 0–1 and 1–3 rhinaria correspondingly; the second abscissa of the radial vein (3-SR) 0.6 × the first radiomedial vein (2-SR); the petiole ~1.7 × longer than its width at level of spiracular tubercles.
description: Published as part of Davidian, Elena M., Manukyan, Andranik R. & Belokobylskij, Sergey A., 2023, Third new fossil species of the genus Ephedrus Haliday, 1833 (Hymenoptera: Braconidae: Aphidiinae) from Baltic amber, pp. 386-392 in Zootaxa 5389 (3) on pages 387-390, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.5389.3.6, http://zenodo.org/record/10410005