Chelonogastra rugosa Li, Achterberg, Yan & Chen, 2024, sp. nov.
Creators: name: Li, Yang
name: van Achterberg, Cornelis
name: Yan, Cheng-Jin
name: Chen, Xue-Xin
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2024
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Hymenoptera
Braconidae
Chelonogastra
Chelonogastra rugosa

description: Chelonogastra rugosa sp. nov.
Figs 5, 6
Type material.
Holotype: China • ♀; Hainan Prov., Danzhou, Southern Medicinal Botanical Garden; 19°30'50.46"N, 109°30'1.05"E; 30.IX–31.X.2020; Chen Longlong leg.; No. HN 4, LSX 901, 2022021 (CDNU). Paratypes: China • 2 ♀♀; same data as for holotype; No. HN 5, LSX 903, 2022051–2022052 (CDNU) • 2 ♀♀; Hainan Prov., Wenchang Tongguling Nature Reserve, road side; 137 m; 19°40'19.19"N, 111°0'44.6"E; 4–15.III.2020; Xu Chunyang leg.; No. TGL 2, PYQ 401, 2022053–2022054 (CDNU) • 1 ♀; Hainan Prov., Wenchang Tongguling Nature Reserve, cropland; 11 m; 19°40'19.19"N, 111°0'44.6"E; 15.iv–2.v.2020; Xu Chunyang leg.; No. TGL 3, PYQ 413, 2022055 (CDNU).
Diagnosis.
This new species with very similar metasoma to Chelonogastra formosana Watanabe, 1937, but can be separated from the latter by the following characters: mesoscutum reddish yellow (black in C. formosana); relatively small-sized, length of body of female 2.5–3.9 mm (6.0–8.0 mm in C. formosana); occiput without lateral tubercle (with distinct lateral tubercles in C. formosana); medio-basal area of second metasomal tergite coarsely rugose (smooth in C. formosana).
Description.
Holotype, ♀, length of body 2.7 mm, of fore wing 3.0 mm, of ovipositor sheath 1.0 mm.
Head. Antenna with 31 segments; apical antennal segment rather acute, with short spine, 2.7 times longer than its maximum width (Fig. 6 o); penultimate segment 1.9 times longer than its width, and 0.8 times as long as apical antennomere; median segments 1.5 times longer than wide; third segment 1.4 times longer than wide, 1.0 and 1.0 times longer than fourth and fifth, respectively, the latter 1.5 times longer than wide; length of maxillary palp 0.6 times height of head; malar suture rugose, and densely setose (Fig. 6 l); clypeus height: inter-tentorial distance: tentorio-ocular distance = 19: 37: 20; clypeus with sparse, long setae (Fig. 6 l); eye with sparse short setae, weakly emarginate (Fig. 6 j); face with some punctures, and densely setose (Fig. 6 j); eye height: shortest distance between eyes: head width = 12: 13: 25; frons sparsely punctate, and weakly concave behind antennal sockets, with a median groove (Fig. 6 k); vertex largely smooth except for a few weak punctures, and with some sparse short setae (Fig. 6 k); minimum distance between posterior ocelli: minimum diameter of elliptical posterior ocellus: minimum distance between posterior ocellus and eye = 6: 4: 11; length of malar space 2.1 times longer than basal width of mandible; in dorsal view length of eye 2.7 times temple; temples sparsely setose, and directly narrowed behind eyes (Fig. 6 k); occiput without lateral tubercle (Fig. 6 k).
Mesosoma. Length of mesosoma 1.4 times its height (Fig. 6 c); notauli developed and complete (Fig. 6 d); mesoscutum densely short setose; scutellar sulcus comparatively wide and deep, with crenulae (Fig. 6 d); scutellum densely short setose, especially posteriorly (Fig. 6 d); metanotum convex medially, with median carina (Fig. 6 e); propodeum largely smooth, but with sparse setae medially, and dense, long setae laterally, without medio-longitudinal carina or groove (Fig. 6 e).
Wings. Fore wing (Fig. 6 a): angle between 1 - SR and C + SC + R approximately 62 °; SR 1: 3 - SR: r = 48: 27: 11; 1 - SR + M straight, 2.0 times as long as 1 - M; 2 - SR: 3 - SR: r-m = 5: 9: 4; 2 - SR + M largely not sclerotised; CU 1 b 0.6 times as long as 3 - CU 1; cu-a interstitial. Hind wing (Fig. 6 b): 1 r-m straight; SC + R 1: 2 - SC + R: 1 r-m = 17: 5: 6.
Legs. Length of fore femur: tibia: tarsus = 24: 34: 21; length of hind femur: tibia: basitarsus = 19: 25: 10; length of femur, tibia and basitarsus of hind leg 2.5, 6.6 and 4.7 times their maximum width, respectively; hind tibial spurs 0.3 and 0.4 times as long as hind basitarsus; hind femur, tibia and tarsus densely setose, setae of tarsus rather short.
Metasoma. Length of first metasomal tergite 0.8 times its apical width, median area convex and reticulate sculptured posteriorly (Fig. 6 m); lateral grooves of first tergite comparatively wide, with crenulae; second tergite largely coarsely sculptured, including medio-basal area (Fig. 6 f); antero-lateral grooves of second tergite moderately narrow and shallow, with crenulae; second suture crenulate, wide and distinctly curved medially, narrow laterally (Fig. 6 f); third to fifth tergites largely coarsely sculptured except apically, and with antero-lateral grooves (Fig. 6 f, g); hypopygium acute apically, not reaching level of apex of metasoma; ovipositor sheath 0.3 times as long as fore wing.
Colour. Head largely black (Fig. 5), but mandible whitish (except apically) (Fig. 6 j); mesosoma largely reddish yellow (Fig. 6 c, d, e); fore legs largely blackish brown except femur apically, tibia and tarsus reddish yellow (Fig. 5); middle and hind legs blackish brown (Figs 5, 6 h); metasoma blackish brown (Fig. 6 f, g); ovipositor sheath black (Fig. 5); wing membrane infuscated, pterostigma and veins dark brown (Fig. 6 a, b).
Variation. Length of body of female 2.5–3.9 mm, of fore wing of female 2.9–4.3 mm, and of ovipositor sheath 0.8–1.7 mm; antenna of female with 33 antennomeres; apical antennomere 2.0 times longer than its maximum width; penultimate antennomere 1.7 times longer than its maximum width, and 0.8 times as long as apical antennomere; length of mesosoma 1.1–1.3 times its height.
Biology.
Unknown.
Distribution.
Oriental (China- Hainan).
Etymology.
Named after the entirely coarsely rugose second to fifth metasomal tergites: “ rugosa ” is Latin for “ rugose ”.
description: Published as part of Li, Yang, van Achterberg, Cornelis, Yan, Cheng-Jin & Chen, Xue-Xin, 2024, Review of Bicarinibracon Quicke & Walker and Chelonogastra Ashmead (Hymenoptera, Braconidae, Braconinae) in China, with the description of two new species, pp. 1285-1299 in Journal of Hymenoptera Research 97 on pages 1285-1299, DOI: 10.3897/jhr.97.138683