Journal of Threatened Taxa | www.threatenedtaxa.org | 26 January 2016 | 8(1): 8383–8388

Descriptions of four new species of Dicopomorpha Ogloblin (Hymenoptera: Chalcidoidea: Mymaridae) from India with a key to Indian species

1 Division of Insect Systematics, ICAR - National Bureau of Agricultural Insect Resources, P.B. No. 2491, HA Farm Post, Bellary Road, Bengaluru 560024, Karnataka, India

2 Entomology Department, Faculty of Agriculture, Annamalai University, Chidambaram, Tamil Nadu 608002, India

1 drrameshtrichy@gmail.com (corresponding author), 2 drmanicks2003@yahoo.co.in

doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.11609/jott.2523.8.1.8383-8388 | ZooBank: urn:lsid:zoobank.org:pub:78102C33-A315-4BCF-BA95-551C42893643

Editor: John Huber, Canadian National Collection of Insects, Ontario, Canada. Date of publication: 26 January 2016 (online & print)

Manuscript details: Ms # 2523 | Received 31 December 2014 | Final received 08 January 2016 | Finally accepted 14 January 2016

Citation: Rameshkumar, A. & S. Manickavasagam (2016). Descriptions of four new species of Dicopomorpha Ogloblin (Hymenoptera: Chalcidoidea: Mymaridae) from India with a key to Indian species. Journal of Threatened Taxa 8(1): 8383–8388; http://dx.doi.org/10.11609/jott.2523.8.1.8383-8388

Copyright: © Rameshkumar & Manickavasagam 2016. Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. JoTT allows unrestricted use of this article in any medium, reproduction and distribution by providing adequate credit to the authors and the source of publication.

Funding: ICAR and Annamalai University, Chidambaram.

Conflict of Interest: The authors declare no competing interests.

Acknowledgements: The authors are grateful to Dr. John T. Huber, mymarid specialist, Ottawa, Canada and Dr. J. Poorani, ICAR - National Bureau of Agricultural Insect Resources, Bangalore for their continuous support and encouragement. Thanks are also due to Dr. K. Rajmohana, Scientist C, Western Ghat Regional Station (Zoological Survey of India), Calicut, Kerala for providing a specimen. The first author is thankful to the Indian Council of Agricultural Research for funding his work under the Network Project on Insect Biosystematics.

Abstract: Four new species of Dicopomorpha Ogloblin (Hymenoptera: Chalcidoidea: Mymaridae), D. albithorax, D. funiculata, D. longiscapa and D. minuta are described and illustrated. A key to the Indian species of Dicopomorpha is provided.

Keywords: Dicopomorpha, Mymaridae, new species, species key.

Abbreviation: ICAR-NBAIR - National Bureau of Agricultural Insect Resources (formerly NBAII), Bangalore, Karnataka, India; EDAU - Entomology Department, Annamalai University, Faculty of Agriculture, Chidambaram, Tamil Nadu, India; fl× - funicle segment ×; mps - multiporous plate sensilla.

Dicopomorpha Ogloblin is a small genus reported from all continents and includes 10 species (Huber 2009; Noyes 2015). Huber (2009) discussed the affinities of Dicopomorpha with the other members of Alaptus group, namely, Alaptus Westwood, 1839, Dicopus Enock, 1909, Mimalaptus Noyes & Valentine, 1989 and Kikiki Huber & Beardsley, 2000, and provided a key to the Alaptus group of genera. Triapitsyn & Berezovskiy (2003) published a key to the two species known from the Palaearctic region. Manickavasagam & Rameshkumar (2011) reported Dicopomorpha from India. In 1989, Rao described the Dicopulus indicus from Karnataka, latter species synonymized under Dicopomorpha by Yoshimoto (1990). In this paper, four new species of Dicopomorpha are described from India and the Indian species are keyed.

Materials and Methods

The study was conducted on specimens collected from surveys for mymarids using yellow pan traps and Malaise traps in a variety of habitats in southern India over a period of five years from 2008 to 2013. Specimens were processed using hexamethyldisilazane (HMDS) before card mounting (Brown 1993) and dissected and mounted on slides in natural Canada balsam. All measurements are in micrometers. Digital images of habitus were taken with Leica S8APO stereo zoom microscope and slide mounts with Leica DMLB phase contrast microscope. Composite images were generated from image stacks using CombineZP. The specimens studied are deposited with EDAU and ICAR-NBAIR.

Dicopomorpha Ogloblin

Dicopomorpha Ogloblin, 1955: 387. Type species: Dicopomorpha macrocephala Ogloblin, by original designation.

Chromodicopus Ogloblin, 1955: 390. Type species: Chromodicopus pulchricornis Ogloblin, by original designation. Synonymy by Yoshimoto (1990: 27).

Dicopulus Ogloblin, 1955: 377. Type species: Dicopulus stramineus Ogloblin, by original designation. Synonymy by Yoshimoto (1990: 27).

Brief diagnosis

Antenna with funicle 7-segmented, sometimes 6-segmented, clava entire; mandibles pointing towards each other, with two subequal teeth; frenum entire; fore wing relatively narrow, with posterior margin slightly curved towards apex but relatively straight medially; petiole well over half as wide as propodeum; metasoma broadly sessile (Lin et al. 2007; Huber 2009).

Dicopomorpha is closely related to Dicopus from which it is distinguished by the following features: genae in facial view much less convergent (strongly narrowing in Dicopus) and mandibles crossing each other with two equal sized teeth (not crossing, with two teeth of unequal size in Dicopus).

Dicopomorpha albithorax sp. nov.

(Images 1–6)

urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:2EF6C64F-5000-4012-9C4B-0B268C4E6763

Material examined

Holotype: Female, (EDAU/Mym 17/2016), 27.v.2012, on slide labeled, “India: Andaman & Nicobar Islands, Diglipur, Ramnagar, Malaise trap, Forest floor, coll. A. Rameshkumar”.

Paratype: Female (ICAR/NBAIR/MYM 105), 23.iii.2013, on card, India: Tamil Nadu, Tiruchirappalli, Thuraiyur, Green hills, Kanapadi, yellow pan trap, forest floor, coll. A. Rameshkumar.

Female

Holotype. Length 260 micrometers. Head dark brown to black above, median trabecula slightly paler below; eyes reddish-brown; antenna light brown, darkening towards apex; mesosoma whitish laterally and apically, except mesoscutum basally light brown, fading towards apex and merging with whitish scutellum; tegula white. Legs pale brown; procoxa white, meso-and metacoxa dark brown; femora and tibiae paler, tarsi brown; metasoma dark brown.

Head: Wider than high (1.45×). Face with shallow and vertex with deep reticulate sculpture; malar space half the eye height, with two setae; each antennal torulus with a single seta below and two setae between each other; one longer seta next to each posterior ocellus; single seta between anterior ocellus and each posterior ocelli; one seta on each side sublaterally just below lower eye margin.

Antenna: Scape 5.7× as long as wide, 2.66× as long as pedicel, pedicel 1.87× as long as wide; radicle not separated from scape by a groove; funicle 6-segmented, all segments longer than wide; fl1 & fl2 and fl3 & fl4 equal in length; fl5 and fl6 subequal; clava 3.15× as long as wide, longer than preceding three segments; mps absent in funicle segments, two mps on clava.

Mesosoma: Subequal to metasoma, 1.3× as long as wide; sculpture on mesoscutum deep lineolate, on anterior scutellum shallow lineolate, on frenum shallow reticulate; anterior scutellum longer than frenum; dorsellum and propodeum short.

Wings: Fore wing 10.5× as long as wide; longest marginal fringe 3.69× wing width and 0.35× wing length; disc with five microtrichia except for the usual marginal microtrichia; proximal macrochaeta absent; hypochaeta near apex of submarginal vein; hind wing 19× as long as wide, longest marginal fringe 5.25× wing width and 0.27× wing length, hind wing with one row of microtrichia along hind margin.

Metasoma: Slightly longer than wide, cercal setae long and curved; ovipositor shorter than mesotibia (85: 123).

Measurements: Head width, 160; height, 110; eye length, 90; malar space length, 40; antennal torulus height, 20; width, 15; distance between antennal toruli, 40; distance between antennal toruli and transverse trabecula, 30; distance between anterior ocellus and transverse trabecula, 30; length and width of antennal segments, scape, 100 : 18; pedicel, 37 : 20; fl1, 32 : 7.5; fl2, 32 : 7.5; fl3, 35 : 10; fl4, 35 : 10; fl5, 32 : 12; fl6, 32 : 17; clava, 103 : 32; fore wing length, 420; width, 40; longest marginal fringe length, 147; hind wing length, 380; width, 20; longest marginal fringe length, 105; mesosoma length, 143; width, 108; metasoma length, 138; width, 118; mesotibia length, 123; ovipositor length, 85; cercal seta length, 103.

Male: Unknown.

Etymology

The specific epithet is of Latin origin (“alba”= white; + thorax) and refers to the whitish thorax.

Comments

This species is distinct and can be easily differentiated from the other species from India by its 6-segmented funicle (7-segmented funicle in all other Indian species).

Dicopomorpha funiculata sp. nov.

(Images 7–13)

urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:CCB645FF-3844-49DF-ABBF-02B396471FB3

Material examined

Holotype: Female, (EDAU/Mym 18/2016), 27.v.2012, on slide labeled, “India: Andaman & Nicobar Islands, Diglipur, Ramnagar, Malaise trap, forest floor, coll. A. Rameshkumar”.

Female

Holotype. Length 420. Body uniformly dark brown; eye reddish-brown; legs pale yellow; antenna pale brown; apex of metasoma below cercal plate whitish.

Head: Wider than high; malar space 1.17× of eye length; sculpture on vertex deep reticulate, shallow on face; setal arrangement as follows: two on malar space; two between antennal toruli; one each near inner side of each posterior ocellus; two pairs of long setae on clypeus region (above mouth margin); two pairs of setae on temple; one between anterior ocellus and each posterior ocellus; two on anterior eye margin.

Antenna: Scape 4.44× as long as wide, 2× as long as pedicel, latter 2× as long as wide; funicle 7-segmented, all segments longer than wide, gradually increasing in width distally; fl1 & fl5, fl3 & fl4, fl6 & fl7 equal in length; clava 2.3× as long as wide, shorter than preceding three segments; mps absent on funicle segments, three on clava.

Mesosoma: Shorter than metasoma, with reticulate sculpture on mesoscutum and scutellum.

Wings: Fore wing 15× as long as wide; longest marginal fringe 5.38× as long as wing width; fore wing disc with two setae; hind wing 28× as long as wide; longest marginal fringe 7.5× as long as wing width.

Metasoma: Ovipositor exserted, 1.4× as long as mesotibia.

Measurements: Head width, 200; height, 160; eye length, 100; malar space length, 85; antennal torulus height, 20; distance between antennal toruli and transverse trabecula, 13; length and width of antennal segments, scape, 100 : 23; pedicel, 50 : 25; fl1, 38 : 10; fl2, 33 : 10; fl3, 40 : 10; fl4, 40 : 15; fl5, 38 : 18; fl6, 35 : 20; fl7, 35 : 23; clava, 88 : 38; fore wing length, 600; width, 40; longest marginal fringe length, 215; hind wing length, 560; width, 20; longest marginal fringe length, 150; mesosoma length, 170; metasoma length, 250; mesotibia length, 158; ovipositor length, 225; cercal seta length, 88.

Male: Unknown.

Etymology

The specific epithet is an adjective in reference to the normal 2nd funicle segment.

Comments

It differs from all other Indian species by the ring-less 2nd segment and the narrow fore wing, about 15× as long as wide (less than 11× as long as wide in all other Indian species).

Dicopomorpha minuta sp. nov.

(Images 14–19)

urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:81D91F76-4295-4D6F-9C76-46044663C256

Material examined

Holotype: Female, (EDAU/Mym 19/2016), 13.x.2010, on slide labeled, “India: Tamil Nadu: Cuddalore, Chidambaram, Annamalai University premises, yellow pan trap, mango orchard, coll. A. Rameshkumar”.

Paratypes: 3 Females, (ICAR/NBAIR/MYM 106-108), 10.xii.2013, on card, India: Tamil Nadu, Cuddalore, Chidambaram, Annamalai University premises, Malaise trap, mango orchard, coll. A. Rameshkumar.

Female

Holotype. Length 250. Body more or less uniformly yellowish-brown with metallic reflection; mesoscutum with light bluish-green reflections; face above trabecula with coppery blue reflection and below trabecula yellowish; legs uniformly yellowish-brown.

Head: 1.13× as wide as high; vertex with deep reticulate sculpture; eye 0.66× of head height and 2.23× as long as malar space, malar space with two setae on each side; vertex, area between anterior ocellus and eye margin with a single seta each; one pair of setae between antennal toruli; two pairs of setae between antennal toruli and mouth margin.

Antenna: Scape 7.9× as long as wide, 3.29× as long as pedicel, latter 1.9× as long as wide; funicle 7-segmented; fl1, fl4 and fl6 equal in length; fl5 and fl7 equal in length; fl2 smallest (ring-like) and fl3 longest segment; all funicle segments as long as wide except fl1 and spine like setae present in all the funicle segments; mps absent in funicle segments; clava 2.95× as long as wide, slightly longer than preceding four funicle segments with two mps.

Mesosoma: Longer than metasoma, with lineolate-reticulate sculpture in mesoscutum and scutellum.

Wings: Fore wing 10.75× as long as wide; longest marginal fringe 3.75× as long as wing width; hind wing 21× as long as wide; longest marginal fringe 5.75× as long as wing width; fore wing disc with single seta in middle; hind wing with single line of marginal setae, wing disc bare.

Metasoma: Ovipositor not exserted, 1.2× as long as mesotibia; cercal plate long, slightly smaller than ovipositor.

Measurements: Head width, 145; height, 128; eye length, 85; malar space length, 38; antennal torulus height, 15; distance between antennal toruli and transverse trabecula, 8; length and width of antennal segments, scape, 158 : 20; pedicel, 48 : 25; fl1, 25 : 10; fl2, 8 : 8; fl3, 33 : 13; fl4, 25 : 15; fl5, 28 : 15; fl6, 25 : 15; fl7, 28 : 18; clava, 118 : 40; fore wing length, 430; width, 40; longest marginal fringe length, 150; hind wing length, 420; width, 20; longest marginal fringe length, 115; mesosoma length, 140; metasoma length, 85; mesotibia length, 125; ovipositor length, 150; cercal seta length, 130.

Male: Unknown.

Etymology

The specific epithet is an adjective derived from Latin and refers to its very small size.

Comments

This species is close to D. indica (Subba Rao) and D. longiscapa sp. n. (India). It differs from these species by the following features: scape 7.9× as long as wide and ovipositor 1.2× as long as mesotibia (in longiscapa, scape about 9× as long as wide and ovipositor shorter than mesotibia; in indica, scape 5× as long as wide).

Dicopomorpha longiscapa sp. nov.

(Images 20–25)

urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:35E42BA5-8E07-4550-BB08-D85DDF8BD92E

Material examined

Holotype: Female, (EDAU/Mym 20/2016), 17.xii.2008, on slide labeled, “India: Kerala, Calicut, Malaise trap, paddy field, coll. K. Rajmohana”.

Female

Holotype. Length 350. Body dorsally brown, antenna, legs and rest of ventral side slightly paler.

Head: 1.3× as wide as high; face with shallow rugose punctures; eye large, 0.6× of head height, more than half malar space, latter with two setae; each posterior ocellus with one long seta, two minute setae on anterior ocellus.

Antenna: Scape 8.9× as long as wide, 3.5× as long as pedicel; pedicel 2.2× as long as wide, longer than fl1; funicle 7-segmented, fl2 shortest (ring-like) and fl3 longest segment; fl4, fl5 and fl6 equal; mps absent in funicle segments; clava large, 3.5× as long as wide and longer than preceding four segments, with two large mps.

Mesosoma: Mesoscutum smooth with shallow reticulate sculpture; scutellum not clearly divided, both anterior scutellum and frenum with reticulate sculpture; propodeum short.

Wings: Fore wing 10× as long as wide; longest marginal fringe 3.2× as long as wing width; fore wing disc with four microtrichia on middle and also usual two rows along anterior and posterior margin; hypochaeta situated at junction of submarginal and marginal vein; proximal macrochaeta absent; discal macrochaeta placed almost at midpoint of marginal vein; hind wing 24.5× as long as wide; longest marginal fringe 6.6× as long as wing width, hind wing gradually widening towards rounded apex.

Metasoma: Ovipositor shorter than length of mesotibia.

Measurements: Head width, 180; height, 140; eye length, 90; malar space length, 40; antennal torulus height, 20; distance between antennal toruli, 50; distance between antennal toruli and transverse trabecula, 10; length and width of antennal segments, scape, 177 : 20; pedicel, 50 : 23; fl1, 28 : 10; fl2, 10 : 10; fl3, 33 : 13; fl4, 28 : 15; fl5, 28 : 15; fl6, 28 : 15; fl7, 30 : 17; clava, 140 : 40; fore wing length, 500; width, 50; longest marginal fringe length, 162; hind wing length, 490; width, 20; longest marginal fringe length, 132; mesosoma length, 125; metasoma length, 138; mesotibia length, 158; ovipositor length, 113; cercal seta length, 163.

Male: Unknown.

Etymology

The specific epithet is an adjective of Latin origin in reference to the scape, which is longer than that in all other known species.

Comments

This species is close to D. indica, but differs from the following characters: scape about 9× as long as wide; fore wing 10× as long as wide and hind wing about 25× as long as wide (in indica, scape 5× as long as wide; fore wing 11× as long as wide and hind wing 21× as long as wide).

References

Brown, B.V. (1993). A further chemical alternative to critical point drying for preparing small (or large) flies. Fly Times 7: 10.

Enock, F. (1909). New genera of British Mymaridae (Haliday). Transactions of the Entomological Society of London 1909: 449–459.

Huber, J.T. (2009). The genus Dicopomorpha (Hymenoptera, Mymaridae) in Africa and a key to Alaptus-group genera. Zookeys 20: 233–244; http://dx.doi.org/10.3897/zookeys.20.116

Huber, J.T. & J.W. Beardsley (2000). A new genus of fairyfly, Kikiki, from the Hawaiian Islands (Hymenoptera: Mymaridae). Proceedings of the Hawaiian Entomological Society 34: 65–70.

Lin, N.Q., J.T. Huber & J. LaSalle (2007). The Australian genera of Mymaridae (Hymenoptera: Chalcidoidea). Zootaxa 1596: 1–111.

Manickavasagam, S. & A. Rameshkumar (2011). First report of three genera of fairyflies (Hymenoptera: Mymaridae) from India with description of a new species of Dicopus and some other records. Zootaxa 3094: 63–68.

Noyes, J.S. (2015). Universal Chalcidoidea Data Base. world wide web electronic publication. http://www.nhm.ac.uk/chalcidoid

Noyes, J.S. & E.W. Valentine (1989). Mymaridae (Insecta: Hymenoptera) - introduction, and review of genera. Fauna of New Zealand 17, 95pp.

Ogloblin, A.A. (1955). Los nuevos representantes de la fam. Mymaridae (Hym.) de la Republica Argentina. Bollettino del Laboratorio di Zoologia generale e agrarian “Filippo Silvestri” 33: 377–397.

Rao, B.R.S. (1989). On a collection of Indian Mymaridae (Chalcidoidea: Hymenoptera). Hexapoda 1: 168–169.

Triapitsyn, S.V. & V.V. Berezovskiy (2003). Review of the Mymaridae (Hymenoptera: Chalcidoidea) of Primorskii Krai: genera Arescon Walker and Dicopomorpha Ogloblin. Far Eastern Entomologist 124: 1–15.

Westwood, J.O. (1839). Synopsis of the genera of British insects. In: An introduction to the modern classification of insects, founded on the natural habits and corresponding organization of the different families, 1–158pp.

Yoshimoto, C.M. (1990). A review of the genera of new world Mymaridae (Hymenoptera: Chalcidoidea). Flora & Fauna Handbook No.7, 1–66.

Key to Indian species of Dicopomorpha

1 Antenna with funicle 6-segmented (Image 3); mesoscutum mostly whitish (Images 1 and 6) .......… D. albithorax sp. nov.

- Antenna with funicle 7-segmented (Images 9, 16 & 22); mesoscutum yellow to dark brown (Images 7, 14 & 20) ......... 2

2 Fl2 not ring-like, as long as other segments (Image 9); scape about 4.5× as long as wide; fore wing 15× as long as wide

(Image 10) .......................................................................................................................................... D. funiculata sp. nov.

- Fl2 ring-like, much shorter than other segments (Images 16 and 22); scape more than 4.5× as long as wide; fore wing less

than 15× as long as wide (Images 17 and 23) .................................................................................................................... 3

3 Scape 5× as long as wide; fore wing about 11× as long as wide; hind wing about 18× as long as wide (Rao 1989) ..........

............................................................................................................................................................ D. indica (Subba Rao)

- Scape more than 7× as long as wide (Images 16 and 22); fore wing less than 11× as long as wide (Images 17 and 23); hind

wing more than 20× as long as wide .................................................................................................................................. 4

4 Ovipositor 1.2× as long as mesotibia; scape 7.9× as long as wide (Image 16); fore wing 10.8× as long as wide (Image 17);

hind wing 21× as long as wide ................................................................................................................. D. minuta sp. nov.

- Ovipositor shorter than mesotibia; scape 8.9× as long as wide (Image 22); fore wing 10× as long as wide; hind wing about 24× as long as wide ................................................................................................................ D. longiscapa sp. nov.