Chrysis rasnitsyni Rosa, 2021

Chrysis rasnitsyni Rosa , sp. n.

http://zoobank.org/NomenclaturalActs/ DAE96265-95F4-4C01-921D-A78E6FD44E3C

Figs 1A–B View Fig , 2A–D View Fig , 3A–E View Fig

TYPE MATERIAL. Holotype – ♀, Ivory Coast: Denguélé, Odienné 20.IV 1980, [leg.

W. Perraudin], coll. Linsenmaier ( NMLU). Paratypes: same locality, collector and depository:

5♀, VIII 1979; 1♀, XI 1979; 2♀, 20.IV 1980; 3♀, Odienné, 6.IV 1978, leg. W. Perraudin

( NMLU); 2♀, idem, 9.IV 1980 ; 1♀, 17. V 1980; 2♀, idem, XI 1980 . Senegal: 3♀, 10 km E of Medina Gounas , 13°08.05’N 13°42.03’W, 25. GoogleMaps VI 2004, leg. M. Halada ( MHC); 2♀, 15 km

E of Velingara , 28.VI 2004, leg. M. Halada ( MHC); 1♂, 70 km of W Tambacounda ,

13°57.39’N 14°15.92’W, 29.VI 2004, leg. M. Halada ( MHC). Central African Republic GoogleMaps : 1♀,

60 km SE of Bouar , 05°42'N 16°00'E, 30.III 2010, leg. J. Halada ( MHC); 2 ♂, Koukorou- GoogleMaps

Bamingui Reserve , 07°15'N 20°03'E, 20.IV 2010, leg. J. Halada ( MHC) GoogleMaps .

DESCRIPTION. FEMALE. Body length: 4.5 mm.

Head. OOL 1.7 × MOD; POL 2.6 × MOD; MS 1.5 × MOD; relative length of P: F1: F2:

F3 = 1.0: 1.3: 0.7: 0.6. Frons between scapal basin and anterior ocellus with dense, polygonal,

large (about 0.6-0.8 × MOD) and contiguous punctures, without polished interspaces;

punctures arranged radially around anterior ocellus ( Fig. 1 View Fig ); head posterior to ocelli with smaller punctures and narrow interspaces; with small punctures aligned below eye; transverse frontal carina faint; scapal basin deep, with median narrowing, polished below frontal declivity, with sharp ridges, shallower along longitudinal midline; face between scapal basin and eye margin with large, contiguous punctures ( Fig. 2B View Fig ); genal carina straight, sharp, fully developed from mid eye to mandibular insertion; malar spaces relatively long (1.3 × MOD);

subantennal space extremely short, 0.5 × MOD; apex of clypeus with thin brown rim.

Mesosoma. Medial pronotal line large and elongate, reaching posterior margin of pronotum ( Fig. 1A View Fig ); pronotum as long as mesoscutellum, with deep, large punctures, as large as those on frons, rounded and with narrow, polished interspaces; mesoscutum with larger punctures on median area; notauli formed by deep, large foveae, with diameter similar to larger punctures; parapsidal signum almost faint, its area indicated by darker colour; mesoscutellum with irregular sized punctures; mesoscutellar-metanotal suture unusual, formed by deep, longitudinally elongate punctures, particularly elongate at sides, toward metanotal trough;

metanotum punctures similar to scutellum; posterior propodeal projections slightly divergent,

covered by deep, dense, small punctures; mesopleuron with large punctures, episternal sulcus formed by large confluent foveae, as well as scrobal sulcus.

male from Central African Rep. Scale bar 1.0 mm.

Metasoma. Tergum I with distinct double punctation, with deep, large punctures and interspaces densely punctate by small punctures ( Fig. 1A View Fig ); largest punctures smaller than those on mesonotum and metanotum; antero-median concavity deep and wide; tergum II with dense,

even punctures dorsally, sparser on segment sides ( Fig. 2A View Fig ); median longitudinal carina on terga II-III indicated by non-metallic black line; tergum III without slight pre pit swelling;

pits of pit row small, deep, longitudinally elongate ( Fig. 2C View Fig ); tergum III, in dorsal view,

triangular ( Fig. 1 View Fig ), with sharp median tooth ( Fig. 2C View Fig ); black spots on sternum II square, as long as half of segment length, posteriorly separated by thin metallic line ( Fig. 2D View Fig ).

Colour. Head metallic green with feeble golden reflections; pronotum dorsally blue,

anteriorly and laterally green; mesonotum red to orange, metanotum and propodeum green;

mesoscutum and metanotum with large, median, longitudinal, blue line; metasoma purple with posterior margin of each tergum green to blue, including the apical margin of third tergum; scape and pedicel green; flagellomeres dark brown; tegulae metallic green; wings hyaline with light brown nervures; legs green, meso- and metalegs red on outern side; sterna metallic green.

Variability. Specimens from Senegal are less brightly coloured.

MALE. Similar to female ( Figs 1B View Fig , 3A–E View Fig ), with dimorphic apical margin of third metasomal tergum less pointed.

view; B – head, frontal view; C – genital capsule; D – habitus, ventral view; E – metasoma,

dorso-lateral view. Scale bars 1.0 mm.

DIAGNOSIS. Chrysis rasnitsyni sp. n. is easily recognisable in the C. leachii group for several diagnostic features: unique body colouration, with blue median line from mesoscutum to scutellum and purple metasoma; large, deep and dense punctures on head and mesosoma;

apical margin of the third metasomal tergum triangular, with median pointed tooth; pits of the pit row deep and elongate. The other known sub-Saharan member of this group, C. nilensis

(reported here for the first time), has both sexes entirely green to blue; sparser punctation,

shallow and largely sparse on scutellum; apex of third tergum with shorter, blunt median tooth.

The same diagnostic characters separate C. rasnitsyni from all northern African species revised by Linsenmaier ( 1999).

ETYMOLOGY. The specific epithet rasnitsyni is a patronym honouring Prof. Dr. Alexandr

P. Rasnitsyn on the occasion of his 85th birthday and in recognition of his contributions to the study of the Hymenoptera , including Chrysididae .