Calosota metallica (Gahan, 1922)

Calosota metallica (Gahan, 1922) View in CoL

Fig. 14

Material examined. 31 ♀♀: IRAN, West-Azarbaijan Province , Naqadeh, Solduz Wetland, 37º02′ N, 45º35′ E, 1277 m a.s.l., 21 July 2020, 29 April 2021, Y. Karimpour leg., ex Calamagrostis epigejos GoogleMaps .

Diagnosis (abstracted Gibson 2010). Females ( Fig. 14A) are diagnosed by the presence of a large, broad, completely bare fore wing speculum (or one with at most a few widely separated setae within an extensive bare region) extending to the basal fold and parastigma ( Fig. 14F); acropleuron finely sculptured, coriaceous-alutaceous ( Fig. 14A). Females of this species differ from Calosota grylli Erdös, 1955 , by a shorter metasoma with the syntergum not elongate ( C. grylli with syntergum obviously longer than wide), yellowish-brown fore wing setae (white in C. grylli ), and absence of a distinct circular pit on the upper face.

We did not rear any males we identify as C. metallica .

Distribution. IRAN: East-Azarbaijan provinces ( Gibson 2010; Lotfalizadeh and Ghadirzadeh 2016). EXTRALIMITAL: Europe, North Africa, North America, Tadzhikistan, Turkey, Uzbekistan ( Gibson 2010; UCD Community 2023).

Biological association. This species is widely distributed across the Palaearctic and Nearctic regions, where it parasitizes hosts from several insect orders, including Coleoptera ( Scolytidae ), Diptera ( Cecidomyiidae , Tephritidae ), Hymenoptera ( Eurytomidae ), and Lepidoptera ( Tortricidae ) ( Gibson 2010; Lotfalizadeh and Ghadirzadeh 2016; UCD Community 2023). During this study species from nearly all these insect orders have been documented on Calamagrostis plants, substantiating this assertion.