Sericobracon paulmarshi Zaldívar-Riverón & Shaw, 2025

Sericobracon paulmarshi Zaldívar-Riverón & Shaw , new species

( Figs 4 View FIGURE 4 A-E)

Diagnosis. Sericobracon paulmarshi sp. nov. can be morphologically distinguished from the remaining described species of its genus by having: 1) the posterior margin of the longitudinally striate of the second metasomal tergite ending in a broad “V” shape (striate area shortest medially) ( Fig. 4E View FIGURE 4 ) (striate area ending with a straight border in the remaining species) ( Figs 3D View FIGURE 3 , 5E View FIGURE 5 , 6E View FIGURE 6 ); 2) notauli obscuring before end of mesoscutum in a median longitudinally striate area ( Fig. 4B View FIGURE 4 ) (similar in S. zunigai sp. nov. ( Fig. 6C View FIGURE 6 ); in a slightly rugose area in the remaining species ( Figs 2C View FIGURE 2 , 3C View FIGURE 3 , 4B View FIGURE 4 , 5C View FIGURE 5 )); and 3) mesosoma and first metasomal tergite dark brown to black (4A, B, D, E) (brown or lighter in the remaining species; Figs 2A, C, D View FIGURE 2 , 3 View FIGURE 3 A-D; 5A, C, D,E; 6A, C, E).

Description. Holotype female. Body size 3.7 mm, fore wing 3.1 mm. Colour: vertex, frons and temple brown, face honey yellow, mesosoma and first metasomal tergites dark brown to black, remaining tergites brown to dark brown. Wings hyaline, pterostigma and veins brown. Legs pale yellow. Ovipositor honey yellow, strongly sclerotised at apex; sheaths brown.

Head: transverse in dorsal view, 1.75 × wider than its median length. Eye 1.2 × longer than wide; eye width.0 × longer than temple in dorsal view. Malar space 0.3 × eye height and 0.9 as long as width of hypoclypeal depression. Inner margins of posterior ocelli (POL) as long as the ocellar diameter (OD), 2.0 × shorter than distance between outer margin of posterior ocellus and eye (OOL). Vertex striate; temple, frons, and face smooth, frons with short sparse setae. Antennae broken, with 15 flagellomeres; first flagellomere about 3.0 × longer than wide, 1.2 × longer than second flagellomere.

Mesosoma: 1.7 × longer than high and 1.6 × longer than wide. Pronotal collar short but visible in dorsal view, slightly rugose, sparsely setose; pronotal furrow wide, deep and scrobiculate. Median length of mesoscutum 1.7 × its width (dorsal view); mesoscutal lobes coriaceous, with median mesoscutal lobe slightly projected upwards from lateral lobes; notauli wide, deep, scrobiculate, not joining, obscuring before the endo of mesoscutum in a median longitudinally striate area. Scutellar disc smooth and polished, prescutellar furrow with eight transverse carinae. Mesopleuron smooth and polished; precoxal sulcus wide, deep, slightly scrobiculate, about 0.6 × as long as mesopleuron; mesopleural sulcus wide, deep and scrobiculate, subalar sulcus narrower but deep and scrobiculate. Metapleuron strongly rugose-areolate. Propodeum smooth-slightly coriaceous on median basal half, basal two thirds rugose-areolate, with a median longitudinal carina running along basal third, areola almost indistinct, complete.

Wings: fore wing 3.6 × longer than wide. Pterostigma 3.7 × longer than wide and 0.6 × as long as R. Vein r X0.8 × as long as 3RSa, 0.2 × as long as 3RSb, and 0.7 × as long as vein r-m. Vein m-cu antefurcal to 2RS, vein RS+Mb present. First subdiscal cell open. Hind wing vein M+CU 0.8 × as long as 1M, m-cu slightly curved towards wing apex.

Legs: fore tibia without row of spines along anterior margin. Hind femur 3.4 × longer than wide.

Metasoma: first tergite short, 0.9 × as long as apical width, longitudinally striate. Second tergite with longitudinally striate area ending with a “V” shaped border, striae shortest medially; suture between second and third tergites distinct, slightly curved; remaining tergites smooth, polished to slightly acinose. Ovipositor length as long as metasoma.

Variation. Body size 3.7–3.9 mm. Thirty-one flagellomeres. Fore wing length 3.1-3.2 mm.

Male. Unknown.

Biology. Unknown.

Etymology. We name this species in honour of our late colleague Dr. Paul Malcolm Marsh, who devoted his life to the taxonomic study of the braconid subfamily Doryctinae for over 50 years.

Material examined. Holotype: ( CNIN IBUNAM) Female. Costa Rica: Guanacaste, Est. Cacao , 1000-1150 m, ix 1996, I Villegas, Malaise, L. N. 323150-375500 #4759. DNA voucher no. CNIN 4977 View Materials , GenBank accession no. PV157332 ( COI) . Paratypes: one female, same data as holotype ; one female, same locality data as holotype except 1100-1200 meters, 2 km. SW de Cerro Cacao , vi 1990, A. Solis, Interseccion, L.N. 323300-375700 #8556 ; one female, same locality data as holotype except collected vii 1996, A. Masis, Malaise trap, #47555 .