Apanteles ethanbeaveri Slater-Baker, Fagan-Jeffries, Fernández-Triana, Portmann & Oestmann, 2025

Apanteles ethanbeaveri Slater-Baker, Fagan-Jeffries, Fernández-Triana, Portmann & Oestmann sp. nov.

Fig. 4 C View Figure 4 ( distribution), Fig. 33 (holotype View Figure 33 )

Type material.

Holotype. Australia • ♀; QLD, Specimen Hill, Herberton ; - 17.3823, 145.372; 08 Mar. 2021; E. P. Beaver, M. F. Braby leg.; Reared from Instar IV larva of Jalmenus pseudictinus ( Lepidoptera : Lycaenidae ) collected 04 March 2021 on Acacia flavescens ; wasp pupa next to dead larva. Adult wasp eclosed 08 March 2021; BOLD Process ID: AUMIC 730-23 ; QM: T 261210 GoogleMaps . Paratypes. Australia • ♀; ACT, Lyneham Ridge; - 35.2386, 149.116; 11 Feb. 2017; M. F. Braby leg.; Reared from larva of Jalmenus ictinus (Lep: Lycaenidae ); BOLD Process ID: AUMIC 492-18 ; QM: T 261211 . GoogleMaps • ♂; NSW, Pilliga East SCA ; - 30.7918, 149.489; 22 Jun. 2021; E. P. Beaver, M. F. Braby leg.; Reared from larva Ogyris lanthis (Lep: Lycaenidae ); BOLD Process ID: AUMIC 731-23 ; QM: T 261212 GoogleMaps .

Diagnostic description.

Size: Total body length: 3.6 mm; fore wing length: 2.9 mm. Head: anterior scape colour similar or only very slightly paler than head colour; F 2 L / W ratio: 2.1; F 14 L / W ratio: 1.2. Mesosoma: scutoscutellar sulcus with ten pits; mesoscutellar disc with punctures in outer regions, centre smooth; propodeal areola complete, or mostly so; propodeum mostly smooth posteriorly, mostly rugose anteriorly; coxae colour (pro, meso, meta): dark all; metafemur colour mostly dark. Wings: centre of pterostigma pigmented to same degree as the outer edges; fore wing r vein length / 2 RS vein length ratio: 2.1. Metasoma: T 1 shape mostly parallel, T 1 medial length / anterior width between 1–2 × longer than wide; T 1 mostly rugose; T 2 with fine sculpture; ovipositor sheath length / metatibia length ratio: 0.3.

Apanteles ethanbeaveri can be separated from most other species of Apanteles in Australia that have a dark metacoxa and metafemur, the pterostigma without a pale centre, and the ovipositor sheath length <0.5 × the metatibia length, by T 1 parallel sided; the median length of propodeum 1.2 × the maximum width of areola. Apanteles ethanbeaveri can be separated from A. ligdus by the scutoscutellar sulcus wider and with much larger pits, T 2 comparatively less transverse, and T 2 with posterior margin clearly curved.

Etymology.

This species is named for lepidopterist Ethan Beaver who reared two of the specimens and passed them on to EPFJ. Parasitoid wasp researchers owe much to lepidopterists who keep their parasitoid specimens and generously share their host data.

Distribution.

Apanteles ethanbeaveri is known from three collection localities in eastern Australia, each from a different but closely related host species.

Molecular information.

Apanteles ethanbeaveri contains sequences currently in BIN BOLD: ADL 4962. The COI sequences are at least 2.4 % divergent from any of the other species treated here, or any available sequence on BOLD. The wg sequence of the holotype is ≥ 1 bp different to A. ligdus , and ≥ 11 bp different to any other species. The molecular delimitation of this species relative to A. ligdus is poorly resolved: BINs, a 2 % threshold, and the wg haplotypes split the two species, COI ASAP and wg ASAP and PTP grouped the two species, whilst COI PTP split the two species and also split the ACT paratype ( AUMIC 492-18 ) from the other two specimens.

Remarks.

The collectors who reared the type series are professional lepidopterists, and therefore the host records of this species should be treated with reasonable confidence. The species is closely related to A. ligdus and may potentially be conspecific. We feel the available evidence at present supports them being distinct species (multiple subtle morphological differences, 2.7 % COI divergence, wg barcodes 1 bp different, non-overlapping host species) but a larger sample size and further study may change this species hypothesis.