Wesmaelia indoflavus, Pattar & Gupta, 2025

Wesmaelia indoflavus sp. nov. Gupta & Pattar

( Figs 4−6 View FIGURE 4 View FIGURE 5 View FIGURE 6 )

Material examined. Holotype: female on card; INDIA: Karnataka: Bengaluru: Hebbal ; 12.ii.2025; light trap; coll. R. Pattar; Code- NIM/ NBAIR /Brac/Euph/Wesm/120225-H ( NIM) . Paratype: One female on card; INDIA: Karnataka: Mudigere ; 11.xi.2024; light trap; Code- NIM/ NBAIR / Brac / Euph / Wesm /111124-P ( NIM) .

Description of female. Holotype, ♀, length of body 3.2 mm; length of antenna 2.24; length of fore wing 2.4 mm.

Head. Antenna with 22 antennomeres ( Fig. 4 View FIGURE 4 ), antenna 1.7 × length of head and mesosoma combined and 0.7 × body length; scape and pedicel 1.3 × as long as wide, respectively; F1 1.3 × longer than F2; apical antennomere elongate; length of F1, penultimate or subapical and apical antennomere 4.5, 2.5 and 4.0 × their width; length of the rest antennomeres about 2.3−3.0 × their width. Head transverse ( Fig. 5A View FIGURE 5 ), 1.22 × as wide as long, strongly rounded behind eyes in dorsal view; eyes 1.9 × as long as temple; temple smooth with scattered setae ( Fig. 5B View FIGURE 5 ), in lateral view distinctly protruding; ocelli small, OOL: OD: POL=13: 4: 6; OOL 2.2 × POL; occipital carina complete and occiput moderately excavated in the middle; face faintly punctate and moderately setose, its width 1.4 × height; width of clypeus 3.3 × its median height and 1.2 × width of face; distance between tentorial pits 3.8 × as long as shortest distance between tentorial pit and lower margin of eye; maxillary palp 6-segmented; malar space narrow, subequal to basal width of mandible; mandibles long and slender, nearly completely overlapping when closed ( Fig. 5A View FIGURE 5 ).

Mesosoma. Mesosoma in lateral view 1.5× longer than high ( Fig. 5D View FIGURE 5 ); pronotum, propleuron and metapleuron mostly areolate; mesopleuron medially smooth ( Fig. 5D View FIGURE 5 ); mesonotum smooth with moderately setose, notauli shallow and wide, crenulated; scutellar sulcus with 9 crenulae ( Fig. 5E View FIGURE 5 ); propodeum areolate-rugose (5F).

Wings. Fore wing ( Fig. 6C View FIGURE 6 ) shorter than body, length of fore wing 3.1 × its width; length of pterostigma 2.82 × its width and vein r issuing distally before middle; vein 1-R1 1.2 × as long as pterostigma; SR1+3-SR curved; SR1+ 3-SR meeting wing margin well before apex ( Fig. 6C View FIGURE 6 ); vein r 0.35 × as long as maximum width of pterostigma; 1-SR+M straight; vein 2-SR subequal to vein 1-SR + M and 2.0 × as long as vein m-cu; m-cu antefurcal; vein cu-a postfurcal and 1-CU1 longer than cu-a ( Fig. 6C View FIGURE 6 ); r: 2-SR: SR1+3-SR= 1: 3.6: 9; 1-CU1: 2-CU1: 3-CU1= 1: 8: 3. Hind wing 4.7 × as long as wide, vein cu-a of hind wing distinctly distally issuing beyond middle of M+CU + 1-M ( Fig. 6D View FIGURE 6 ).

Legs. Hind coxa smooth and shiny. Tarsal claws short and simple. Length of femur, tibia, and basitarsus of hind leg 7.1 ×, 8.6 ×, and 10.0 × longer than wide, respectively; hind tibia subequal to hind tarsus; length hind basitarsus 0.79 × length of tarsomeres 2–4.

Metasoma. Metasoma polished ( Fig. 6E View FIGURE 6 ); 2.3 × as long as wide in lateral view; about 1.4 × as long as head and mesosoma combined. Petiolate first metasomal segment ( Fig. 6F View FIGURE 6 ) exceptionally long and slender, 11.3 × longer than midpoint width in lateral view and as long as the remainder of metasoma. In lateral view, petiolate strongly curved view ( Fig. 6B View FIGURE 6 ), with faint longitudinal striations; spiracles distinct and situated dorsal before middle of petiole. Ovipositor sheath short, 3.6 × as long as wide in lateral view; 2.2 × length of third segment of hind tarsus in lateral view.

Colour. Head pale yellow, clypeus off white, mandible pale with dark brown apex; eyes black; ocelli pale testatceous, ocellar region dark brown to black; wings subhyaline; pterostigma margins dark brown, pale brown within; palpi off white, antenna yellow brown (except scape, pedicel, F1, F2 and part of F3 off white), mesosoma, tegulae, propleuron, mesopleuron and metapleuron, propodeum and tarsi pale yellow; legs excluding tarsi off white to pale yellow; first metasomal segment (=petiole) pale to off-white in basal third, remaining with light brown infuscation (more in the middle); second metasomal segment black brown in apical two third; remaining yellow ( Fig. 6E View FIGURE 6 ); ovipositor sheath brown.

Etymology. The species name ‘ indoflavus ’ is a combination of two words. ‘Indo’ - indicating India, the country from where it was collected and ‘flavus’ - referring to general pale yellow colouration of the species.

Comments. This species comes close to the Indian species W. solanensis in having F1 almost 4.5 × as long as wide however differs in having 22 antennomeres ( 23 in W. solanensis ); OOL 2.2 × POL (1.5 × in W. solanensis ); 1-R1 1.2 × as long as pterostigma (subequal in W. solanensis ); vein r: 2-SR: SR1+3-SR= 1: 3.6: 9 (1: 2.7: 7 in W. solanensis ); eyes 1.9 × as long as temple (slightly longer in W. solanensis ); length of hind femur, tibia, and basitarsus of 7.1 ×, 8.6 × and 10.0 × longer than wide (7.0 ×, 11.0 × and 13.0 × in W. solanensis ); hind tibia subequal to hind tarsus (hind tibia slightly longer than hind tarsus in W. solanensis ).

The new species can be differentiated from the Indian species W. topali in the following characters: 22 antennomeres ( vs 15 in W. topali ); F1 almost 4.5 × as long as wide (F1 shorter, 2.33 × as long as wide in W. topali ); intertentorial line 3.8 × tentorio-ocular line (intertentorial line 3.0 × tentorio-ocular line in W. topali ); head in dorsal view 1.22 × as wide as long (1.66 × in W. topali ); first metasomal tergite as long as rest of metasoma (first metasomal tergite somewhat longer than rest of tergite in W. topali ); marginal cell of fore wing short, vein 1-R1 1.2 × as long as pterostigma length (marginal cell long, 1-R1 almost 2.0 × as long as length of pterostigma in W. topali ).

This new species can be separated from W. lepos (Eastern Palearctic & Oriental) in having penultimate flagellomere 2.5 × as long as wide (1.4 × in W. lepos ); OOL 2.2 × POL (1.6−1.7 × in W. lepos ); vein r 0.35 × as long as of pterostigma width (0.6 × in W. lepos ).

This new species can be separated from the widely distributed W. petiolata (Eastern Palaearctic, Europe, Nearctic, Neotropical, Oceanic, Oriental and Western Palaearctic) in F1 1.3 × longer than F2 (F1 hardly longer than F 2 in W. petiolata ) and first metasomal tergite 1.1 × as long as mesosoma (shorter than mesosoma in W. petiolata ).