Cyrtolabulus emirufus, Selis, 2025

Cyrtolabulus emirufus sp. nov.

( Figs 23 View FIGURE 23 , 63J View FIGURE 63 )

Diagnosis. Cyrtolabulus emirufus sp. nov. belongs to the group of Malagasy species with T2 and S2 of equal length and with propodeum forming a horizontal surface behind metanotum. Within this group, the sharply margined horizontal surface of propodeum ( Fig. 23D View FIGURE 23 ) and the strongly developed inferior carina of propodeum fused with submarginal carina ( Fig. 23E View FIGURE 23 ) place C. emirufus sp. nov. close to C. scrobalis Selis. The new species is readily distinguished by the bluntly margined basal part of clypeus ( Fig. 23C View FIGURE 23 ), the absence of a basal carina on T1, and the almost entirely pigmented lamella of T2 preceded by a shallow thickening of the tergite ( Fig. 23F View FIGURE 23 ). The black and orange-red pattern ( Figs 23A, B View FIGURE 23 ) immediately distinguishes C. emirufus sp. nov. from all other Malagasy species of Cyrtolabulus .

Type material examined. HOLOTYPE: ♀ labelled “ CASENT / 2046279 // MADAGASCAR: Majunga / Ambovomamy Belambo / 20 km NW of Port Berger / 3–10 March 2007 / 15°27.07'S, 47°36.80'E / California Acad of Sciences // coll: R. Harin’Hala, M. Irwin, / F. Parker, malaise second- / ary growth on white sand / elev 33 m MG-33- 11 // Cyrtolabulus emirufus / HOLOTYPUS ♀ / Det. Marco Selis 2024 [red label]” ( CAS, code CASTYPE21746) GoogleMaps . PARATYPES: Majunga, Ampijoroa NP, 160 km N of Maevatanana on RN 04, 16.319333S 46.813333E, 43 m, 17– 24.VIII.2003, leg. R GoogleMaps . Harin’Hala, 1♀ ( CAS, code CASENT2153755 ) .

Description. Female holotype ( Fig. 23B View FIGURE 23 ). Body length 6.0 mm; fore wing length 4.0 mm.

Head 1.2× as wide as high. Clypeus in frontal view 1.2× as wide as long, free apical part about as long as interocular part, apical margin shallowly emarginate and narrow, 0.17× as wide as clypeus, apical teeth obtuse and short; clypeus in lateral view bulging in basal half, then shallowly depressed apically; basal part of clypeus abruptly raised in median three-fifths and laterally margined by blunt ridges delimiting flattened surfaces on which the scape is housed at rest. Vertex 1.45× as long as ocellocular distance, flattened and evenly sloping, so that occipital carina is placed below the upper limit of eye. Gena 0.7× as wide as eye at bottom of ocular sinus, with a strong and irregular median carina running parallel to the outer eye margin, area posterior of carina depressed and strongly crenate, gena in dorsal view strongly sinuate and acutely produced at mid-length; occipital carina complete, shallower and sharper on vertex, becoming much higher and blunter on gena, bisinuate on gena. F1 1.05× as long as wide and 1.1× as long as F2, F2 subquadrate and F3–F9 transverse, becoming progressively wider. Mesosoma 1.6× as long as wide, elongate. Pronotum with straight and subparallel sides, humeri forming short laterally produced points; pronotal carina weakly developed only on lateral fifths of dorsal face, completely absent medially and interrupted below humeri, strong but blunt on lateral faces; pretegular carina present and complete, even if narrow and blunt; dorsal faces of pronotum smoothly passing medially into oblique anterior face, laterally clearly separated from lateral faces but without humeral carina. Mesoscutum longer than wide, with shallow notauli in front of scutellum. Scutellum wider than long, flattened on disc but depressed along posterior margin, anterior margin crenate; axillary fossa small and rounded, smaller than one ocellus. Metanotum short and weakly sloping, with a sharp transverse carina adjacent to the anterior margin and not delimiting a distinct anterior face, carina laterally raised in obtuse and apically rounded lobes. Tegula large and about as long as wide with strongly rounded outer margin, nearly circular, posterior lobe broadly rounded and widely exceeding parategula, its apex right-angled and touching apex of parategula; parategula strongly curved and latero-laterally compressed with concave inner face, appearing scythe-shaped with pointed apex in dorsal view. Mesepisternum with a short stretch of strong but blunt epicnemial carina below pleural suture, posteriorly with a short and sharp vertical carina originating from the produced apex of the epimeron. Propodeum elongate and with a propodeal shelf behind metanotum, shelf longer than metanotum but shorter than scutellum, in lateral view forming a flattened surface; dorsal faces of propodeum somewhat flattened and sloping mediolaterally; lateral faces of propodeum flattened and separated from dorsal faces, but lateral carinae very weak and visible for a short median stretch only; posterior face of propodeum forming a large and deep depression, subtrapezoidal in posterior view, ventromedially with a deep circular pit, posterior face dorsolaterally margined by an irregular lamellate carina that is reduced only in the middle of the propodeal shelf; submarginal carina of propodeum strongly developed and lamellar, dorsally fused with the inferior carina bordering the posterior face of propodeum, forming a dorsally reflexed point where the carinae meet; propodeal valvula largely not fused with submarginal carina but placed on a more medial plane, so that in lateral view it appears largely covered by the lamellate submarginal carina. T1 subcylindrical, in dorsal view with weakly diverging sides and anteriorly truncate, 1.9× as long as apically wide; T 1 in lateral view abruptly raising basally and then weakly and evenly convex to apex, except for very shallow preapical depression, apical margin shallowly thickened. T2 about as long wide, constricted basally and much wider apically than basally; apical margin of T2 shortly lamellate (lamella not strongly evident as it is pigmented like the preapical area), preceded by a weak thickening of the tergite. T3–T4 with a wide translucent apical area. Sides of T1 meeting on ventral face of segment, so that S1 is reduced to a subtriangular sclerite covering slightly less than the apical half of the segment; surface of S1 with three ridges running from base to apex, one longitudinal on mid-line and two diverging from base and reaching the apical angles of the sternite. S2 longitudinally depressed on the basal sloping part; S 2 in lateral view evenly convex from base to apex, less convex than T2; apical margin of S2 lamellate like on T2, but preapical thickening barely developed.

Frons with deep punctures separated by narrow convex interspaces, punctures becoming larger and shallower posteriorly on vertex; gena punctate in front of vertical carina, irregularly punctate and crenate behind it; clypeus with deep large punctures in basal bulging part, nearly impunctate in apical concave part. Mesosoma sculpted similar to frons but punctures much larger; anterior face of pronotum with smaller punctures disposed in radiated series except for two ventral smooth areas; lateral faces of pronotum sparsely punctate with few short striae on lower end; metanotum with smaller and denser punctures; tegula shiny and sparsely micropunctate, with few fine macropunctures intermixed; mesepisternum with interspaces becoming wider and flat ventrally; dorsal faces of propodeum with large flat-bottomed polygonal cells, separated by sharp ridge-like interspaces, only laterally with some flattened interspaces; lateral faces of propodeum finely and irregularly microstriate, with few scattered shallow and flat-bottomed punctures; posterior face of propodeum shiny with very shallow and sparse punctures, highly variable in size. T1 with deep oblique punctures, larger and denser basally and becoming smaller and sparser apically, basal sloping part and thickened apical margin impunctate; T2 with much smaller deep punctures separated by 0.5–2× their diameters, interspaces with distinct and dense micropunctures, base of apical lamella margined by a series of very coarse punctures separated by sharp ridge-like interspaces; T3 with a series of coarse punctures margining the apical translucent area; T4 with a group of punctures margining the translucent area similar to T3, but punctures very shallow, nearly indistinct; T5–T6 finely shagreened; S1 shiny with few deep punctures in the depressed parts; S2 with shallow oblique punctures, interspaces micropunctate similar to T2 and about as wide as one puncture diameter, punctures much sparser on basal sloping part; S3–S6 similar to respective tergites but sculpture much finer. Head and mesosoma with sparse appressed pubescence and erect short setae, pubescence denser and silvery on clypeus, gena and mesepisternum; propodeum with longer setae posterolaterally; metasoma with suberect dense pubescence, longer on T1 and progressively shorter on following segments, oblique setae on S2 and at apex of T3–T5 and S3–S6, longer on sternites.

Black; following parts orange-red: clypeus except narrow apical margin, mandible except inner margin, scape, ventral face of flagellum, pronotum except most of anterior face and large subquadrate posterolateral spots on dorsal face, posterior half of scutellum, metanotum, tegula, small spot on mesepisternum below tegula, most of propodeum except anterior half of lateral faces and part of posterior face, metasoma (except where yellow) and legs; following parts bright-yellow: thickened apical margin of T1, regular band covering preapical thickening and apical lamella of T2 and S2, irregular suffusion in middle of T3. Wings fusco-hyaline with dark-gray tinge becoming black on costal margin, costal area with bright purple reflections.

Male. Unknown.

Distribution. Madagascar: Mahajanga ( Fig. 63J View FIGURE 63 ).

Etymology. The species epithet is the combination of the Greek prefix hemi- (= half) and the Latin adjective rufus, - a, - um (= red), in reference to the distinctive half orange-red and half black pattern of this species.