Apanteles andreacalvoae

Type locality. COSTA RICA, Guanacaste, ACG, Sector Cacao, Estación Gongora,
570m, 10.88700, -85.47443. Holotype. ♀ in CNC. Specimen labels: 1. COSTA RICA, Guanacaste, ACG,
Sector Cacao, Estación Gongora, 14.vi.2004, 570m, 10.88700, -85.47443, 04-SRNP-
45868. 2. DHJPAR0001602.
Paratypes. 20 ♀, 6 ♂ (BMNH, CNC, INBIO, INHS, NMNH). COSTA RICA:
ACG database codes: 04-SRNP-33636, 04-SRNP-45868, 09-SRNP-31397, DHJPAR0001605,
DHJPAR0013013, DHJPAR0035406.
Description. Female. Body color: body mostly dark except for some sternites
which may be pale. Antenna color: scape, pedicel, and flagellum dark. Coxae color
(pro-, meso-, metacoxa): dark, dark, dark. Femora color (pro-, meso-, metafemur):
anteriorly dark/posteriorly pale, dark, dark. Tibiae color (pro-, meso-, metatibia): pale,
pale, mostly pale but with posterior 0.2 or less dark. Tegula and humeral complex color:
both dark. Pterostigma color: dark. Fore wing veins color: mostly dark (a few veins
may be unpigmented). Antenna length/body length: antenna about as long as body
(head to apex of metasoma); if slightly shorter, at least extending beyond anterior 0.7
metasoma length. Body in lateral view: not distinctly flattened dorso–ventrally. Body
length (head to apex of metasoma): 2.0 mm or less, 2.5–2.6 mm, rarely 2.1–2.2 mm.
Fore wing length: 2.1–2.2 mm or 2.7–2.8 mm. Ocular–ocellar line/posterior ocellus
diameter: 2.0–2.2. Interocellar distance/posterior ocellus diameter: 1.7–1.9. Antennal
flagellomerus 2 length/width: 3.2 or more. Antennal flagellomerus 14 length/width:
2.0–2.2. Length of flagellomerus 2/length of flagellomerus 14: 2.0–2.2. Tarsal claws:
with single basal spine–like seta. Metafemur length/width: 3.2–3.3. Metatibia inner
spur length/metabasitarsus length: 0.6–0.7. Anteromesoscutum: mostly with deep,
dense punctures (separated by less than 2.0 × its maximum diameter). Mesoscutellar
disc: mostly smooth. Number of pits in scutoscutellar sulcus: 7 or 8. Maximum
height of mesoscutellum lunules/maximum height of lateral face of mesoscutellum:
0.6–0.7. Propodeum areola: completely defined by carinae, including transverse carina
extending to spiracle. Propodeum background sculpture: partly sculptured, especially
on anterior 0.5. Mediotergite 1 length/width at posterior margin: 2.9–3.1. Mediotergite
1 shape: more or less parallel–sided. Mediotergite 1 sculpture: with some sculpture
near lateral margins and/or posterior 0.2–0.4 of mediotergite. Mediotergite 2 width
at posterior margin/length: 2.8–3.1. Mediotergite 2 sculpture: mostly smooth. Outer
margin of hypopygium: inflexible (without a folded, transparent, semi–desclerotized
area); with no pleats visible. Ovipositor thickness: anterior width at most 2.0 × posterior
width (beyond ovipositor constriction). Ovipositor sheaths length/metatibial
length: 0.8–0.9. Length of fore wing veins r/2RS: 2.0–2.2. Length of fore wing veins
2RS/2M: 1.1–1.3. Length of fore wing veins 2M/(RS+M)b: 0.9–1.0. Pterostigma
length/width: 3.6 or more. Point of insertion of vein r in pterostigma: about half way
point length of pterostigma. Angle of vein r with fore wing anterior margin: more or
less perpendicular to fore wing margin. Shape of junction of veins r and 2RS in fore
wing: distinctly but not strongly angled.
Male. Similar to female.
Molecular data. Sequences in BOLD: 7, barcode compliant sequences: 6. Biology/ecology. Gregarious (Fig. 258). Hosts: Hesperiidae, Perichares geonomaphaga,
Perichares prestoeaphaga, Perichares poaceaphaga.
Distribution. Costa Rica, ACG.
Comments. Adult show discontinuous variation in body length (ranges: 2.0–2.2
mm, 2.5–2.6 mm) and in fore wing length (2.1–2.2 mm or 2.7–2.8 mm). This is an
unusual pattern among the Mesoamerican species of Apanteles we have examined so
far, but might reflect the size of the caterpillar host when parasitized. Because we have
not found consistent differences among the specimens other than size, we keep them
as the same species. Also, this species has an inflexible (unfolded) hypopygium. Unlike
other species with similar type of hypopygium (all of which belong to the anabellecordobae
species-group); the ovipositor of andracalvoae is thin (thinner than width of
median flagellomerus), and with basal width <2.0 × its apical width after constriction.
It can be differenced from other species with thinner ovipositor by having all coxae,
profemur partially, and meso- and meta- femora completely, dark brown to black, and
mesoscutellar disc mostly smooth.