Two new species of Paraphytis (Hymenoptera, Aphelinidae) from Southwest China

Abstract Two new species of Paraphytis Compere, P. bannaensissp. nov. and P. pseudovittatussp. nov., are described from the Xishuangbanna Rainforest (Southwest China). A key to species from China based on females is provided.


Introduction
The genus Paraphytis was established by Compere (1925), with Paraphytis vittatus as the type species. Afterwards, it was treated as a synonym under Marietta (Compere 1936), and later as a synonym under Aphytis (DeBach & Rosen, 1976). It was resurrected by Kim and Heraty (2012). Currently, Paraphytis comprises 26 valid species (Kim and Heraty 2012;Noyes 2019). Species are distributed in the All species of this genus with known biology are primary endoparasitoids of Diaspididae (Rosen and DeBach 1979;Kim and Heraty 2012;Noyes 2019). Rosen and DeBach (1979) provided a detailed taxonomic treatment for the species which were then placed in the Aphytis vittatus-group, including a key to species, descriptions or redescriptions, and photos. Kim and Heraty (2012) resurrected Paraphytis, and provided diagnoses to distinguish this and similar genera, including Aphytis and Marietta.
The Chinese fauna of Paraphytis includes five species: P. vittatus described by Compere (1925) from Fujian Province; P. angustus by Compere (1955) from Taiwan; P. breviclavatus, P. densiciliatus and P. transversus by Huang (1994) from Fujian Province. Herein we describe two new species and provide an identification key to Chinese species of Paraphytis.

Materials and methods
In May 2019, arthropods were sampled in the rainforest canopy at the Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden in Menglun Town, Yunnan Province. Samples were obtained using a pyrethroid fog generated from a thermal fogger (Swingfog SN50, Germany, Model 2610E, Series 3). All individuals in the present study were collected from these samples.
Specimens were dissected and mounted in Canada Balsam on slides following the method described by Noyes (1982). Prior to slide mounting, specimens in ethanol were photographed with an Olympus C7070 digital camera attached to an Olympus BX51 compound microscope. Slide-mounted specimens were photographed with a digital CCD camera attached to an Olympus BX53 compound microscope. Final modifications to the images were made using Helicon Focus 6 and Adobe Photoshop CS5. Measurements were made from the slide-mounted specimens using a reticle micrometer, except for the total body length (excluding the ovipositor), which was measured from ethanol-preserved specimens before dissection. All measurements are given in micrometers (μm) except body length, which is measured in millimetres (mm). The measurements of length and width of body parts generally follows Hayat (1998), except pedicel and flagellomeres which are measured as shown in Fig. 3. Scale bars are 100 μm except where otherwise indicated. All specimens listed below are deposited in Langfang Normal University (LFNU), Langfang, China.
Terminology follows the Hymenoptera Anatomy Consortium (2020) for most body parts, Rosen and DeBach (1979) for bullae, and Hayat (1998) for basal cell and linea calva.
The following abbreviations are used in the text:

Taxonomy
Genus Paraphytis Compere, 1925Paraphytis Compere, 1925 Mesoscutellum with submedian dark longitudinal stripes that do not merge with lateral stripes at posterior margin (Figs 11,16); forewing with delta area having "F" shaped pattern formed by dark and hyaline setae and dark membrane; forewing disc with pattern posterior to linea calva formed by a transparent round patch and other irregular transparent and dark patches (Fig. 18); clava relatively slender, 3.0-3.6× as long as wide ....P. pseudovittatus sp. nov.

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Mesoscutellum with submedian dark longitudinal stripes merging with lateral stripes at posterior margin (cf. fig. 265 in Rosen and DeBach 1979); forewing with delta area having an infuscated ring formed by dark and hyaline setae, without dark membrane; forewing disc with different pattern posterior to linea calva formed mainly by several subelliptical transparent patches against a dark background (cf. fig. 268 in Rosen and DeBach 1979) can be distinguished from other species in this genus by the following combination of characters: 5 antennomeres, midlobe of mesoscutum with two dark stripes, mostly dark brown profemur, dark tarsomeres, forewing with a brown band below apex of submarginal vein, with a broad infuscated patch below stigmal vein, and relatively long ovipositor which at least 2.0× as long as mesotibia.
Description. Female. Holotype. Length 0.8 mm. Coloration (Fig. 1). Head mostly pale yellow, with vertex orange yellow, lower half of malar space and mouth margin dark. Occipital foramen with a dark brown transverse line on upper margin, and with lateral margins dark brown. Ocelli orange red. Setae on head dark. Antenna with funicle segments and distal half of clava dark brown, remainder yellow somewhat suffused with brown. Mandible brown with apex darker. Pronotum yellow but with central region and posterior margin dark. General coloration of mesosoma ( Fig. 1) yellow, but with dark markings as followings: anterior margin of midlobe of mesoscutum and notauli; midlobe with a pair of submedian longitudinal stripes, which curve out at anterior ends; mesoscutellum with similar submedian longitudinal stripes as on midlobe, and additionally with two oblique stripes along lateral margins (not clearly visible in Fig. 1, but in the fresh specimen the lateral oblique stripes obviously merge with the submedian stripes at each posterior margin). Mesopleuron with posterior half dark brown; propodeum with lateral sides brown, and with a dark "V" shaped streak along posterior margin. Forewing (Fig. 6) with veins and posterior margin brown; disc with an oblique brown band below apex of submarginal vein, and with broad infuscated patch below stigmal vein and area around stigmal vein darker. Legs (Fig. 8) pale yellow with brown parts as followings: extreme base of procoxae; profemur dorsally except apical one third; protibiae with a broad ring basally; mesofemur with dorsal surface and distal one third; mesotibia with two rings, one near base, the other on medial area; base of metacoxae, metafemur with a curved band on dorsal surface distally, metatibia pigmented as mesotibia; all tarsomeres brown, with basitarsi darker. Metasoma (Figs 1, 9) with petiole dark, Gt 1-5 each with pale brown to brown bands on dorsal surface medially and dark bands on lateral sides, the median bands connecting the lateral bands on Gt 1 and Gt 5 ; Gt 6 brown, the following two tergites pale yellow. Ovipositor brown.
Remarks. This species resembles P. maculatus (Shafee), with both having 5 antennomeres and similar coloration. They can be distinguished from each other by the following: midlobe of mesoscutum with only a pair of submedian longitudinal dark brown stripes, which are obviously curving out at anterior ends (vs with four longitudinal brown stripes, and with the pair of submedian stripes not curving out at anterior ends in P. maculatus, cf. fig. 467 in Rosen and DeBach 1979;fig. 151 in Hayat 1998;fig. 39 in Kim and Heraty 2012); legs with profemur extensively brown and all tarsomeres brown to dark brown (vs profemur pale yellow somewhat faintly suffused with dusky distally, tarsomeres mostly pale except all basitarsi and the second tarsomere of fore leg dark brown); forewing with a brown band and broad infuscated patch, without a patch of thick, darker setae in middle of proximal margin of linea calva (vs with only an oval infuscated patch below stigmal vein and with a patch of thick, darker setae in middle of proximal margin of the linea calva cf. fig. 152 in Hayat 1998); Ovipositor at least 2.0× as long as mesotibia (vs less than 2.0×).
Host. Unknown. Etymology. Named after the locality of type specimen. Diagnosis. Paraphytis pseudovittatus can be distinguished from other species in this genus by the following combination of characters: antenna with 6 antennomeres; mesoscutum and mesoscutellum each with four dark stripes; forewing with "F" shaped pattern in delta area and intricate mottled pattern posterior to linea calva (Fig. 18); F3 obviously longer than wide, clava more than 3.0× as long as wide; and posterior margin of propodeum with 6+5 to 6+6 crenulae.

Paraphytis pseudovittatus
Description. Female. Holotype. Length 0.8 mm. Coloration (Fig. 11). Head mostly pale yellow, with upper margin and lateral margins of occipital foramen brown. Ocelli orange red. Setae on head dark. Antenna generally yellow, funicle segments with brownish suffusion, clava brown. Mandible (Fig. 13) with distal proximal brown to dark brown. Pronotum yellow except posterior margin dark. General coloration of mesosoma pale yellow, but with a distinctive pattern of dark markings as followings: midlobe of mesoscutum and mesoscutellum each with a pair of submedian longitudinal stripes and two stripes on lateral sides (Figs 11,16); central region of metanotum with a transverse band; propodeum with a broad "V" shaped band along posterior margin. Forewing (Fig. 18) with delta area having "F" shaped pattern formed by dark and hyaline setae and dark membrane; disc with intricate pattern posterior to linea calva formed by a transparent round patch and other irregular transparent and dark patches (Fig. 18). Legs (Fig. 20) mostly pale yellow; coxae and femur more pale brown; tibiae with two brown rings, with basal rings at protibiae opened on dorsal surface; tarsomeres yellowish brown and with basitarsi darker. Metasoma mostly pale yellow, except the following: petiole dark except sides, with a dark band along posterior margin of Gt 1 , Gt 2-5 with a dark patch on each side; Gt 2 with two brownish blotches on sides interior to the dark patches; cercal plates brown; ovipositor brown. Head (Fig. 12), in frontal view 0.7× as high as wide; weakly reticulated. Frontovertex 0.3× head width, with about 30 coarse and brown setae. Ocellar triangle with apical angle 76°. Mandible bidentate (Fig. 13). Antenna ( Fig. 15) with 6 antennomeres, scape 5.5× as long as wide, slightly longer than clava; pedicel 1.6× as long as wide, about as long as F3; F1 triangular, ventral margin longer than dorsal margin, about as long as wide; F2 with dorsal margin a little longer than ventral margin, 0.5× as long as wide, as long as F1; F3 cylindrical, 1.3× as long as wide, 3.4× as long as and 1.2× as wide as F2; clava 3.2× as long as wide, 2.8× the length of F3. F3 and clava each with 2 and 6 longitudinal sensilla. Measurements, length (width): scape 137.5 (25); pedicel 40 (25); F1 12.5 (15); F2 12.5 (27.5); F3 42.5 (32.5); clava 120 (37.5).
Remarks. This species is similar to Paraphytis vittatus Compere in having a similar body colour. It can be separated from the latter by differences listed in the key. Apart from these differences, the new species has F3 obviously longer than wide (vs as long as or slightly wider than long), clava relatively slender, more than 3.0× (3.0-3.6×) as long as wide (vs about 2.5× as long as wide), propodeum bearing 6+5 to 6+6 crenulae on the posterior margin (vs only 4+4 to 4+5 crenulae).
Host. Unknown. Etymology. From the Latin prefix pseudo-, and vittatus reference to the fact that this species is easily confused with P. vittatus.