Discovery of the rare genus Blacometeorus Tobias, 1976 (Hymenoptera, Braconidae, Blacinae) in the Oriental part of China, with description of a new species

Abstract The rare genus Blacometeorus Tobias, 1976 (Hymenoptera: Braconidae: Blacinae)is discovered in Yunnan, China, and a new species, Blacometeorus sinicus Chai & Chen, sp. n. is described and illustrated. It represents the first record of this genus both for China and Oriental region. A key to genus Blacometeorus is updated.


Introduction
Th e Blacinae Foerster is a cosmopolitan subfamily of Braconidae (Hymenoptera) with fi ve tribes, 14 genera and 207 species known in the world (Yu et al. 2005). Blacometeorus Tobias, 1976 is the only genus of the Blacini with vein r-m of fore wing present (Tobias, 1976; van Achterberg, 1988). Four species of Blacometeorus are reported to date, i.e., B. brevicauda (Hellén, 1958), B. intermedius Tobias, 1976, B. pusillus (Hellén, 1958) and B. konishii Belokobylskij, 2000, all from the Palaearctic region, but they are rarely collected. Recently a specimen of Blacometeorus was discovered in Yunnan, China, representing a new species, B. sinicus Chai & Chen, sp. n., which we describe and illustrate. It represents the fi rst record of this genus both for China and Oriental region.

Materials and methods
Th e terminology and measurements used follow van Achterberg (1976van Achterberg ( , 1988. Additional sources for the description of ocelli and tentorial pits are Belokobylskij (2000). Th e descriptions and measurements were made under the Leica MZ 12.5 and Zeiss Stereo Discovery V8 microscope, and photos taken by a digital camera (Q-Imaging, Micropublisher 3.3 RTV) attached to a Leica MZ APO stereomicroscope (Wetzlar, Germany) using Synoptics Auto-Montage version 5.0 software. Type specimen is deposited in the Parasitic Hymenoptera Collection of the Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China (ZJUH).
Head (Figs 1-3). Head distinctly and roundly narrowed below eyes; frons and occiput weakly concave; face largely rugose; length of maxillary palp subequal to height of head; POL equal to Od, 0.5 times OOL; Ocelli almost in equilateral triangle; length of eye in dorsal view equal to temple; malar space 1.2 times as long as basal width of mandible; tentorial pits large, distance between pits 1.3 times distance from pit to eye; width of clypeus 2.5 times its median height.
Antenna slender, 17-segmented; scapus twice as long as pedicellus; third segment 1.2 times as long as fourth segment; third, fourth and penultimate segments 4.7, 4.2, and 1.7 times as long as their width, respectively; penultimate segment 0.7 times as long as the apical segment; sixth and seventh segments normal.
Legs (Figs 5,6). Hind coxa with distinct curved dorsal keel; length of femur, tibia, and basitarsus of hind leg 4.6, 8.8 and 9.0 times their width, respectively; hind tarsus 1.1 times as long as hind tibia, its second segment 0.5 times as long as fi rst segment.
Metasoma (Figs 4, 10). First tergite long, parallel-sided, with large spiracular tubercles in basal 0.35; fi rst tergite 2.6 times as long as its apical width, largely coarsely reticulate, dorsal carinae distinct in basal half; second tergite weakly sculptured basally; ovipositor sheath 1.7 times as long as fi rst tergite, 0.33 times as long as fore wing.
Biological notes. Nothing is known about the host of this species. Etymology. From Latin "sinicus" (Chinese), referring to the fi rst discovery in China.

Key to species of genus Blacometeorus Tobias, 1976
1 First metasomal tergite distinctly widened apically, its length about 1.5 times (♀) its apical width and extensively sculptured; third antennal segment 3-3.3 (♀) times as long as its width, sixth and seventh segments of ♀ very short; vein 1r-m of hind wing 1.