The Wharton Lab

Opius michaeli Fischer, 1968: 77–78 (key); 92–95 (description). Holotype female in AEIC (examined).
Opius michaeli: Fischer 1971: 87 (catalog).
Opius (Merotrachys) michaeli: Fischer 1977: 655–657, 687–689 (key, redescription); Fischer 1979: 264–266 (key); Fischer 1983: 83 (diagnosis in couplet of key); Yu et al. 2005, 2012 (electronic catalogs).

This species was originally described from the female holotype plus a male and a female paratype.

Face (Figs 3, 4) faintly punctate, otherwise smooth. Eye in lateral view (Fig. 5) about 4 x longer than temple; temples in dorsal view weakly receding. Female antenna with 46–48 flagellomeres, male with 45 flagellomeres; setae on basal flagellomeres thin, pale. Mesoscutum with shallow but distinct declivity (Fig. 2); notaulus extending laterally towards tegula as groove bordered by distinct supramarginal carina. Propodeum (Figs 7-9) coarsely carinately rugose on posterior 0.6, nearly smooth anteriorly, with deep median trough anteriorly, areola obscured by sculpture posteriorly. Fore wing (Fig. 12) with 3RSa straight or nearly so, 1.4 x longer than 2RS; m-cu postfurcal. T1 sharply declivitous anteriorly (Fig. 10), pit delimited posterior-medially; surface rugose to rugulose; dorsal carinae (Fig. 11) weakly sinuate, nearly parallel-sided, broadening subapically, narrowing apically, weakly transversely carinate between dorsal carinae. T2 faintly shagreened, T3 mostly smooth. Ovipositor moderately short; ovipositor sheath about 0.5–0.6 x length of mesosoma. Color as in Figs. 2, 7, 9: head, prothorax, propodeum, and T1 yellow-orange; meso- and metathorax, T2 and T5–6 mostly brown, T3–4 yellow-brown; hind coxa and femur yellow; antenna without pale subapical ring; wing weakly infumate.

The female is readily distinguished from all others included here in the ingenticornis species group by the slightly longer ovipositor and mottled color pattern (Fig. 2). Where known, members of the ingenticornis species group all have relatively short ovipositors, with the ovipositor sheath distinctly shorter than the mesosoma. The propodeum of O. michaeli is generally similar in sculpture to those species in the subgroup discussed under the O. gabrieli species page, but is nearly smooth anteriorly. Fischer (1983) compared O. michaeli to O. monsonicus from Peru and both have similarly long ovipositors. Although O. monsonicus has antennae that are very long as in members of the ingenticornis species group, we have excluded this species primarily on the basis of the propodeum, which is described as having a basal keel or midridge.

Additionally, as in all other members of the ingenticornis species group, this species can be further characterized as follows: Mandible short, broadly triangular, dorsal margin strongly angled ventrally, broadly exposing labrum. Clypeus shaped as a broad crescent, nearly hemispherical, flat to weakly protruding ventrally, ventral margin shallowly concave, rarely appearing truncate. Malar sulcus distinct, complete. Antenna unusually long, approximately twice longer than body; first flagellomere slender, longer than second, with long, narrow plate sensilla. Occipital carina broadly absent dorsally, the gap in dorsal view at least as wide as distance between eyes; carina well developed laterally and ventrally, widely separated from hypostomal carina ventrally. Pronope deep, wide, posterior margin at least weakly overlapping base of mesoscutum, thus obliterating posterior transverse sulcus medially; vertical carina absent on pronotum laterally. Mesoscutum without midpit; notaulus short, curved, pit-like anteriorly, narrowing and evanescent posteriorly. Propodeum with median depression at least anteriorly, never with median longitudinal carina. Mesopleuron without sternaulus, precoxal sulcus unsculptured, absent or very faintly indicated; hind margin of mesopleuron not obviously crenulate on dorsal 0.5. Fore wing 2CUb arising from or near middle of first subdiscal cell. Hind wing with RS distinctly infumate; m-cu absent. T1 with dorsal carinae parallel or nearly so, extending from base to apex; laterope large, deep; dorsope absent.

Brazil, Teresópolis

Labels attached to the holotype are shown in Fig. 1.

This page was assembled largely by Bob Wharton. It is part of a revision of the Opius ingenticornis species group conducted by Sophia Daniels, Xanthe Shirley, Danielle Restuccia and Bob Wharton, published by Wharton et al. (2013). We thank David Wahl (American Entomological Institute, Gainesville, FL) for loans and general assistance associated with examination of holotypes, as well as Max Fischer and Dominique Zimmermann (NHMW), Henri Goulet (CNC) and Paul Marsh (formerly USDA, Washington, D. C.) for facilitating other loans and work with material in their care. We are also sincerely grateful to Jim Woolley and Aaron Tarone for making available their imaging systems when ours crashed. Matt Yoder provided guidance on databasing issues associated with our use of mx. This work was conducted at Texas A&M University and was supported in part by NSF DEB 0949027, with REU supplement 1213790. Page last updated May, 2013.

This material is based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation under Grant Number DEB 0949027 and associated REU supplement 1213790.
Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation.