A new species of the genus Pseudocyanopterus van Achterberg, Cao & Yang (Hymenoptera, Braconidae, Braconinae) from China

A new species, Pseudocyanopterus pagiophloeusis Samartsev & Li, sp. nov., is described from Shanghai, China. Illustrated diagnoses to distinguish the new species from its closest relative and the members of related genera are presented. New combinations are proposed for five species previously considered in the genus Cyanopterus Haliday, 1835, Bracomorpha hinoemataensis (Belokobylskij, 2000), comb. nov., B. kusarensis (Abdinbekova, 1973), comb. nov., B. praecinctus (Shestakov, 1936), comb. nov., Parallobracon oriens (Belokobylskij, 2000), comb. nov., and P. tzymbali (Belokobylskij, 2000), comb. nov.


Introduction
In recent decades, China has undergone major forest management reforms (Ji et al. 2011), which significantly slowed down forest loss (Ahrends et al. 2017). Modern forestry programs turn to new forest management methods particularly directed on prevention and natural control of pests (Ji et al. 2011). Studying entomophages (e.g. parasitoid wasps) is required for the development of ecologically sustainable measures of dangerous pest control in China (Wang et al. 2019).
One of the forest pests recently attracted attention in China is Pagiophloeus tsushimanus Morimoto, a monophagous curculionid beetle that causes serious damage to the camphor tree Cinnamomum camphora (L.) J. Presl Chen et al. 2020). The knowledge on biology and ecological relations of this pest will provide guidance for its managing (Chen et al. 2020). The current article reports the discovery of a new parasitoid species attacking P. tsushimanus.
The new species belongs to the recently described genus Pseudocyanopterus of the subfamily Braconinae Nees. It belongs to a broad group of genera comprising in China also Bracomorpha Papp, Campyloneurus Szépligeti, Cyanopterus Haliday, Indabracon van Achterberg, and Parallobracon Li, van Achterberg & Chen. The fauna of these genera in China was actively studied in recent years, when 25 out of 31 currently known Chinese species have been described (Li et al. 2017(Li et al. , 2020a(Li et al. , 2020b(Li et al. , 2021Cao et al. 2020). Morphological peculiarity of the new taxa considerably complicated the classification of the group of genera. For example, some species of Campyloneurus have extraordinarily broadened and lacking dorsal nodus apex of ovipositor (Li et al. 2020c), Parallobracon has unusual ovipositor length, and Pseudocyanopterus is characterised by an exceptional shape of scape. We expect that the fauna of the genera related to Pseudocyanopterus is far from being fully discovered in China and further findings would help to clarify the statuses of questionable taxa. Thus, the revealing diversity of the braconine wasps of China provides not only an important information for forest pest forecasting and control, but also a useful material for elaboration of the systematics of this subfamily.

Material and methods
The insects were dissected from the trunks of Cinnamomum camphora (L.) J. Presl (Lauraceae) (Fig. 1A). Parasitized hosts (4 th instar larvae of P. tsushimanus) were obtained from Maogang, Songjiang District, Shanghai, on 12 June 2018 (14 host larvae) and 24 June 2021 (two host larvae). There were usually four parasitoids per host (Fig. 1B, C). Larvae were brought to the laboratory and maintained in an incubator at the temperature 26±1 °C and relative humidity 60±5%. The emerged insects collected daily. The host was identified by Dr. Jun-Hao Huang (Zhengjiang A & F University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang).
Description, measurements and photographs of the new species were made under a Leica M205A stereomicroscope with a Leica Microsystem DFC550 digital camera. Photographs were combined using Leica Application Suite (Version 4.5.0). Type specimens are deposited in the Insect Museum, General Station of Forest and Grassland Pest Management, National Forestry and Grassland Administration (Shenyang, P. R. China).
Morphological nomenclature follows Quicke (1987) and van Achterberg (1993). The length of fifth segment of hind tarsus is measured without its pretarsus; first metasomal tergite is measured from its articulating condyle [term applied after Vilhelmsen et al. (2010)].

Diagnosis.
Pseudocyanopterus is very similar to the genera Bracomorpha Papp, 1971 and the recently described Parallobracon Li, van Achterberg & Chen, 2021. The three taxa are associated by the following character states. Malar space more or less impressed, but malar suture not developed; metasoma with five visible tergites, their apical margins thick; second metasomal tergite with large anterolateral triangular areas delineated by anterolateral posteriorly diverging grooves and sublateral S-shaped grooves; median area of second metasomal tergite large, triangular; ovipositor apically acute, with weak nodus located somewhat distant from its apex and with weak serration (both structures become easily obliterated during oviposition and were not found in some species of Bracomorpha).  loneurus Szépligeti, 1900) in the key to the Old World genera of Braconinae (Quicke 1987). The genus Campyloneurus differs from all three genera by the absence of anterolateral posteriorly diverging grooves on second metasomal tergite. The differences between three related genera are presented in the key below (the characters additionally defining taxa under a certain paragraph of a key couplet, but variable in an alternative paragraph, are listed after a dash).
Ovipositor sheath at most 0.9-2.4× as long as hind tibia, 0.2-0.7× as long as fore wing (Fig. 2D, G) Ovipositor sheath 2.1-2.4× as long as hind tibia, 0.5-0.7× as long as fore wing (Fig. 2G)  Ovipositor sheath 0.9-1.6× as long as hind tibia, 0.20-0.45× as long as fore wing (Fig. 2D) (2021), which included the latter taxon in Cyanopterus as a subgenus. In Cyanopterus, thirdseventh metasomal tergites are equally sclerotised, with thin posterior margins, while in Bracomorpha five basal tergites are much coarser than the following and conceal them. Because this difference exceeds the subgeneric level, Bracomorpha is considered here a valid genus. The recently described genus Parallobracon differs from Bracomorpha mainly by the length of ovipositor and thus is likely to be considered a subgenus of the latter. However, a separate revision involving much more genera (e.g. Bicarinibracon Quicke & Walker and Indabracon van Achterberg, Campyloneurus Szépligeti, Chelonogastra group of genera, Cyanopterus Haliday, and others) is required in order to redefine their taxonomic statuses. Two species from the Russian Far East previously described in the genus Cyanopterus belong to Parallobracon, P. oriens (Belokobylskij, 2000), comb. nov. and P. tzymbali (Belokobylskij, 2000), comb. nov. The ovipositor sheath is equally long in these two species, 0.6-0.7 times as long as the fore wing, while in the type species Parallobracon prolatus Li, van Achterberg & Chen, 2021 it is 0.5-0.6 times as long as the fore wing (Li et al. 2021: 154 van Achterberg & Yang, 2020 (A-C holotype, female), Bracomorpha praecinctus (Shestakov, 1936) (D-F female), and Parallobracon oriens (Belokobylskij, 2000) (G, H paratype, female) A, G habitus, dorsal view D habitus, lateral view B, E, H fore wing C metasoma, dorsal view F scape, lateral view. Scale bars: 1 mm (A, B, D, E, G, H), 0.5 mm (C), 0.25 mm (F). temple, hind margins of eye and temple parallel or slightly broadened upwards. Face width 1.6× combined height of face and clypeus; 1.90-1.95× width of hypoclypeal depression. Longitudinal diameter of eye 2.7-2.9× as long as malar space (anterior view); malar space length 0.70-0.95× base of mandible. Malar space shallowly impressed. Width of hypoclypeal depression 1.50-1.55× distance from depression to eye. Clypeus separated from face by dorsal carina; clypeal sulcus impressed; clypeus flattened, with protruding ventral rim, height of clypeus 0.25-0.30× width of hypoclypeal depression. Maxillary palp as long as eye.
Legs. Fore tibia widely with sparse long thick setae. Hind femur 3.35-3.45× as long as wide, with subapical transverse row of thick setae. Hind tibia 1.50-1.55× as long as hind femur, its inner spur 0.33-0.37× as long as hind basitarsus. Hind tarsus 0.95-1.00× as long as hind tibia. Fifth segment of hind tarsus 0.35-0.40× and 0.7-0.8× as long as hind basitarsus and second segment, respectively. Basal lobes of claws large, rectangular, but not protruding.
Metasoma with five coarsely sclerotised tergites, about 1.6× as long as mesosoma. Median length of first tergite 0.70-0.85× as large as its apical width. Dorsolateral carinae of first metasomal tergite developed. Median area of first tergite separated by crenulate furrow. Second tergite medially 1.05-1.10× as long as third tergite, its basal width 1.75-1.80× its median length. Second metasomal tergite with short (only delineating anterolateral areas) sublateral posteriorly converging furrows and with anterolateral, posteriorly diverging, crenulate grooves; anterolateral areas elongate-triangle, smooth, with sharp crenulate margins; median area strongly elevated, wide, triangular, with crenulate margin. Suture between second and third tergites deep and wide, weakly curved and crenulate. Third metasomal tergite anterolaterally with wide areas separated by crenulate suture. Apical margins of third to fifth tergites thick, with foveate transverse subapical grooves. Ovipositor sheath 2.55-2.60× as long as hind tibia and 0.85-0.90× as long as fore wing. Apex of ovipositor with developed dorsal nodus and ventral serration.
Colour. Head, pronotum, propleuron, fore coxa and mesoscutum along notauli (or its median lobe entirely) reddish yellow. First metasomal tergite, anterolateral parts of second tergite, sixth and seventh tergites and sternites pale yellow. The rest of body brownish black. Wing membrane weakly darkened, pterostigma and wing veins brown; tegulae dark brown.
Male. Body length 4.8 mm; fore wing length 3.7 mm. Face width 1.7× combined height of face and clypeus. Longitudinal diameter of eye 3.1× as long as malar space (anterior view); malar space length 0.7× base of mandible. Antenna with 28-32 antennomeres. First, middle and penultimate flagellomeres 2.5×, 2.2×, and 2.1× as long as wide, respectively. Median length of first metasomal tergite 1.3× its apical width; second tergite medially 1.1× as long as third tergite, its basal width 1.5× its median length. First metasomal tergite and anterolateral parts of second tergite and pale yellow; the rest of metasoma brownish black. Otherwise similar to female.