Rhoptromeris armeniaca 1966

Rhoptromeris armeniaca (Belizin), 1966

Diagnosis

Known from a single female deposited in ZIN. Type specimen small, brown, with slender build. Scutellum partly obscured by a glued wing, scutellar plate very narrow, dorsal surface of scutellum smooth. Anteroventral cavity of metapleura present. First flagellomere subequal to second, third flagellomere smaller than first two, fourth subequal to third. Front and middle legs missing.

The poor condition of the type made its study inconclusive. The specimen is most similar to R. villosa due to the small, slender body and narrow scutellar plate, but differs in the proportion of antennal segments. No specimens similar to the holotype were found among the material examined from Western and Northern Europe or from the Macaronesian islands. We suggest that it is either a representative of an eastern species or an aberrant specimen of R. villosa.

Distribution

The holotype and only known specimen was collected in Armenia.

Biology

Rhoptromeris armeniaca is probably a parasitoid of Chloropidae, as are other known Rhoptromeris species.