Chalcedectus balachowskyi Steffan

Chalcedectus balachowskyi Steffan (Figs 51‒56) Chalcedectus balachowskyi Steffan, 1968: 210‒212; holotype ♀ (MHNG, examined). Holotype. IRAN • 1♀: Sur Rosacées, Shiraz (Iran), Sharifi leg., Ex Osphranteria coerulescens, HOLOTYPE, Chalcedectus balachowskyi J. R. Steffan det., MHNG ENTO 0109385 (Fig. 54D). [Condition of holotype: antennae missing and left front leg and partial left wing (region posterior of about medial fold missing for most of length) glued to card upon which the body is glued (Fig. 51A,B)]. Other material examined. IRAN • 2♀ 2♂; Sistan-Baluchestan Province, Chabahar, Bahu-Kalat village, 25°42’04”B 61°25’25”E, 23m, 13.IX.2016 - 17.IV.2017, H. Lotfalizadeh, MT (HMIM: 2♀, CNC Photos 2024-058, 2024-059; 2♂, CNC photos 2024-056, 2024-057). Diagnosis. Both sexes: head and mesosoma usually with some metallic lustre (Figs 51‒56), but legs entirely dark except usually for tarsi basally; mesoscutum without differentiated adnotaular region, more or less uniformly reticulate on either side of notauli posteriorly (Figs 53A,B, 55C); axilla more or less uniformly reticulate, without distinctly differentiated inner region (Figs 53A,B, 55C, 56C); mesoscutellum punctate-reticulate to punctate with fine mesh like subsculpture on interstices (Fig. 56C). Female: frontovertex usually partly metallic green to bluish-green in pattern differentiating dark transverse band between inner orbits above scrobal depression and vertical dark regions on either side of median ocellus (Fig. 51D‒F), and with comparatively large and distinct punctures or reticulations (Fig. 51C,F); Gt 5 mostly variably coarsely punctate with circular to oval punctures (Fig. 54A,B) to more punctate-reticulate (Fig. 54E,F). Male: propodeum with both plical region and bare part of callar region coarsely sculptured, rugulose (Fig. 56A) or plical region rugulose and bare part of callar region punctate-reticulate (Fig. 56B). Biology. Parasitoid of Osphranteria coerulescens Redenbacher (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae) on Rosa sp. (Rosaceae) (Steffan, 1968; Sharifi & Javadi, 1971; Gibson et al. 2021). Distribution. Iran. Description. FEMALE (Figs 51‒54). Holotype: body length 7.6 mm. Colour. Head (Fig. 51D) extensively dark with eyes brown, and clypeus and mandibles basally paler brown (Fig. 51D), but inner orbits narrowly, frontovertex mesally above and below median ocellus, and upper part of scrobes with green to bluish lustre differentiating transverse dark band between inner orbits above scrobal depression and vertical dark regions between lateral ocelli and transverse band on either side of median ocellus (Fig. 51D,F), with vertex transversely behind lateral ocelli (Fig. 52A) and interantennal region and gena near genal carina also green to bluish or purple or, under some angles of light, parascrobal region, gena and interantennal region more extensively violaceous (Figs 51D,F, 52C). Antennae missing [described originally as “entirely black, including the spicule, except for the apical half of the last article red”]. Labial and maxillary palp dark brown (Figs 51D, 52C). Mesosoma (Fig. 52B,C) mostly dark and with limited metallic lustres as follows: pronotum with distinct green to bluish lustre dorsolaterally (Fig. 52B) and narrowly anterolaterally (Fig. 52C); axilla with variably distinct green to blue or violaceous lustre under different angles of light (Figs 51B, 53A); metanotum and propodeum with blue or purple to violaceous lustres under various angles of light (Fig. 53C) [the different colours undoubtedly partly an artefact of state of preservation]. Legs dark, similar in colour to mesosoma except tarsi white basally to pale yellowish-orange apically (Fig. 51A). Fore wing (Fig. 53B) with venation dark brown except submarginal vein paler, yellowish-brown; disc with distinct brown infuscation mesally, the infuscation extending from marginal, stigmal and base of postmarginal vein such that triangular region between stigmal and postmarginal veins infuscate, and with infuscation extending along radio-medial fold (Fig. 53B: r-m) posteriorly to medial fold (Fig. 53B: mdf), with cubital fold (Fig. 53B: cf) similarly darkly infuscate, but regions between medial and cubital folds and posterior to cubital fold more faintly infuscate; with dark setae beyond level of base of marginal vein, but with inconspicuous, sparser, pale setae behind submarginal vein including, at least anteriorly, in basal cell. Gaster (Fig. 54A) with Gt 1 variably reddish basally to coppery to green apically under some angles of light, and remaining tergites mostly with slight coppery to reddish-violaceous and bluish lustres under some angles of light (Fig. 54A‒C). Body setae white, hair-like to slightly lanceolate on head (Fig. 51D,F) and mesosoma, but longer, more distinctly lanceolate, and much denser to form white reflective patch on propodeal callus (Fig. 53C), Gt 5 also with comparatively dense region of slightly lanceolate, short setae dorsolaterally (Fig. 54A,B), and Gt 6 and syntergum dorsally setose (Fig. 54C). Head. In frontal view (Fig. 51D) with interantennal region low-convex, without distinct lateral margins relative to Λ- shaped convergent scrobes; ITD about 0.8× LPD; frontovertex (Fig. 51F) punctate-reticulate with larger reticulations in region between median ocellus and scrobal depression than lateral and dorsal of median ocellus, but the reticulations smaller than on parascrobal region and gena to genal carina where more reticulate-umbilicate (Fig. 51D); scrobal depression reticulate-punctate dorsally (Fig. 51F) to transversely strigose within scrobes; interantennal region comparatively smooth, mostly coriaceous with scattered, shallow, circular setiferous punctures (Fig. 51D). In dorsal view (Fig. 52A) HW about 2.75× HL; POL: OOL: LOL: LOD = 1.3: 0.2: 1.3: 1.0; IOD about 0.35× HW. In lateral view (Fig. 52C) malar space about 0.5× eye height (Fig. 52C). Antennae missing [described originally as “with first funicular hardly longer than wide (15:12), the second approximately 1.5× times as long as wide (20:13), the third and fourth being comparatively shorter (15:12), the fifth square (12:12), and the following ones widening until the clava (7:17)”]. Left mandible tridentate [dentition of right mandible concealed under left mandible], the dorsal-most tooth the smallest. Maxillary palp with apical segment not distinctively long, shorter than width of lower parascrobal region and only about as long as basal tarsomere, slightly curved (Fig. 51D). Mesosoma. Pronotum dorsolaterally (Fig. 52B) similarly punctate-reticulate as mesoscutum except extreme posterolateral angle (region with metallic lustre) somewhat smoother; laterally coarsely sculptured throughout, punctate-reticulate dorsally to more reticulate-strigose ventrally (Fig. 52C). Mesoscutum in lateral view strongly convex above dorsal margin of pronotum (Fig. 52C), without differentiated adnotaular region, similarly punctate-reticulate on either side of notaulus posteriorly (Fig. 53A); axilla (Fig. 53A) without distinctly differentiated inner region, similarly punctuate-reticulate dorsally, though posterior, inclined part more finely punctate to ventrally strigose; mesoscutellum low-convex (Fig. 52C), with carinate marginal rim laterally but not apically (Fig. 53C) and sides convergent to rounded apex extending slightly over dorsellum (Fig. 51C), subequal in width and length, mostly punctate-reticulate with interstices having fine coriaceous subsculpture; mesepimeron (Fig. 52C) mesh like reticulate along posterior margin, but mostly coriaceous below and smooth above transepimeral pit. Propodeum (Fig. 53C) with longitudinal foraminal carinae (Fig. 53C: frc) extending anteriorly within plical region for about half length, the carinae much longer than comparatively obscurely developed adpetiolar strip (Fig. 53C: aps), and plical region otherwise irregularly rugulose; callar region differentiated from bare region posteriorly by lateralmost foraminal carina extending partly toward anterior margin of propodeum as partly developed paraspiracular carina (Fig. 53C: arrows), and bare region coarsely sculptured, punctate-rugulose between plical furrow and setae. Metafemur serrate, with about 16 exterior teeth; MFL about 1.5× MFH. Fore wing (Fig. 53B) with smv: mv: pmv: stv = 9.0: 2.8: 3.6: 1.0. Gaster (Fig. 54A) with Gt 1 smooth and shiny basally and along apical margin but with transverse, finely mesh like coriaceous band subapically; Gt 2 and Gt 3 (Fig. 54A,B) shiny and smooth to obscurely mesh like coriaceous under some angles of light; Gt 4 (Fig. 54A,B) transversely strigose-reticulate basally and coriaceous apically; Gt 5 (Fig. 54A,B) mesh like coriaceous-reticulate along extreme basal margin and more broadly and more finely mesh like coriaceous along posterior margin, but mostly punctate dorsomedially and laterally with punctures shallowed posteriorly so as to appear somewhat punctate-imbricate dorsolaterally to mesh like coriaceous-imbricate laterally; Gt 6 (Fig. 54A) with similar sculpture pattern as Gt 5, mostly punctate dorsally except anteriorly and posteriorly, and with sculpture shallowed laterally; syntergum (Fig. 54C) with presumptive Gt 6 and Gt 7 differentiated from each other only by smooth and shiny, bare transverse band and difference in convexity, not by a distinct groove, mostly transversely punctate mesally and smoother except for setal bases apically, similarly to presumptive Gt 7 [smooth region along anterior margin of syntergum (Fig. 54C: white line) normally concealed under Gt 6]. Variation. Steffan (1968) stated his two females were 7.5‒8.1 mm in length; consequently, the unseen paratype is slightly larger than the holotype, whereas the two additionally seen females are about 4.5 mm (2024-058) and 5.3 mm (2024-059) in length, both smaller than the type material. The two females also differ from at least the holotype in other structural, sculpture and colour features. Female 2024-058 has more distinct m