A new Anagyrus (Hymenoptera: Encyrtidae) from Argentina, parasitoid of Hypogeococcus sp. (Hemiptera: Pseudococcidae) on Harrisia pomanensis (Cactaceae)

Abstract

A new species of Anagyrus Howard (Hymenoptera: Encyrtidae), A. lapachosus sp. n., is described from Salta Province of Argentina as a parasitoid of Hypogeococcus sp. (Hemiptera: Pseudococcidae) on Harrisia pomanensis cactus (Cactaceae). It is a candidate “new association” biological control agent for quarantine evaluation and possible following introduction to Puerto Rico (USA) against another Hypogeococcus sp., commonly called the Harrisia cactus mealybug and often misidentified as H. pungens Granara de Willink (according to our unpublished data the latter attacks only Amaranthaceae), which devastates or threatens the native cacti there and also in some other Caribbean islands (Triapitsyn, Aguirre et al. 2014; Carrera-Martínez et al. 2015). Species of Anagyrus in Argentina were recently reviewed and keyed by Triapitsyn, Logarzo et al. (2014) who also described two new taxa reared in that country from Hypogeococcus spp., A. cachamai Triapitsyn, Logarzo & Aguirre and A. quilmes Triapitsyn, Logarzo & Aguirre; these were then further illustrated by Triapitsyn, Aguirre et al. (2014). All the specimens had been initially preserved in 80% ethanol; later they were dried using a critical point dryer, point-mounted, and then two females and two males were slide-mounted in Canada balsam. Terms for morphological features in the description are those of Gibson (1997). Measurements are given in micrometers (µm) as length or length: width (for the wings). An abbreviation used is: F = antennal funicle segment. Type specimens are deposited in the collections of Fundación e Instituto Miguel Lillo, San Miguel de Tucumán, Tucumán, Argentina (IMLA), Museo de La Plata, La Plata, Buenos Aires, Argentina (MLPA), and Entomology Research Museum, University of California, Riverside, California, USA (UCRC). We thank Vladimir V. Berezovskiy (UCRC) for mounting specimens and M. Andrea Saracho Bottero (Instituto Superior de Entomología “Dr. Abraham Willink” (INSUE)) for assistance in collecting. This study was funded by the USDA-APHIS (Agreement No. 34-WI-14-1001-0861-IA to FuEDEI).