Fairy Wasps, Mymaridae, are a large group of small Chalcid Wasps found in temperate and tropical regions around the world. The group includes both the smallest known insect (at 0.139 mm) and the smallest known flying insect (at 0.15 mm) with even the largest species typically under a millimetre in length, and are parasitoids, typically laying their eggs inside the eggs of other Insects. Fairy Wasps are thought to be the oldest group of Chalcid Wasps, with a fossil record dating back to the Early Cretaceous.
In a paper published in the journal ZooKeys on 22 February 2017, John Huber of Natural Resources Canada and Serguei Triapitsyn of the Entomology Research Museum at the University of California, Riverside, describe three new species of Fairy Wasp from the Republic of Congo, Nigeria and Gabon as part of a review of Fairy Wasps in tropical Africa.
The first new species described is placed in the genus Anaphes, and given the specific name quinquearticulatus, from the Latin words for 'five' and 'articulated' in reference to the antennae of the species, which have five funicle (stem) segments. The species is described from seven female specimens collected from the Republic of Congo. These range from 255 to 358 μm in length and are dark brown in colour with lighter limbs.
Anaphes quinquearticulatus, female specimen in dorsal view. Huber & Triapitsyn (2017).
The second new species described is placed in the genus Paranaphoidea and given the specific name africana, as it is the first member of the genus found on that continent. The species is described from a single female specimen from Osun State in Nigeria. This is 1.180 mm in length, excluding the head, and brownish in colour with yellow markings.
Paranaphoidea africana. Scale bar is 1 mm. Huber & Triapitsyn (2017).
The third new species described is placed in the genus Allanagrus, and given the specific name occidentalis, meaning 'west', all previously described members of this genus having come from East Asia and Australia. The species is described from a single female specimen from the Forêt de la Mondah in Gabon. The specimen is 450 μm in length and brown in colour with yellow markings.
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The third new species described is placed in the genus Allanagrus, and given the specific name occidentalis, meaning 'west', all previously described members of this genus having come from East Asia and Australia. The species is described from a single female specimen from the Forêt de la Mondah in Gabon. The specimen is 450 μm in length and brown in colour with yellow markings.
Paranaphoidea occidentalis, part of mesosoma and metasoma, and wings. Scale bar is 200 μm. Huber & Triapitsyn (2017).
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