Encarsia nigricephala Dozier

Encarsia nigricephala Dozier, 1937: 129. Holotype female, Puerto Rico, Mayaguez, 12.ii.1936 (H.L. Dozier), ex Bemisia euphorbiae (?tabaci) on low backyard plant (USNM, type no 51607).

Encarsia nigricephala: Polaszek et al., 1992: 386.

Diagnosis

Female

Colour

Mostly yellow, head, pronotum and mesoscutal midlobe (except posteriorly) dark brown. Remainder of mesosoma yellow, gaster slightly darkened. Fore wing hyaline with bare area near leading edge. Antenna yellow, apical segments darkened.

Morphology

Clava 3-segmented. Pedicel distinctly longer than F1 (1.64-1.92). F1 shorter than F2 (0.63-0.82) and F3 (0.70-0.78). Mid lobe of mesoscutum with 4 setae. Scutellar sensilla widely separated (approximately 6 x the width of a sensillum). Distance between anterior pair of scutellar setae larger than between posterior pair. Fore wing 2.8-2.9 x as long as wide. Marginal fringe 0.49-0.57 x as long as wing width. Tarsus of middle leg 4-segmented. Apical spur of middle tibia slightly longer than half the length of the basal tarsal segment (0.63-0.65). Ovipositor slightly shorter than or equal to middle tibia (0.85-1.00) and 1.03-1.07 x the length of the clava. Third valvula 0.67-0.68 x as long as second valvifer.

Species
group

Placed in E. cubensis-group by Polaszek et al. (1992).

Distribution
in the
Australian and
Pacific regions

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Host

B. tabaci (Gennadius). The following additional hosts have been recorded (Polaszek et al., 1999): Trialeurodes abulitonius (Haldeman), T. floridensis (Quaintance), T. vaporariorum (Westwood).

Comments

The dark head and mesoscutum in combination with the bare area of the fore wing characterize this species and make it distinguishable from the other Encarsia species treated here.