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Meruana Delucchi, 1962

 
   
  Meruana liriomyzae, female
     
   
 
 
     
     

Distribution

     

Biology

     

Comments

     
       
           

Classification

 

Subfamily

Tribe

Eulophinae

Cirrospilini

           
 
 
 

Diagnosis

 


   
 
Fore wing with submarginal vein (SMV) with more than 3 setae dorsally. Postmarginal vein (PMV) present and not longer than 1.25 times as stigmal vein (STV).
Antenna with usually 2 anelli; scape slender, not exceeding apex of vertex; funicle 2- and club 3-segmented in both sexes.
Fronto-facial suture near anterior ocellus. Malar sulcus present and straight.
Mesosoma slightly sculptured. Notauli incomplete in posterior half. Scutellum with 2 pair of setae and with 1 pair of longitudinal grooves. Propodeum with distinct median carina and with converging plical carinae which join the raised transverse hind strip and are separated from median carina on either side by a deep fovea. Petiole distinct and strongly sculptured.
Body coloration entirely metallic.

 
         
     
 
 

Distribution


 

The 4 described species of this genus were recorded in the Afrotropics and Australiasian regions (Noyes, 2001).

         
 
 

Biology

     

The species of this genus are mainly parasitoids of agromyzid leafminers (Boucek, 1988; Noyes, 2001).

       
                                       
 
 

Comments

 
Meruana, having funicle 2-segmented in both sexes, propleura separated posteriorly, submarginal vein with 3 or more setae dorsally and 2 pairs of scutellar setae, belongs to the tribe Cirrospilini.
Meruana may be distinguished from all the other Cirrosplini included in the key by the combination of the following characters: propodeum with distinct median carina and with converging plicae, and petiole distinct and strongly sculptured. Moreover, it can be distinguished from Cirrospilus, Diaulinopsis and Semielacher by not having notauli complete and reaching posterior margin of mesoscutum; from Cirrospilus variegatus group and Zagrammosoma by not having vaulted vertex; from Diaulinopsis also by not having postmarginal vein at least 1.5 times as long as stigmal vein. Finally, Cirrospilus ambiguus, Danuviella and Diglyphus, as they have similar notauli and metallic coloration, are considered the closest taxa to Meruana. However, C. ambiguus and Diglyphus don’t have plicae on propodeum and don’t have distinct petiole, while Danuviella, which has distinct petiole, doesn’t have converging propodeal plicae.
Although Meruana seems to be easily distinguished from the other close genera, more work is probably necessary to define better the relationship with taxa like Diglyphus, Cirrospilus and Danuviella.
                       
                                                             
                         
 
                                                             
     
 
 

 

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October 2005
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