Adult Spasskia brevicarinata, a newly discovered wasp species. Credit: Entomological Society of America
For the first time, wasps in the genus Spasskia (family: Braconidae) have been found in China, according to an article in the open-access Journal of Insect Science. In addition, a species in that genus which is totally new to science was also discovered.
The new species, Spasskia brevicarinata, is very small—male and female adults are less than one centimeter long. It is similar to a previously described species called Spasskia indica, but the ridges on some of its body segments are different. In fact, the species epithet brevicarinata reflects a short ridge on its first tergite, as "brevi" is Latin for short and "carinata" is Latin for ridge.
Spasskia brevicarinata (left) and Spasskia indica (right) are shown. Credit: Entomological Society of America
Provided by Entomological Society of America