View source for Encarsia aferi Schmidt & Polaszek

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[[File:Encarsia-aferi-ZSM.jpg| thumb| 400px| right| ''Encarsia aferi'' female (slide preparation)]]
== Diagnosis ==
=== Female ===
Colour: head and mesosoma yellow except pronotum, anteromedial patch on
mesoscutal midlobe, and propodeum partly brown. Gaster yellow, petiole and T1 with
faint transverse brown band. Antenna yellow, apex brown. Fore wing hyaline. Legs yellow.

Morphology [measurements of holotype in square brackets]: stemmaticum with rugose
surface sculpture. Antennal formula 1,1,3,3. Pedicel subequal to, or slightly longer than,
F1 (1.00–1.13) [1.12]. F1 (1.71–1.92) [1.92] times as long as its maximum width, shorter
than F2 (0.73–0.83) [0.83], and shorter than F3 (0.75–0.81) [0.81]. F2 subequal in length
to F3. Flagellomeres with the following numbers of sensilla: F1: 0, F2: 2, F3: 2, F4: 3, F5:
3, F6: 3. Midlobe of mesoscutum with eight setae, arranged symmetrically. Scutellar
sensilla widely separated, approximately five times the maximum width of a sensillum.
Distance between anterior pair of scutellar setae subequal to distance between posterior
pair. Fore wing 2.3 times as long as width of disc. Marginal fringe 0.20–0.21 [0.21] times as
long as width of disc. Basal cell with five or six seta. Submarginal vein with two (or three)
setae, marginal vein anteriorly with seven setae. Tarsal formula 5-5-5. Apical spur of
midtibia slightly longer than half the length of the corresponding basitarsus (0.57–0.63)
[0.63]. Tergites laterally with the following numbers of setae: T1: 0, T2: 1, T3: 1, T4: 3,
T5: 3, T6: 3, T7 with four setae. Ovipositor slightly shorter than midtibia (0.85–0.91)
[0.91] and 1.24–1.30 [1.30] times as long as clava. Third valvula 0.30–0.33 [0.32] times as
long as second valvifer.

=== Male ===
Unknown

== Species group placement== 
''Encarsia inaron'' group.

== Distribution ==
Australia: Queensland.

== Hosts ==
Aleyrodidae: ''Bemisia afer'' (Priesner and Hosny).

== Comments ==
''Encarsia aferi'' resembles ''E. thoreauini'' but can be distinguished by the different wing shape and the setation of the fore wing being more scattered than in thoreauini. It is also similar to ''E. aleurochitonis'' Mercet but can be separated by the reticulate surface sculpture of the stemmaticum, whereas in ''E. aferi'' the sculpture is rugose. Also, ''E. aferi'' has a much longer fore wing marginal fringe which is about 0.2 times as long as the maximum width of disc, whereas in ''E. aleurochitonis'' it is less than 0.1 times.

== References ==
{{aut| Schmidt, S.}}, {{aut|Polaszek, A.}} (2007). The Australian species of ''Encarsia'' Förster (Hymenoptera, Chalcidoidea: Aphelinidae), parasitoids of whiteflies (Hemiptera, Sternorrhyncha: Aleyrodidae) and armoured scale insects (Hemiptera, Coccoidea: Diaspididae). Journal of Natural History 41(33-36): 2099-2265. {{doi| 10.1080/00222930701550766}}

== External links ==
[[Wikispecies:Encarsia_aferi| Wikispecies]]<br />
[http://www.zsm-entomology.de/wiki/Encarsia_aferi Type information]<br />
[[Wikipedia:Encarsia| ''Encarsia'' on Wikipedia]]