Mesocynips insignis (Smith)

LIU, ZHIWEI, 2001, Phylogeny, Biogeography, and Revision of the Subfamily Dallatorrellinae (Hymenoptera: Liopteridae), American Museum Novitates 3353 (1), pp. 1-22 : 10-11

Mesocynips insignis (Smith)

Figures 1–5, 7

Cynips insignis Smith, 1858: 117 , ♀. Neotype (designated below).

Mesocynips insignis Cameron, 1903: 91 , ♀. Objective synonym of C. insignis Smith (through neotype designation: see Comments below).

Mesocynips insignis (Smith) ; Weld, 1952: 161. Ronquist, 1995b: 38–40.

DESCRIPTION: Length: 3 9.0 mm, ♀ 9.0– 14.0 mm. Body entirely yellow to yellowish brown. Basal half of wings clear and distal half ferruginous. The female specimen from the Philippines is darker on distal half of wings .

Face, gena, and vertex glabrous and sparsely punctate with hairs. Eyes only about two­thirds as long as height of malar space, slightly protruding laterally beyond temple. Median frontal carina present only as small triangular, lobular process between antennal sockets and completely lacking in lower face. Vertex glabrous, posteriorly with a rim of sparse long hairs. Occiput glabrous, laterally with sparse long hairs. Lateral pronotal carinae dorsally meeting pronotal crest, thus medially disconnecting lateral pronotal areas. Lateral surface of pronotum glabrous except elevated dorsal part transversely costate. Mesoscutum sparsely punctate with apressed long hair and strongly costulate, except in a narrow glabrous anterolateral strip and a glabrous area laterad to parapsidal signum. Scutellum transversely costulate laterally with glabrate area. Mesopleuron glabrous; mesopleural impression only vaguely visible anteriorly and shallowly present posteriorly. Mesopleural triangle glabrous with sparse, short hairs. Process produced from metapleural carina laterad to metacoxal foramen short, slightly extended beyond ventroposterior margin of metepisternum. Metepisternum glabrous, sparsely punctate with hairs. Lateral propodeal carina raised dorsally into a laminate structure ending abruptly posteriorly. Apical metatibial process apically truncate, by far not reaching apex of metatibia.

DISTRIBUTION: Borneo and the Philippines (Mindanao).

MATERIAL EXAMINED: 3♀ 13. NHM: 1♀ (Type, #7.45.), Borneo ; USNM: 1♀ 13, Borneo; ZLMU: 1♀, Philippines: Mindanao .

NEOTYPE DESIGNATION: First described by Smith (1858), the species was redescribed as Mesocynips insignis by Cameron (1903) based on specimens from the type locality. The latter author realized the possible synonymy between Smith’s species and his ‘‘new species’’, and thus gave his species the same specific epithet as Smith’s. The synonymy was formally established by Weld (1950).

The type of Cynips insignis Smith, 1858 could not be located and has apparently been lost. It is not in the Oxford University Museum (Ronquist, 1995b), nor in the Natural History Museum in London (Ronquist, 1995b, S. Lewis, personal commun.). Therefore, the designation of a neotype becomes necessary according to the ICZN: Article 75.3.4. (ICZN, 1999).

The type specimen of Mesocynips insignis Cameron, 1903 is hereby designated as the neotype of Cynips insignis Smith, 1858 . It matches well with Smith’s (1858) description, is from the same localities as Cynipis insignis , and is in good condition. The specimen is deposited in the Natural History Museum in London (Type, #7.45) and has labels reading ‘‘Type (in red circle)’’, ‘‘B. M. Type HYM 7.45’’, ’’ Mesocynips insignis Cam. Type, Borneo [in Cameron’s handwriting]’’, ‘‘Cameron Coll. 1903–121’’, and the neotype designation label of the current author (blue).

COMMENT ON ADDITIONAL MATERIAL: The male specimen from USNM is labeled as ‘‘type’’ (# 9939) and indicated as female. It bears Cameron’s handwritten identification label. Weld (1950) stated that this specimen is a male ‘‘cotype’’ ‘‘sent by the Sarawak Museum in July 1906 ’’. However, in Cameron’s (1903) original description of M. insignis he did not describe the male, which was subsequently described two years later (Cameron, 1905). Therefore, the specimen in USNM cannot be a type .

Figures

Figs. 1–8. 1–5, 7. Mesocynips insignis. 1. Head in frontal view; 2. Head and pronotum in dorsal view; 3. Mesosoma in lateral view; 4. Posterior part of mesoscutum and mesoscutellum in dorsal view; 5. Metatibia in laterodorsal view; 7. Forewing. 6, 8: Dallatorrella albata. 6. Metatibia in laterodorsal view; 8. Forewing.