Aspilota Foerster, 1863

Peris-Felipo, Francisco Javier, Santa, Fernando, van Achterberg, Cornelis & Belokobylskij, Sergey A., 2025, Review of the genera and subgenera of the subtribe Aspilotina (Hymenoptera, Braconidae, Alysiinae), with a new illustrated key, ZooKeys 1229, pp. 133-200 : 133-200

Genus Aspilota Foerster, 1863

Figs 4 , 5 , 6 , 7 , 8 , 9

Aspilota Foerster, 1863: 268; Shenefelt 1974: 966; Wharton 1980: 84; van Achterberg 1988: 9; Chen and Wu 1994: 49; Belokobylskij 1998 a: 218; Wharton 2002: 34; Yu et al. 2016.

Dipiesta Foerster, 1863: 268 (synonymised with Aspilota Foerster by Szépligeti (1904)).

Eusynaldis Zaykov & Fischer, 1982: 70; van Achterberg 1988: 9 (as synonym of Aspilota Foerster); Zhu et al. 2017: 19; Peris-Felipo and Belokobylskij 2019: 21.

Regetus Papp, 1999: 391; Fischer 2002: 101; Zhu et al. 2017: 19 (as synonym of Aspilota Foerster).

Grandilota Fischer, 2002: 103; Yu et al. 2016.

Adelphenaldis Fischer, 2003: 41; Peris-Felipo et al. 2012: 287; 2014 b: 571; Yu et al. 2016; Zhu et al. 2017: 19 (as synonym of Aspilota Foerster).

Type species.

Alysia ruficornis Nees von Esenbeck, 1834 , by monotypy.

Diagnosis.

Mandible small, simple, tridentate, often with upper (first) tooth diminished with respect to lower (third) tooth. Paraclypeal fovea large, reaching inner margin of eyes. Mesoscutum with or without medio-posterior pit; notauli present only in anterior part of mesoscutum; precoxal sulcus almost always present; propodeum smooth or more common with different types of sculpture and sometimes with longitudinal and / or transverse carinae, rarely forming areas. In fore wing, marginal cell never shortened; vein r originating from basal quarter of pterostigma; vein 2 - SR often present and usually distinctly sclerotised but absent in subgenus Eusynaldis ; veins m-cu and cu-a postfurcal; first subdiscal cell always closed postero-apically by vein CU 1 a. In hind wing, subbasal cell usually closed. Metasoma of ♀ more or less distinctly compressed laterally; second tergite always smooth. Ovipositor sheath usually not longer than metasoma.

Remarks.

Members of the genus Aspilota are frequently encountered as they are one of the most common genera among Alysiini wasps. It is mainly distributed in forested and humid areas of the Holarctic region and only a few species have been already recorded from other zoogeographic regions. This genus is undersampled in the tropics where their main hosts ( Phoridae ) have the greatest diversity.

Aspilota species are koinobiont endoparasitoids of larvae, mainly of the family Phoridae ( Diptera ). Previous reports established Aspilota as parasitoid of the families Anthomyiidae , Lonchaeidae , Muscidae , Platypezidae , Sarcophagidae , Syrphidae , and Tephritidae . However, these hosts need to be especially reconfirmed. The records of lepidopterous and hymenopterous larvae as hosts (families Erebidae , Bucculatricidae , Lasiocampidae , and Tortricidae , and family Tenthredinidae , respectively) are extremely doubtful because the known biology and perhaps were concerned to the Phoridae living in dead larvae of the species from these families.

The genus Aspilota contains three subgenera, Aspilota sensu stricto, Eusynaldis Zaykov & Fischer, 1982 , and Grandilota Fischer, 2002 .

Figures

Figure 4. Aspilota (Aspilota) ajara Peris-Felipo, 2016 (holotype, female) A habitus, lateral view B head and mesosoma, lateral view C mandible D antenna E head, front view F head and mesonotum, dorsal view.

Figure 5. Aspilota (Aspilota) ajara Peris-Felipo, 2016 (holotype, female) A propodeum B first metasomal tergite, dorsal view C legs, metasoma and ovipositor, lateral view D fore and hind wings.

Figure 6. Aspilota (Eusynaldis) varinervis (Zaykov & Fischer, 1972) (holotype, male) A habitus, lateral view B head and mesosoma, lateral view C mandible D antenna E head, front view F head and mesonotum, dorsal view.

Figure 7. Aspilota (Eusynaldis) varinervis (Zaykov & Fischer, 1972) (holotype, male) A propodeum B first metasomal tergite, dorsal view C hind leg, lateral view D fore wing.

Figure 8. Aspilota (Grandilota) kenyaensis (Fischer, 2002), comb. nov. (holotype, female) A habitus, lateral view B head and mesosoma, lateral view C mandible D antenna E head, front view F head, dorsal view.

Figure 9. Aspilota (Grandilota) kenyaensis (Fischer, 2002), comb. nov. (holotype, female) A mesonotum, dorsal view B propodeum. C legs, metasoma and ovipositor, lateral view D first metasomal tergite, dorsal view E fore and hind wings.