Aulacus longiventris ( Kieffer, 1911 )

Jennings, John T., Parslow, Ben A. & Austin, Andrew D., 2018, Systematics of the parasitoid wasp genus Aulacus Jurine (Hymenoptera: Evanioidea: Aulacidae) from Australia, Zootaxa 4538 (1), pp. 1-113 : 58-60

Aulacus longiventris ( Kieffer, 1911)

Figs 31 , 62 .

Aulacinus longiventris Kieffer 1911: 220 , 222.— Kieffer 1912: 349, 355; Hedicke 1939: 25.

Aulacus longiventris — Smith 2001: 272, comb. nov.; Jennings 2010 [on-line checklist].

Material examined. Holotype. ♀, "Melbourne Victoria " " Australia. R.E. Turner 1907–244) ( BMNH 3 a.88).

Other Material examined. Queensland: 1♂, Brisbane , 25.ii.1956, I Kerr ( MVMA) ; 1♂, Brisbane , 16.i.1957, I Kerr ( MVMA) ; 1♂, Cairncross National Park , 16.iv.1965, B. Cantrell ( QM) ; 1♀, Goodwood , 5.iv.1973, H. Frauca ( ANIC) ; 1♂, Mt Marlay, Stanthorpe , 4.ii.1984, G & A Daniels ( QM) ; 2♂, 5 km N Leyburn , 28.iii.1986, G & A Daniels ( QM) ; 1♀, Logan, Oct. - Nov., no collector ( AEI) ; 1♂, Maleny , Apr., no collector ( AEI) ; 1♀, Mt Glorious, Dec. 9-26, no collector ( AEI) ; 1♀, Stanthorpe , Dec., no collector ( AEI) . NSW: 1♀, Rose Bay , 6.xi.1894, W.W. Froggatt ( ANIC) ; 1♀, Sydney , 20.x.1912, McCarthy ( BMNH) ; 1♂, Mt Victoria, 1.i.1931, A.N. Burns ( MVMA) ; 1♂, Lane Cove , 6.xi.1943, no collector ( AMS) ; 1♂, Mt Gladstone , 21.ii.1969, Neboiss ( MVMA) ; 1♂, Mt Tomah , 29.xii.1977, no collector ( AMS) ; 1♂, Kuringga , 24.xii.1978, G.R. Brown ( ASCU) ; 1♀, 17 km W Mt Tomah , 15.xii.1981, I Gauld ( BMNH) ; 1♀, 5 km NE Nerriga , 19.i.1984, L Masner ( AEI) ; 1♀, Sydney , no date, Deane ( QM) ; 1♀, Blue Mountains , no date or collector ( MAMU) ; 1♂, no data label ( MAMU) . ACT: 1♂, Blundell's , 7.i.1930, G.A. Currie ( ANIC) ; 1♀, Black Mountain , 17.ii.1930, L.F. Graham ( ANIC) ; 1♂, Blundell's , 16.iii.1948, E.F. Riek ( ANIC) . Victoria: 1♀, Melbourne , 7.xii.1927, F.E. Wilson ( MVMA) ; 1♀, Boolara , 12.i.1949, A.N. Burns ( MVMA) ; 1♀, Warburton, Feb. 22- Mar. 1 [no year], no collector ( AEI) ; 1♂, Langwarrin district , no date or collector ( MVMA) ; 2♀, 1♂, no data label ( MVMA) ; 1♀, from Phoracanthus , emerged 1.i.1905, no collector or location ( MVMA) .

Description. FEMALE. Length. 14.9 (13.5–16.1) mm, excluding ovipositor.

Colour. Head and mesosoma black, metasoma orange, with variable amounts of black on T1 and T4 to tip, fore and mid legs orange, tibiae and tarsi white except tarsomere 5 black, hind coxa, trochanter, femur and tibia black except for variable amounts of orange on femur, hind tarsi white except for variable amounts of black on first and fifth segments. Wings hyaline, fore wing with indistinct brown spot apically on the marginal and submarginal cells.

Head. 1.06 (1.05–1.09)× wider than long when viewed dorsally; face rugulose, pubescence long; with subantennal groove; frons with pronounced lateral medial carina above toruli, rugulose, with a few radiating striations near median ocellus, pubescence long; vertex and gena almost smooth, faintly rugose-imbricate, pubescence long; posterior margin of head not concave in dorsal view; occipital carina absent; malar space 0.15 (0.14–0.18)× height eye; clypeus 2.8× as wide as high, margin sinuate, with distinct medial process; distance from lateral ocellus to eye margin 0.9× distance between lateral ocelli; scape 1.8× length pedicel; first flagellomere 1.7 (1.3–2.2)× as long as scape, 0.74 (0.71–0.77)× as long as second flagellomere.

Mesosoma. Propleuron rugose, pubescence long, ventro-lateral carina present; pronotum rugose; mesoscutum in lateral view rounded antero-dorsally, medial and lateral lobes rugose, with scattered short setae, admedial lines present; notauli distinct, carinate, broad and deep; scutellum and axillae rugose, scutellum anteriorly with pair of deep depressions, separated by a weak median carina; metapostnotum scrobiculate, posterior margin slightly curved; mesopleuron rugose, with long pubescence; mesepimeron broad, carinate; metapleuron rugose, with short pubescence; propodeum rugose, with several transverse carinae medially, posterior margin scrobiculate; hind coxa strigate dorsally, pubescence long laterally, ovipositor guide somewhat caudad, transverse, distal fringe of short setae, no setae in groove; hind trochanter imbricate, with scattered short setae; prefemur on hind leg present; hind femur imbricate, with scattered short setae; hind tibia imbricate, pubescence short, with scattered stout emergent setae; hind femur 0.65 (0.63–0.67)× length hind tibia; hind tibia with ventro-apical pecten of short robust spines; hind tarsomeres 1–4 with ventro-apical pecten of short robust spines, tarsomere 1, 2.5 (2.3–2.6)× length tarsomere 2; tarsomere 2, 1.5 (1.3–1.6)× length tarsomere 3; tarsomere 3, 2.2 (2.0–2.4)× length tarsomere 4; tarsomere 4, 0.75 (0.7–0.8)× length tarsomere 5; hind tarsal claw 0.55 (0.5–0.7)× length tarsomere 5; fore wing veins 2r-m and 3r-m spectral medially; hind wing venation complete, R+Rs, M+Cu, Cu, r-m and 2-M spectral, with 3 hamuli.

Metasoma. Clavate, 2.07 (1.88–2.26)× length of mesosoma; T1 and T2 broad, rugulose dorsally, smooth laterally, ovipositor 17.9 (16.5–19.5) mm.

MALE. Similar to female except: length 15.0 (13.0–17.5); metasoma 2.36 (2.29–2.4); basiparameres broad, glabrous at base, weakly imbricate and pubescent towards apex; digitus slightly longer than basiparameres

Distribution. This species is widely distributed along the eastern Australian mainland, from north of Brisbane, Queensland to several localities around Melbourne, Victoria ( Fig. 62 ).

Biology. One specimen from MVMA emerged from Phoracantha sp. ( Cerambycidae ), labelled as Phoracanthus .

Comments. Aulacus longiventris keys out together with A. belairensis from South Australia. Aulacus longiventris is a much larger species (body length 14.9 (13.5–16.1) mm, excluding ovipositor, ovipositor 17.9 (16.5–19.5) mm) than A. belairensis (body length 5.0 (4.4–5.5) mm, excluding ovipositor, ovipositor 5.9 (5.0–6.5) mm). The two species can also be separated by the position of the ovipositor guide (somewhat caudad and transverse in A. longiventris , distal and transverse in A. belairensis ), and A. belairensis lacks a lateral medial carina above toruli which is present in A. longiventris .

Figures

FIGURE 31. Aulacus longiventris (Kieffer), female, (A) dorsal habitus; (B) lateral habitus; (C) dorsal head; (D) lateral head; (E) dorsal mesosoma; (F) lateral mesosoma; (G) dorsal hind coxae. Aulacus longiventris (Kieffer), male, (H) ventral male genitalia.

FIGURE 62. Distribution of Aulacus leai sp. nov., A. longiventris (Kieffer), and A. mareebaensis sp. nov.