Antepipona minutissima Giordani Soika, 1982

Kumar, Girish P., Carpenter, James M. & Sureshan, Pavittu M., 2016, A taxonomic review of the genus Antepipona de Saussure, 1855 (Hymenoptera: Vespidae: Eumeninae) from India, Zootaxa 4150 (5), pp. 501-536 : 518-520

14. Antepipona minutissima Giordani Soika, 1982

( Figs 43–48 )

Antepipona minutissima Giordani Soika 1982: 209 (key), 239, figs 40–42, ♀, Ƌ, “ Sri Lanka: Mannar ” (holotype, ♀, RMNH).

Diagnosis. ♀. Apex of clypeus narrow, width less than width of interantennal space ( Fig. 45 ); mesopleuron moderately punctate; posterior side of propodeum ( Fig. 47 ) without transverse upper carina; S2 abruptly lowered at base, slightly depressed at middle; median area of anterior face of pronotum almost completely smooth ( Fig. 46 ); pronotal carina present only on side faces and on shoulder; metanotal teeth well–developed, distance between them about twice that which separates one of them from lateral margin of metanotum.

Colour. Body black, with ventral surface of apical funicles, marks at base of fore and mid femora, apical marks on mid and hind tibiae and all tarsi usually brown ferruginous. Yellow markings: mandible except at apex brown; clypeus usually entirely, rarely lateral margins and transverse basal mark blackish brown; scape except dark triangular mark at apical half of dorsal side; large mark on front; broad line along inner orbit extends up to little above ocular sinus; large mark on upper half of temples; broad interrupted band on dorsal surface of pronotum; large spot on mesepisternum; wide bands on scutellum and metanotum; tegulae; parategulae; large spot on dorsal face of propodeum; most of fore and mid femora; apex of hind femora; all tibiae; outer face of all basi–tarsi; an apical band on T1, abruptly enlarged at sides; an apical broad band on T2, strongly enlarged at middle and at sides, and two large round spots on sides of base; large spots on sides of apical margin of T3; an apical band on T4; spots at middle of T5 and T6; S2 with an apical band as that of T2; S3 and S4 with spots on sides of apical margin. Wings slightly blackened, strongly along coast.

Ƌ. Apical emargination of clypeus narrow, deep; apical antennal article tiny, almost straight, its apex reaching barely half of eleventh article. Coloration as that of ♀, but T3–T5, S3 with apical yellow band.

Size (H+M+T1+T2). ♀, 5.5 mm; Ƌ, 5–5.5 mm.

Material examined. INDIA: Kerala , Kozhikode district, Nanminda , 1♀, 4.vi.2014, Coll. P. Girish Kumar, NZC No. 16361/H3 ; Tamil Nadu, Kanchipuram district, Vandalur , 1♀, 21.x.1978, Coll. R.S. Pillai & Party, NZC No. 16362/H3.

Distribution. India: Kerala, * Tamil Nadu; Sri Lanka.

Figures

FIGURES 43 – 48. Antepipona minutissima Giordani Soika, ♀. 43. Body, profile. 44. Head, frontal view. 45. Clypeus. 46. Head and mesosoma, dorsal view. 47. Propodeum. 48. Metasoma, dorsal view.