Anterhynchium (Anterhynchium) nimbosum Giordani Soika, 1987

Selis, Marco & Carpenter, James M., 2023, Revision of the Afrotropical species of the genus Anterhynchium de Saussure (Hymenoptera: Vespidae: Eumeninae), Zootaxa 5233 (1), pp. 1-102 : 62-64

Anterhynchium (Anterhynchium) nimbosum Giordani Soika, 1987

( Fig. 15 )

Anterhynchium nimbosum Giordani Soika 1987: 199 , ♀, ♁—“ Zimbabwe: Chirinda Forest ” (holotype NMBZ).

Diagnosis. This species can be recognized by: smaller size, coloration black, wings fuscous with purplish reflections, tegument shiny, metanotum strongly angled, propodeum rounded with straight tooth above valvula, dorsal face of propodeum entirely punctured, posterior face of propodeum smooth on sides, lateral face of propodeum strongly striate, interspaces on S2–S5 narrow, male clypeus with narrow apical margin, male F11 narrow and straight, mid femur of male simple, vertex of female with foveae placed in subtriangular depression about as broad as ocellar triangle.

Description. MALE. Fore wing length 12.0– 12.5 mm.

Head 1.2 × as wide as long in frontal view. Clypeus in lateral view convex in basal half, then flattened to the apex; in frontal view 1.25 × as long as wide, apical margin truncate and very narrow, about 0.25 × as wide as clypeus width, apical teeth dull and with short sharp carinae. Interantennal space carinate. Distance from posterior ocellus to occipital carina 1.9 × as long as the distance from posterior ocellus to inner eye margin. Vertex with a broad V-shaped depression in posterior half of median third. Gena as wide as eye at bottom of ocular sinus; occipital carina strong ventrally, shortly lamellate, becoming finer toward vertex. Scape 3.4 × as long as apically wide; F1 2.2 × as long as wide; F2–F10 longer than wide; F11 bacilliform, apically rounded and practically straight in lateral view, weakly curved in dorsal view, apex reaching middle of F8; F6–F10 with tyloids, shaped as weakly convex unsculpted and shiny areas. Pronotal carina complete, elevated into a very short lamella; pretegular carina complete. Mesoscutum as long as wide between tegulae, evenly convex in lateral view. Scutellum convex, with a shallow median longitudinal furrow. Metanotum in lateral view very weakly angled, horizontal and vertical faces not distinctly separated by a transverse carina, vertical face transversely convex. Tegula elongate, outer margin evenly convex, posterior lobe triangular and short, not reaching apex of parategula. Parategula large and weakly curved, rounded at apex, posteromedial margin placed below anteriomedial margin, so that parategula appears oblique. Mesepisternum strongly convex, abruptly truncate anteriorly, epicnemial carina complete, strong and starting from transverse sulcus. Propodeum in lateral view almost vertical; sides of posterior face flat and angularly meeting on median line, therefore posterior face large and weakly depressed; dorsal face convex; lateral face flat with weak apical depression; dorsal carinae absent, therefore dorsal and posterior faces are not clearly separated; lateral carina absent; inferior carina nearly absent, with a very short tooth near valvula. T 1 in dorsal view 0.7 × as long as wide, almost parallel-sided, in lateral view with a flat vertical face which continues in a flattened horizontal face, transition broadly rounded; T 2 in dorsal view wider than long, in lateral view regularly convex from base to apex, except for preapical shallow depression; S 2 in lateral view weakly and evenly convex basally, then flattened to apex, with a large and shallow depression running from basal margin to apical third of sternum.

Frons with flat-bottomed punctures, interspaces short and forming an irregular reticulation; punctures becoming deeper and sparser on vertex and gena; interantennal space impunctate; ocular sinus shallowly punctured. Clypeus densely microreticulate on basal half and sides of apical half, middle of apical half microstriate; punctures oblique and very shallow, indistinct, denser on disc. Pronotum, mesoscutum and scutellum with dense deep punctures, interspaces very narrow and forming an irregular reticulation; punctures on scutellum denser; lateral face of pronotum shiny with sparse microreticulation and some ill defined punctures. Metanotum coarsely punctured on horizontal face and dorsal half of vertical face; ventral half of vertical face dull and microreticulate. Mesepisternum, except epicnemium and posterior margin, with large flat-bottomed punctures, interspaces shorter than punctures diameter. Dorsal plate of metaepisternum shiny with irregular punctures and striae on upper third; ventral plate of metaepisternum microreticulate and less shiny, with sparse shallow punctures. Dorsal faces of propodeum coarsely and irregular punctured, interspaces reduced to thin ridges and spines; posterior face microreticulate, with strong irregular striae in ventral half; lateral face dull, with dense fine irregular striae and sparse shallow punctures. T1 with oblique punctures, denser and smaller on disc, becoming larger and deeper on sides; vertical face microreticulate with some sparse punctures on dorsal third. T2 with dense and deep oblique punctures, interspaces irregular, from shorter to barely larger than punctures diameter, leaving an impunctate apical margin. T3 punctured like preapical band on T2. T4–T6 densely micropunctate, with small punctures, deeper on T3 and becoming sparser and shallower on following terga. T7 densely micropunctate with some barely visible fine punctures. Narrow basal part of S1 irregularly sculpted, with some transverse striae posteriorly; expanded apical part with irregular transverse striae in the middle, sides microreticulate. S2–S7 similar to respective terga, but punctures deeper and sparser, interspaces on S2 strongly shiny. Head and mesosoma with dense short brownish setae; longer setae on frons, mesepisternum and posterolateral corners of propodeum; metasoma with dust-like pubescence, sparse black setae on sterna, longer on S1.

Black; following parts brown: apical half of clypeus, underside of scape, legs; large basal spot on clypeus ivoryyellow; underside of flagellum dark orange. Wings fuscous with weak purplish reflections.

FEMALE. Fore wing length 14.0–16.0 mm.

Like male, except: head 1.2 × as wide as long in frontal view; clypeus in frontal view pyriform, 1.1 × as long as wide, apical margin narrow and truncate, apical corners forming rounded right angles, bearing short subparallel carinae, with coarser oblique punctures; vertex with subtriangular depression near occipital margin; scape 4 × as long as apically wide; F1 2 × as long as wide; F2–F4 longer than wide, F5–F9 subquadrate; F10 bullet shaped; clypeus entirely black.

Distribution. Zimbabwe ( Carpenter et al. 2009; Giordani Soika 1987) ( Fig. 10 ).

Figures

FIGURE 10. Distributional map of mephisto species-group.

FIGURE 15. Anterhynchium nimbosum Giordani Soika, 1987. A, habitus of female. B, head of male in frontal view. C, head of female in frontal view. D, head of female in dorsal view. E, flagellum of male in lateral view. F, propodeum in lateral view. G, T2 in dorsal view.