Thyreodon fulvescens Cresson, 1865

FERNÁNDEZ-TRIANA, JOSÉ L., 2005, The taxonomy and biogeography of Cuban Ophioninae (Hymenoptera: Ichneumonidae), Zootaxa 1007 (1), pp. 1-60 : 22-24

8. Thyreodon fulvescens Cresson

Thyreodon fulvescens Cresson, 1865: 46 . Holotype ♂, Cuba (PANS).

Athyreodon fulvescens Hooker, 1912: 105 . [Synonymized by Townes & Townes, 1996: 188]. Athyreodon fulvescens Townes, 1946: 37 . [Synonymized by Townes & Townes, 1996: 188]. Thyreodon sp. Alayo, 1973: 50 [Misidentification. Examined].

Porter (1984: 56) stated that T. fulvescens inhabits both Cuba and the Bahamas, but later he restricted the species to Cuba only ( Porter, 1989: 298), as well as did Gauld (1988: 55). According to present data T. fulvescens is closely related to other two species: T. umbrifer Porter , from Florida ( USA) and an undescribed species from Bahamas ( Porter, 1989).

It is not clear to me if this status is the correct. Cresson (1865) described T. fulvescens from a single male. After that about a dozen of specimens (including both males and females) from several Cuban localities were collected and Alayo (1973) mentioned that information on his Catalogue of Hymenoptera , but nobody has made any attempt to describe the female. Porter (1989) described T. umbrifer based on 5 specimens, and was able to study T. fulvescens only from the holotype. He, based in a single female, also mentioned the undescribed species from Bahamas.

I have studied 15 specimens of “ T. fulvescens ” housed in Cuba collections, including two specimens allocated by Alayo (1973: 50) as a different and undescribed species, and I have found considerable differences in several characters. Colour variation are enclosed in the description of T. fulvescens I give bellow. Others variations include cu­a position regarding Rs&M (from proximal by almost half of its length to distal, or opposite to the base), mesopleuron and mesoscutum punctures and striation, and length of antenna (in one specimen significant larger than rest of specimens I studied). Some of that variation is very close to characters described for T. umbrifer and Porter's brief notes of the undescribed species ( Porter, 1989), and for some specimens I am not clear enough about to which species they belong.

However, I was not able to see the specimens that Porter studied (housed in four different USA collections), so I prefer to keep the present status (i.e. three different and allopatric species, according to Porter, 1989) until one specialist can study all of the material available. It is quite possible that Cuban specimens are forming a complex of species, but further analysis will be required. Below is enclosed a full description of specimens housed in Cuban collections, including variations.

DESCRIPTION. HEAD: Clypeus rather flat, with apex flared outwards and pointed medially; malar space more or less obliterated; maxillary palp long, with second palpomere strongly broadened and slightly inflated; lower face centrally coarsely punctate; frons with a dorsally divergent crest between antennal sockets and with a carina extending from outer rim of antennal sockets upwards, close to and parallel with eye margin; frons centrally punctate, weakly rugose; ocelli large, the lateral ocellus separated from eye by about 0.18 (0.15–0.25) times its own maximum diameter; head in dorsal view with gena rather broad, evenly rounded behind eye, occipital carina strong, its lower end sharp, but not reaching hypostomal carina; antenna setaceous, with 48–55 flagellomeres, the 20th 1.12 (1.05–1.15) times as long as broad. MESOSOMA: Pronotum short with anterior margin strongly and broadly reflexed, and with posterior margin centrally weakly swollen and separated from the anterior margin by a deep U­shaped groove; epomia absent; propleuron sparsely punctate, setaceous and peripherally weakly impressed; mesoscutum finely and sparsely punctate, with narrow and shallow notauli which are almost confluent posteriorly, inner anterior margin of notaulus unspecialized; scutoscutellar groove deep, long, laterally margined by thickened, simple carinae; scutellum smooth, very finely punctate, rather weakly convex; mesopleuron mostly smooth, polished and finely punctate, with rather weak foveae along front margin of speculum, fine and dense punctures on lower mesùpleuron, and with a shallow sternaular impression; metapleuron finely punctate, with a few rugae dorsally and posterally; propodeum laterally slightly flattened, coarsely reticulate with a small ridge above and behind the spiracle; propodeum posterodorsally rugose­reticulate, with strong transverse rugae posterolaterally, centrally with a shallow longitudinal impression. Fore leg of female rather stout, with coxa slightly flattened with a low bluntly rounded protuberance behind trochanteral insertion, with 5th tarsomere 0.50 (0.45–0.52) times as long as the preceding two tarsomeres, tarsal claw with fine pectinae, closer at base; hind coxa in profile moderately large, its hind end projecting beyond level of hind end of propodeum; hind femur slender, about 6 (5–7.5) times as long as maximally deep; hind tarsus of male with dense, moderately long pubescence ventrally. Fore wing lenght 14–17 mm with abscissa of Cu 1a between Cu 1b and 2 m­cu 1.34 (1.23–1.5) times as long as abscissa of Cu 1 between cu­a and 1 m­cu. METASOMA: Tergite I moderately slender, anteriorly subcylindrical or slightly dorsoventrally depressed; tergite II, in lateral view 1.94 (1.83–2.08) times as long as posteriorly deep. Male with subgenital plate small, with rather sparse hair; gonosquama quite long, the dorsal apex pointed and with a small subapical notch, the lower margin rather rounded upwards before apex. COLOR: The ground pattern includes specimens orange­brown, with only gena orange­yellowish and sometimes the scutellum yellowish; basal half of 2nd tergite black; wings faint yellow with dusky tips. One female and one male have most of the head (frons, gena, vertex, interocellar area, part of the lower face), scutellum, and some marks on mesoscutum and mesopleuron yellow. Other specimens are mostly dark brown and not orange­brown. The metasoma can be stained with black markings from 1st sternite onwards, or even in some of the tergites. Some of the sternites and/or tergites can be almost completely black.

MATERIAL EXAMINED: WC. PR: Lomas de Soroa, Candelaria , V­1963 (1 ♀, IES) . MT: Playa Larga, Ciénaga de Zapata , V­1965, Zayas­Valdés (1 ♂, MNHNCu) ; Ciénaga de Zapata , IV­1964, I. García (1 ♂, IES) . LH: San Antonio de los Baños , VI­1979, G. Alayón (1 ♀, MNHNCu) ; Canasí, Santa Cruz del Norte , V­1959, P. Alayo (1 ♂, IES) . CC. CO: Cayo Coco , V­1995, R. Rodríguez (1 ♂, MNHNCu) . CM: Sierra de Cubitas , VI­1955, P. Alayo (1 ♀, IES) . Finca La Ciega, Santa Cruz del Sur , VI­1955, Zayas­Alayo (1 ♀, IES) . EC. SC: Ciudamar , Santiago de Cuba, XI­1947 & VI­1954, P. Alayo (1 ♂, IES & 1 ♀, MNHNCu) ; Playa Bacajagua , Santiago de Cuba, V­1955 (Zayas­Alayo (1 ♀, IES) ; Playa Verraco , Santiago de Cuba, X­1978, G. Garcés (1 ♂, BIOECO) ; Siboney , Santiago de Cuba, VI­1947 & IX­1951, P. Alayo (1 ♀, MNHNCu & 1 ♀, IES) . HG: Batey de Moa, Moa , VI­1954, Zayas­Alayo (1 ♀, MNHNCu) .