Pnigalio tyrrhenus, (WALKER)

Gebiola, Marco, Bernardo, Umberto, Ribes, Antoni & Gibson, Gary A. P., 2015, An integrative study of Necremnus Thomson (Hymenoptera: Eulophidae) associated with invasive pests in Europe and North America: taxonomic and ecological implications, Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society 173 (2), pp. 352-423 : 417-418

PNIGALIO TYRRHENUS (WALKER) COMB. NOV.

( FIGS 176–179 )

Eulophus Tyrrhenus Walker, 1839: 147–148 . ♂ lectotype (BMNH, here designated).

Eulophus tyrrhenus Boucˇek & Askew, 1968: 150 (possible synonym of Pnigalio pectinicornis L.).

Type material

There is no indication in the original publication that Walker (1839) described E. Tyrrhenus from more than one male, collected near London. The BMNH has a single point-mounted male with the following six labels: (1) a circular, purple-bordered label with ‘LECTOTYPE’; (2) a rectangular label with ‘ Eulophus Tyrrhenus Walker’ handwritten on one side and ‘Stood under this name in old B.M. Coll. C. Waterhouse.’ printed on the other side; (3) a rectangular, handwritten label with ‘ tyrrhenus Lectotype M. de V. Graham’; (4) a rectangular, handwritten label with ‘ ♂ + ’; (5) a rectangular label with ‘ Pnigalio ’ [apparently in handwriting of Zdenek Bouček (N. Dale-Skey, pers. comm.)]; and (6) a square label with ‘B.M. TYPE HYM. 5.2516’. The specimen is mounted by its left side to the tip of the point ( Fig. 176 ) and the head is detached and glued on the point ( Fig. 177 ).

Discussion

We examined type material of E. Tyrrhenus because Noyes (2013) included the name in Necremnus , the species was described by Walker (1839) immediately following N. folia , and a male from Clermont, France, identified as E. Tyrrhenus in Walker (1846a) is probably a male of N. folia (see under Type material for the latter species). However, Boucˇek & Askew (1968) had suggested that E. Tyrrhenus was synonymous with Pnigalio pectinicornis L., crediting ‘Graham (in litt.)’ for this proposal. Although the original Latin description of E. Tyrrhenus follows that of E. folia and differs little from it other than in a few relative features, it does state ‘ pedes nigri ’ (legs black) and ‘ tarsi picei ’ (tarsi pitch), which fits the male labelled as the lectotype, but not males of N. folia . In order to stabilize the name, we formally designate the Graham-labelled male as the lectotype of Eulophus tyrrhenus Walker and transfer the species to Pnigalio Schrank as Pnigalio tyrrhenus (Walker) comb. nov. The generic transfer is based in part on the antennae having three rami ( Fig. 177 ) similar to males of Necremnus , but the propodeum having a complete median carina, plicae, and costulae ( Fig. 179 ), and the mesoscutum having numerous conspicuous, bristle-like setae ( Fig. 178 ). The proposed synonymy of P. tyrrhenus and P. pectinicornis by Bouček & Askew (1968) remains questionable based on the colour habitus drawing of a male of the latter species by Thuróczy (1999: fig. 2). This shows the tibiae and tarsi to be mostly pale and the propodeal costulae intersecting the median carina quite close to the anterior margin of the propodeum. The propodeal sculptural pattern of the lectotype ( Fig. 179 ) of P. tyrrhenus is more similar to that illustrated by Miller (1970: fig. 126), with the costulae intersecting the median carina closer to its midlength.

Figures

Figures 176–179. Pnigalio tyrrhenus, ♂ lectotype. 176, lateral habitus without head; 177, head and antennae; 178, dorsal mesosoma; 179, propodeum.