Ammoplanellus (Ammoplanus) kaplanae, Boucïek, 2001

Boucïek, Zdenek, 2001, Palaearctic species of Ammoplanus (Hymenoptera: Sphecidae), Journal of Natural History 35, pp. 849-929 : 888-889

A. (Ammoplanus) kaplanae sp. n.

Description

Female. Body length 2.3 mm. Black: mandibles, scape and underside of ¯agellum and bases of tibiae rusty brown, but tarsi white, dark at tips. Pterostigma bicolorous, dark in distal half, together with veins along costal cell and those enclosing marginal cell. Head slightly longer than broad (®gure 26), almost quadrangular, its sides at eyes almost straight. Face in middle with deep elongate fovea or groove which partly interrupts an arched convexity situated just below upper ocular line; parts above and below swelling with very ®ne longitudinal microstrigosity (this found also in nasutus ), ®ner above than below where it partly turns to lengthened engraved reticulation; most convex part partly smooth, with very few punctures. Eye parallel-sided, 2.4 times as long as broad, produced below into rounded lobe towards labrum. Toruli placed almost one diameter above lower ocular line, rather large, equidistant from each other and from eyes, below touching emargination of middle third of clypeus; smooth and slightly convex area between them below continuing to ¯at broad subquadrangular tooth (®gure 26). Outside each torulus distinct round tentorial pit, surface below pit smooth. Genae short but distinct. Mandibles rather parallel-sided, without additional tooth on upper edge. Labrum not long, with sharp teeth. Palpi short. Underside of head with oral fossa subtriangular, about as long as broad, its carinate sides curving at distinctly less than right angle; broad ¯at and shiny part behind fossa becoming gradually slightly concave caudad and then in two-thirds distance towards foraminal cavity delimited by straight transverse ridge distinct in median third. Proximal three segments of ¯agellum strongly transverse, two or three penultimate segments oblong.

Mesosoma . Pronotal collar converging forward, dorsally rounded, ®nely sculptured. Mesoscutum and scutellum distinctly though shallowly concentrically reticulate, hence only moderately shiny in places, punctures hardly traceable, sparse. Parapsidal grooves short but distinct. Scutellum with groove simple and close to anterior margin. Metanotum with ®ne striae arranged longitudinally on sides. Mesepimeron very convex and for most part shiny. Propodeum in middle slightly shorter than broad between rounded and shiny hind corners; median carina distinct despite the generally ®ne sculpture which includes ®ne raised transverse rugulae. Pygidial area broad, posteriorly broadly rounded, surface bearing coarse irregular punctures.

Male. Not known.

Comment. A. kaplanae is close to nasutus and serratus , both known so far only from Mongolia. All three species have concavities on the underside of the head. A. nasutus has also a somewhat similar sculpture on the face but the mandibles have the upper edge in the female provided with a broad-angular tooth, which is absent in kaplanae . A. serratus has the mandibles very similar to kaplanae , yet the face is without minute strigosity, its upper part is rather densely punctured, the lower part engraved reticulate, the underside of head is not so strongly separated from foramen magnum and the concavities have decumbent pilosity.

Material examined. Israel: ’ Enot Zukim, 1 female holotype, 10 April 1994 (A. Freidberg and F. Kaplan; TAUI, Tel Aviv) .

Distribution. Israel.

Etymology. Named in honour of Mrs Fini Kaplan.