Aleiodes miniatus ( Herrich-Schaeffer , 1838)

van Achterberg, Cornelis, Shaw, Mark R. & Quicke, Donald L. J., 2020, Revision of the western Palaearctic species of Aleiodes Wesmael (Hymenoptera, Braconidae, Rogadinae). Part 2: Revision of the A. apicalis group, ZooKeys 919, pp. 1-259 : 1

Aleiodes miniatus ( Herrich-Schaeffer, 1838) Figs 467-468 , 469-481

Rogas miniatus Herrich-Schäffer, 1838: 156; Shenefelt 1975: 1238-1239 (type series lost).

Rogas (Rogas) miniatus ; Tobias 1976: 81, 1986: 75-76 (transl.: 122).

Aleiodes (Neorhogas) miniatus ; Papp 1987b: 36, 1991a: 88.

Aleiodes (Chelonorhogas) miniatus ; Belokobylskij et al. 2003: 398.

Aleiodes miniatus ; Bergamasco et al. 1995: 5; Papp 2005: 177.

Rogas bicoloratus Boheman, 1853: 180; Shenefelt 1975: 1239 (as synonym of A. miniatus ); Papp 2005: 177 (id.).

Aleiodes formosus Giraud, 1857: 177; Shenefelt 1975: 1239; (as synonym of A. miniatus ); Papp 1985a: 159 (lectotype designation and as synonym of A. miniatus ), 2005: 177 [examined].

Type material.

Lectotype of A. formosus , ♀ (MNHN), "[Austria, Wien,] Prata 16 juin", "Austria, Vienne, Prater, 16 juin/Papp 1979", "Lectotypus Aleiodes formosus Gir., 1857, ♀, Papp, 1979", " Rogas miniatus HS ♀, det. Papp J., 1979".

Additional material.

Austria, Czech Republic, France, Finland, Germany, Hungary, Romania, Russia, Sweden, Ukraine, [Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan]. Specimens in ZJUH, BZL, SDEI, MNHN, MTMA, NMS, OUM, RMNH, ZSSM. The OUM specimen is labelled "Litchfield L.A. Carr 23" but there are very evidently numerous non-British specimens in the (now somewhat dispersed) Carr collection labelled Litchfield, and good reasons for discounting them as British are given by Perkins (1953). Such labelling may have been a means of identifying ownership of specimens at a time of considerable exchange and identification by others, and there is no evidence that this species has ever been collected in the British Isles. Material examined from central Europe (often labelled “Germany” or “Bohemia”) is mostly much more than 100 years old, when it seems to have been quite readily collected. Three recent specimens (NMS) from different sites in Sweden ( Öland: Halltorp, 2015, 2017 and Skåne: Ravlunda, 2018, all N. Johansson) were swept from herb-rich sandy or gravelly grasslands overlying calcareous bedrock, with outstanding biodiversity partly maintained by grazing (Niklas Johansson, pers. comm.). The evident decline of A. miniatus in central Europe, as evidenced by specimen data showing a declining number of specimens collected in that region through time, probably reflects the loss of similar steppe habitat and, although a fairly recent (1994) specimen from Romania is in MTMA, it may now be extinct in large parts of central Europe.

Molecular data.

MRS950 (Sweden), MRS951 (Sweden).

Biology.

Unknown, but it seems to inhabit herb-rich calcareous steppe grasslands. Collected in (May)June-August; presumably univoltine, but we have not examined reared material of this large and distinctive species and there is no indication of how it may overwinter. A series in BZL (one now in NMS) is labelled "Wien D. Au" which can be interpreted as [? wet] woodland near the Danube (M. Schwarz, pers. comm.), which would probably be well under 200 m a.s.l. In contrast, a recent specimen (also in BZL) from Kyrgyzstan was collected higher at 2550 m.

Diagnosis.

Maximum width of hypoclypeal depression approx. 0.5 × minimum width of face (Fig. 469 ); OOL of ♀ approx. twice as long as diameter of posterior ocellus and punctate (Fig. 477 ); ventral margin of clypeus thin and distinctly protruding in lateral view; length of malar space approx. equal to height of eye in lateral view (Fig. 478 ); mesoscutal lobes densely punctate; area of precoxal sulcus wide and coarsely rugose; length of vein 1-CU1 of fore wing 0.4 × vein 2-CU1; 2nd submarginal cell of fore wing short and square (Fig. 469 ); vein 1r-m of hind wing longer than vein 1-M; vein 2-SC+R of hind wing subquadrate; 3rd tergite densely punctate (Fig. 473 ); head and mesoscutum orange or brownish yellow; basal half of hind tibia (largely) pale yellowish; metasoma (except part of 1st tergite) orange or brownish yellow.

Description.

Redescribed ♀ (RMNH) from Russia (Yaaseni). Length of fore wing 6.5 mm, of body 7.9 mm.

Head. Antennal segments of ♀ 65, length of antenna 1.1 × fore wing, its subapical segments somewhat longer than wide; frons with coarse curved rugae; OOL 2.3 × diameter of posterior ocellus, and punctate; vertex densely punctate and shiny; clypeus densely punctate; ventral margin of clypeus thin and distinctly protruding forwards (Fig. 478 ); width of hypoclypeal depression 0.5 × minimum width of face (Fig. 476 ); length of eye as long as temple in dorsal view (Fig. 477 ); vertex behind stemmaticum densely punctate; clypeus just below lower level of eyes; malar space 0.5 × length of eye in lateral view.

Mesosoma. Mesoscutal lobes densely punctate, with minute interspaces and rather shiny; precoxal area of mesopleuron wide and coarsely rugose medially, mesopleuron above it coarsely and densely punctate, even speculum with some punctures; scutellum convex and punctate; propodeum evenly convex and coarsely reticulate-rugose, medio-longitudinal carina incomplete.

Wings. Fore wing: r 0.7 × 3-SR (Fig. 469 ); 1-CU1 horizontal, 0.4 × 2-CU1; r-m 1.2 × 3-SR; 2nd submarginal cell short (Fig. 469 ); cu-a inclivous, straight and rather short; 1-M rather curved posteriorly; 1-SR slender and short; surroundings of M+CU1, 1-M and 1-CU1 largely setose. Hind wing: marginal cell evenly widened, its apical width 2.7 × width at level of hamuli (Fig. 470 ); 2-SC+R subquadrate; m-cu absent; M+CU:1-M = 35:16; 1r-m 1.5 × 1-M.

Legs. Tarsal claws with only three conspicuous brownish and widened bristles basally (Fig. 481 ); hind coxa densely and rather finely punctate; hind trochantellus medium-sized; length of hind femur and basitarsus 4.0 and 4.2 × their width, respectively; length of inner hind spur 0.5 × hind basitarsus.

Metasoma. First tergite evenly convex, 0.9 × as long as wide apically; 1st tergite coarsely reticulate-rugose, 2nd tergite coarsely and densely rugose-punctate, without median carina; medio-basal area of 2nd tergite short triangular (Fig. 473 ); 2nd suture deep and finely crenulate; basal half of 3rd tergite densely punctate, remainder of metasoma superficially micro-sculptured; apical half of 3rd tergite with sharp lateral crease; ovipositor sheath moderately wide, with long setae and apically rounded (Fig. 468 ).

Colour. Brownish yellow; antenna, mesosternum, mesopleuron (except antero-dorsally), metapleuron, propodeum, 1st tergite, and ovipositor sheath black; propleuron, small patch on middle mesoscutal lobe anteriorly, apices of femora, fore and middle tibiae, tarsi, apical half of hind tibia, veins, and pterostigma dark brown; wing membrane subhyaline; basal half of hind tibia pale yellowish.

Variation. Second submarginal cell square or somewhat narrower; propleuron dark brown or yellowish; mesopleuron black or yellowish anteriorly and dorsally; medio-longitudinal carina of posterior half of propodeum absent, obsolescent or incomplete. Antennal segments: ♀ 64(5), 65(3), 66(2), 67(3), 68(2), 70(1); ♂ 61(1), 64(2), 66(1), 67(2), 68(1), 69(1), 70(1). On this limited evidence there seems to be little, if any, difference in the number of antennal segments between the sexes. Males are very similar but have the metasoma infuscated apically and the apical tergites are type 3, setae short and dense, glabrous stripe rather narrow and fringe not observed.

Distribution.

Austria, Czech Republic, Finland, *France, Germany, Hungary, Kazakhstan, *Kyrgyzstan, *Romania, Russia, Sweden, *Ukraine.

Figures

Figures 467, 468. Aleiodes miniatus (Herrich-Schaeffer )), ♀, Russia, Stavropolskij kraj 467 habitus lateral 468 ovipositor sheath lateral.

Figures 469 - 481. Aleiodes miniatus (Herrich-Schaeffer )), ♀, Russia, Stavropolskij kraj 469 fore wing 470 hind wing 471 mesosoma lateral 472 mesosoma dorsal 473 metasoma dorsal 474 fore femur lateral 475 hind femur lateral 476 head anterior 477 head dorsal 478 head lateral 479 base of antenna 480 apex of antenna 481 inner hind tarsal claw.