Virgichneumon callicerus (Gravenhorst, 1820)

Gadallah, Neveen S., Edmardash, Yusuf A., Mansour, Amany N. & Imam, Ahmed I., 2023, Parasitoid wasps (Ichneumonoidea) collected from faba bean fields, Kharga Oasis, New Valley, Egypt, with new records and the description of a new species, Zootaxa 5389 (5), pp. 501-544 : 537

Virgichneumon callicerus (Gravenhorst, 1820)

Figs 22 (A–C), 23 (A–C)

Material examined: 1♂, Kharga Oasis (New Valley) [25°31’34.0”N 30°37’19.9”E], May, 2022, yellow pan trap in V. faba .

Diagnosis. Black in the following parts: head (except a small whitish attached to posterior margin of eye), pronotum (except two transverse whitish spots anteriorly), mesosoma (except whitish scutellum), base of metasomal petiole and T 4-7 (except whitish posterior margins of T 5–7); clypeus black, with two large reddish to orange markings laterally; metasomal T 1 (mostly), T 2, T 3 reddish brown; legs reddish except for the black coxae, trochanters and hind tibial apex, tarsi darker; antenna black, with F7–11 whitish dorsally; ovipositor clearly red, sheath black with whitish apex; wing with dark brown dark brown, with small whitish base, rest of veins brownish. Clypeus nearly flattened, with slightly upturned rounded apical margin, coarsely punctate at base; antenna with 33 antennomeres; mesosoma densely punctate and shiny (except scutellum smooth, impunctate). Fore wing with pentagonal areolet, distinctly narrowed above; vein cu-a nearly interstitial, or slightly postfurcal.

Distribution in the MENA: Egypt (new record), Iran, Turkey.

Comments: Virgichneumon callicerus is a new record to Egypt, as well as a new record in association with faba bean .

Figures

FIGURE 22. Virgichneumon callicerus (Gravenhorst, 1820) (♂): A, dorsal habitus; B, frontal view of head; C, dorsal view of head and mesosoma (part).