Gelis albipalpus (Thomson, 1884)

Verheyde, Fons, Hoekstra, Paul, Libert, Pierre-Nicolas, Meijer, Hilco, Ketelaere, Augustijn De, Vandaudenard, Thibaud, Belgers, Dick & Brosens, Edwin, 1880, Two hundred and five ichneumonid wasps reported for the first time in Belgium and the Netherlands (Hymenoptera: Ichneumonidae), Belgian Journal of Entomology 122, pp. 1-142 : 92-93

Gelis albipalpus (Thomson, 1884)

Gelis spp. are among the most challenging groups within Phygadeuontinae and possibly Ichneumonidae . They can be recognised by their antlike habitus and the outer face of the mandible with a strong subbasal swelling, with a transverse groove at the base ( TOWNES, 1970a). Luckily, in the past decades species have been described more clearly by Klaus Horstmann and Martin Schwarz. Many of the species reported here were confirmed at least once, to make sure no mistakes were made in keying. Probably, many of them have been overlooked in the past.

Gelis albipalpis is a species with macropterous females. As the name suggests, it can be recognised by its white and distinct palpi. Its mesoscutum is matt and the hind tibiae are basally white in most cases ( SCHWARZ, 2016). Its metasoma is completely black and its ovipositor sheaths are only slightly longer than the first abdominal segment ( HORSTMANN, 1993). It was reared by Rayan Majoor after collecting several Bucculatrix spp. ( Lepidoptera : Bucculatricidae ) autumn 2017. First report for the Netherlands; unreported in Belgium.

MATERIAL EXAMINED:

THE NETHERLANDS: • 1 ♀; Lunteren , Uilenbos (GE); 52°05’59”N 5°38’33”E; 1/i/2018; R. Majoor leg.; coll. MS; reared ex Bucculatrix (ulmella?) (Zeller, 1848); M. Schwarz det. (ObsID: 154126948) .