Synagris (Paragris) huberti de Saussure, 1855

Selis, Marco, 2023, Taxonomic revision of the subgenus Synagris (Paragris) de Saussure (Hymenoptera: Vespidae: Eumeninae), Journal of Natural History (J. Nat. Hist.) 57 (41 - 44), pp. 1949-1962 : 1951-1953

Synagris (Paragris) huberti de Saussure, 1855

( Figures 1–2 , 7a )

Synagris huberti de Saussure 1855: 156 , pl. VIII figs. 8, 8a, m# – ′l̍Afrique tropicale ou l̍Arabie̍ (MNHN)

Synagris humbertii (!); Ashmead 1902: 210. Incorrect subsequent spelling

Synagris clypeata Mocsáry 1903: 503 , f # – ′ Gabun ̍ (HNHM) syn. n.

Synagris 4-punctata Tullgren 1904: 450, pl. XXV figs. 12a–b, f# (in subgenus Paragris ) – locality not stated [ Cameroon] (NHRS)

Synagris huberti var. bimaculata Maidl 1914a: 98 , f# – ′Ukaika Mawambi̍ (lectotype NHMW) syn. n.

Synagris huberti var. nigricans Maidl 1914a: 98 , f#, m# – various localities in Uganda (syntypes NHMUK and NHMW) syn. n.

Diagnosis

Distinguished from other species of the subgenus by the following combination of characters: punctures on mesosoma deep and dense, scutellum and mesoscutum entirely punctate, inferior carinae of propodeum normally developed ( Figure 1e ), carinae on S2 absent, T2 without or with a single pair of pale spots; male clypeus deeply emarginate, bifid ( Figure 1b ), male mandible modified with flattened expansions ( Figure 1d ); female clypeus apically with a longitudinal ridge ( Figure 1c ).

Material examined

LECTOTYPE OF SYNAGRIS HUBERTI VAR. BIMACULATA : f#, labelled ′Ukaika-Mawambi/1911.Grauer // Type / S. huberti v./ bimaculata f#/det. Maidl // NHMW-HYM/#0006865 // Synagris huberti var. bimaculata /Maidl, 1914/ LECTOTYPE /Des. Marco Selis 2022 [red label]̍ ( NHMW). CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC: Ombella-Mpoko prov., 35 km S Bangui (Salanga), 350 m, 29 December 2008 - 1 January 2009, leg. A. Kudrna Jr., 1 f# ( MSVI); 40 km S Nola, 600 m, 3.383°N, 16.167°E, 13 December 2012, leg. J. Halada, 1 f# ( OLML); IVORY COAST: Abidjan, 5.326955°N, 7.343405°W, 9 February 1997, leg. R. Longair, 1 m # ( MSVI); TOGO: Kloto, Foret de Missahoe, September 2020, leg. G. Adeti, 1 m # 2 f# ( MSVI).

Distribution

Cameroon, Central African Republic *, Congo, Democratic Republic of Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Sierra Leone, Togo, Uganda ( Mocsáry 1903; Maidl 1914a, 1914b; Giordani Soika 1989; Gusenleitner 1999) ( Figure 8 ).

Notes

After Maidl̍s revision of the genus ( Maidl 1914a, 1914b), three subspecies were recognised in S. huberti other than the nominotypical one: bimaculata Maidl, clypeata Mocsáry and nigricans Maidl.

The subspecies clypeata and nigricans match the nominate subspecies in all morphological characters, including the peculiar morphology of male clypeus and mandible; therefore, they can be immediately recognised as mere colour variations and synonymised with the nominate subspecies.

A more complex situation is observed in bimaculata. At the time of his revision, Maidl (1914a, 1914b) considered Synagris rufopicta a synonym of S. huberti , giving no diagnostic value to the carinate S2 of the former, and described his ′var. bimaculata ̍ based on three female specimens, two from Uganda having carinate S2 and one from Congo without carinae on S2. It is evident that the three syntypes belong in part to S. rufopicta and in part to S. huberti ; therefore, it is necessary to select a lectotype. The syntype housed in NHMW was examined through photographs and chosen as lectotype of S. huberti var. bimaculata ( Figure 2 ). The specimen shows no signs of carinae on S2 ( Figure 2c ) and differs from typical S. huberti in colour pattern alone; therefore, S. huberti bimaculata can be considered a synonym of the nominate subspecies. The two specimens from Uganda are to be referred to S. rufopicta .

Synagris huberti and its colour variations form a wide mimicry ring with other species of Synagris and other genera, such as S. aestuans (Fabricius) , S. cornuta (Linnaeus) S. fulva trispinosa Tullgren , S. ornatissima , S. rufopicta , Anterhynchium aestuans (de Saussure) , A. bugandanum Giordani Soika , A. mephisto (Gribodo) , A. osborni Bequaert , A. sulphureomaculatum (von Schulthess) , and Pseudagris versicolor (von Schulthess) .

Genitalia are illustrated in Figure 7a .

Figures

Figure 1. Synagris huberti de Saussure. a, habitus in dorsal view. b, male head in frontal view. c, female head in frontal view. d, male mandible in lateral view. e, metanotum and propodeum in posterodorsal view.

Figure 2. Synagris huberti de Saussure, female lectotype of S. huberti var. bimaculata Maidl. a, habitus in dorsal view. b, habitus in lateral view. c, S2 in ventral view. d, labels. Credits: Harald Schillhammer and Manuela Vizek, NHMW, 2023.

Figure 7. Male genitalia: aedeagus in ventral and lateral view, digitus+volsella. a, Synagris huberti de Saussure. b, Synagris rufopicta Tullgren.

Figure 8. Distributional map of Synagris (Paragris) species. Produced using the online tool SimpleMappr (Shorthouse 2010).