Acrotaphus mexicanus (Cameron, 1886)

Pádua, Diego G., Sääksjärvi, Ilari E., Monteiro, Ricardo F. & Oliveira, Marcio L., 2020, Review of the New World genus Acrotaphus Townes, 1960 (Hymenoptera: Ichneumonidae: Pimplinae), with descriptions of fifteen new species, Zootaxa 4719 (1), pp. 1-62 : 40-42

Acrotaphus mexicanus (Cameron, 1886)

( Figs 151–159 )

Epimecis mexicana Cameron, 1886: 271 . Holotype ♀, Mexico (BNHM) [examined].

Acrotaphus mexicanus (Cameron) , Townes & Townes, 1960: 256

Diagnosis. This species can be distinguished from all other species of Acrotaphus by the combination of the following characters: 1) margin of gena behind eyes flat (convex in some males), in dorsal view; 2) occipital carina forming a narrow “neck”; 3) posterior ocelli separated from eyes by 0.2–0.4× (0.5–0.7× in males) its diameter in dorsal view; 4) hind leg entirely black; 5) ovipositor slender, 1.6–1.8× as long as hind tibia.

Redescription. Female. Body [10.0] 10.0–13.0 mm. Head. Lower face [0.9] 0.7–0.9× as broad as high (from supraclypeal suture to base of antenna), flat, with scattered punctures which bear long conspicuous bristles; head in dorsal view with margin of gena flat behind eyes; margin of gena [0.5] 0.4–0.5× length of eye in dorsal view; posterior ocelli separated from eyes by [0.25] 0.2–0.4× its diameter in dorsal view; occipital carina forming a narrow “neck”. Mesosoma. Pronotum moderately long, smooth and polished, with distance from tegula to head greater than [0.45] 0.4–0.6× distance from tegula to hind margin of propodeum; mesoscutum smooth and polished, with notaulus weakly marked; scutellum in dorsal view triangular; mesopleuron polished, with fine bristles anteriorly and ventrally; epicnemial carina present ventrally, extending until reaching the level of the lower corner of the pronotum laterally; metapleuron polished, with sparse, fine bristles evenly spaced and with a strongly longitudinal groove in lower part below spiracle; propodeum smooth dorsally, laterally with scattered fine bristles. Fore wing [9.0] 8.0–11.0 mm; cu-a opposite to the base of Rs&M; 2 rs-m [0.6] 0.6–0.8× as long as abscissa of M between 2 rs-m and 2 m-cu; hind wing with abscissa of Cu 1 between M and cu-a [0.7] 0.7–1.1× length of cu-a. Tarsal claw with basal lobe quadrangular, with claw apex slightly overtaking the posterior margin of lobe. Metasoma. Tergite I [1.6] 1.6–1.9× as long as posteriorly broad; tergite II [1.3] 1.25–1.5× as long as posteriorly broad; tergite III [1.05] 1.0–1.4× as long as posteriorly broad; tergites IV–V [1.1] 1.0–1.4× as long as posteriorly broad; ovipositor slender, [1.7] 1.5–1.7× as long as hind tibia; lower valve with slightly swelling in the base and mid region.

Coloration. Head black, with anterior margin of the clypeus orange, mouthparts orange except base and apex of the mandible blackish antenna dark brown. Mesosoma orange, with pronotum black except its posterior margin blackish. Metasoma orange with tergites V+ black. Anterior and mid leg entirely orange, hind leg entirely black. Wings yellowish; fore wing with apex distal to 2 rs-m black, and with a black median band extending backwards from anterior margin, just proximal to the pterostigma, right through the 1 st subdiscal cell; pterostigma yellowish. Ovipositor orange and sheath dark brown.

Male. ( Fig 154–155 ). Similar to female except body 7.0–12.0 mm; lower face 0.85–1.0× as broad as high (from supraclypeal suture to base of antenna); head in dorsal view with margin of gena flat or slightly convex behind eyes; margin of gena 0.5–0.7× length of eye in dorsal view; posterior ocelli separated from eyes by 0.5–0.7× its diameter in dorsal view; fore wing 7.0–9.0 mm; tergite I 1.2–1.5× as long as posteriorly broad; tergite II 1.1–1.2× as long as posteriorly broad; tergite III 1.0–1.1× as long as posteriorly broad; sternite IX ( Fig 157 ) longer than high, with anterior margin strongly sclerotised, lateral margin flat and posterior margin concave centrally, with few bristles widely spaced posteriorly. Genital capsule ( Figs 158–159 ): Paramere truncated apically, slightly narrower than the parameral lamina, with bristles except on posterior margin; volsellar lamina with spaced bristles lateromedially and apically, except on inner margin and posterior part and with a set of five bristles in anterolateral region, just below the base of the digitus; cuspis robust with about seven teeth more or less aligned in the mid part until apex and with four to six few bristles in basal region and spaced laterally in apical region; digitus with teeth on apex, rounded distally and angular ventrally, with the margins of the apical region narrower than base; aedeagus with few teeth on apex and its apex slightly curved downward in lateral view.

Variation. The Mexican specimens have mesosoma blackish, the type-specimen has black pronotum, except its posterior margin orange and other specimen from Veracruz has only propleuron black. Brazilian specimens have the mesosoma entirely orange and metasoma black, except tergite I and anterior margin of the tergite II (two examples from Espírito Santo state) and tergites II–IV orange with posterior margin with slender black band (one example from Tocantins state).

Material examined: Holotype: ♀, MEXICO, Cornu vacca [sic] [= Cuernavaca], 1871 (Bilimek), #HYM 3b.2113 [sic], #010202132, BNHM. Brazil: AM [= Amazonas], Manaus, ZF 2, Km 14, road, 15–18.vi.2004, Light (J.A. Rafael, C.S. Motta, F. Godoi, S. Trovisco & A. Silva F° leg.), ♂ [with genitalia extracted], INPA ; Rondônia, Porto Velho, Parque Natural Municipal de Porto Velho, Borda, xii.2008, Malaise (S.S. Gadelha col.), ♀, INPA ; TO [=Tocantins], Palmas, Parque Estadual do Lajeado, Córrego da Onça , 03°56’30,9’’S / 54°52’30,4’’W, 02–08.vi.2016, Arm. [= Trap] Pensilvânia (G. Amora, A.P. Oliveira, J.S. Oliveira, R. Keppler col.), ♀, INPA ; ES [=Espírito Santo], Cariacica, Res. [= Reserva] Biol. [= Biológica] Duas Bocas, 24.vi.1997, Swepping (C.O. Azevedo col.), ♀, #61578, UFES. Ecuador: Dept. [= Department] Orellana, Onkonegare, 00°39’25,7’’S / 76°27’10.8’’W, a.s.l.: 216 m., Fogging, Lot #1061 ( T. L. Erwin leg.), ♀, ZMUT ; idem, but 01.x.1996, Lot #1692, ♂, ZMUT ; idem, but 01.x.1996, Lot #1684, ♂, ZMUT ; idem, but 21.vi.1996, Lot #1546, ♂, ZMUT ; idem, but 09.x.1994, Lot #918, ♂, ZMUT. Peru: Madre de Dios, Rio Tampobata , 12°50’S / 69°17’W, a.s.l.: 290 m., 10.ix.1984 Canopy fogging ( T. L. Erwin leg.), ♀, ZMUT. Mexico: Veracruz, Coyame , Lake Catemaco , 10–18.vii.1963, Black lts [=light] (D. R. Whitehead ), ♀, FSCA.

Distribution. Brazil *, Ecuador **, Mexico and Peru * ( Fig 160 ).

Biological notes. Host unknown.

Comments. Acrotaphus mexicanus closely resembles A. fasciatus , A. latifasciatus and A. pseudomexicanus sp. n. mainly by having colour pattern of metasoma orange with last tergites black. It differs from A. fasciatus by slender ovipositor,>1.6× as long as hind tibia (ovipositor robust, <1.4× as long as hind tibia, in A. fasciatus ), it differs from A. latifasciatus mainly by having epicnemial carina present ventrally, extending laterally until the level of the lower corner of the pronotum (epicnemial carina present only ventrally, not extending until reaching level of the lower corner of the pronotum laterally, in A. latifasciatus ), it differs from A. pseudomexicanus sp. n. mainly by having head in dorsal view with margin of gena flat behind eyes (gena concave in, A. pseudomexicanu s sp. n.).

Figures

FIGURES 151–160. Acrotaphus mexicanus (Cameron): 151, habitus, ♀ (holotype); 152, head, dorsal view, ♀ (holotype); 153, face, frontal view, ♀ (holotype); 154, habitus, ♂; 155, head, frontal view, ♂; 156, tarsal claw, ♀ (holotype); 157, sternite IX, ♂; 158, genital capsule, lateral view, ♂; 159, genital capsule, ventral view, ♂. Scale bars =0.2 mm. 160. Distribution of Acrotaphus mexicanus (Cameron) in the Neotropical region.