Megarhyssa babaulti Seyrig, 1937

Rousse, Pascal & Noort, Simon Van, 2014, A review of the Afrotropical Rhyssinae (Hymenoptera: Ichneumonidae) with the descriptions of five new species, European Journal of Taxonomy 91, pp. 1-42 : 37-39

Megarhyssa babaulti Seyrig, 1937

Fig. 12

Megarhyssa babaulti kapangaensis Seyrig, 1937: 116 .

Megarhyssa babaulti kapangaensis var. rubra Benoit, 1951: 385 .

Megarhyssa babaulti kapangaensis var. rubrerrima Benoit, 1951: 385 .

Diagnosis

Head orange with a black part of variable extent; mesosoma orange, posterior third sometimes dark brown; metasoma mostly black with pale yellow or orange markings of variable extent; flagellum twocolored, basally black and apically orange; wings blackish with lighter patch of variable extent; face moderately punctate to smooth, flat; clypeus smooth, with median subapical tubercle weak, ventral margin strongly produced laterally; frons smooth with a pair of submedian carinae diverging toward lateral ocelli; epicnemial carina laterally absent; subtegular ridge convex; fore wing with areolet strongly petiolate, receiving 2m–cu at its distal apex, opposite 3rs–m; tergite 1 very stout; tergites 1–4 smooth or mostly so, following tergites finely and densely punctate; apical margins of tergites 3–5 strongly concave. CT 3.4; ML 0.6; POL 1.2; OOL 1.7; Fl 1 4.4; Fl 15 2.3; Fl 39 1.0; T1 1.1; OT 4.8.

Material examined

Holotype

DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO: ♀, reg. Lac Kivu, Kadjudju [Kajuju, 02°09’S 28°54’E], 1932, G. Babault, MNHN EY8831.

Description

Female (holotype)

B 22.1; A 15.5; F 18.

COLOR. Head orange with isolated black parts to almost entirely black; antenna basally black, fading to orange from flagellomere 12; mesosoma orange, posterior third varying from orange to entirely black; legs orange with mid and fore legs variably orange to dark brown; metasoma black with tergites 1–3 varying from orange to black, tergite 4 and following largely pale yellow laterally, sternites pale yellow; ovipositor sheath black, apical half fading to reddish-orange; wings blackish with lighter yellowish parts of variable extension (color variation: Seyrig 1937; Benoit 1951).

HEAD. Face flat, laterally smooth, medially moderately punctate; clypeus smooth, with a weak median subapical tubercle, ventral margin strongly produced laterally; upper head almost smooth; frons with a pair of weak submedian carinae, carinae diverging below median ocellus, inner margins of toruli hardly produced backwards; occipital carina complete, mid-dorsally weak; antenna with 40 flagellomeres.

MESOSOMA. Mesosoma finely and moderately densely punctate, but mesonotum deeply transversely striate and anterior half of pronotum smooth; epomia indistinct; epicnemial carina absent except for a faint ventral remnant; apex of subtegular ridge convex, not flanged laterally; submetapleural carina barely expanded anteriorly and evenly narrowed toward apex.

WINGS. Fore wing with areolet strongly petiolate, receiving 2m–cu at its apex, cu–a strongly apical to Rs&M, Rs strongly bowed forwards; hind wing with distal abscissa of Cu joining Cu&cu–a shortly above middle of Cu&cu–a.

METASOMA. Tergite 1 stout, nearly as long as apically wide; tergites 1–3 quite smooth, tergite 4 smooth with some fine punctures basally, following tergites finely and densely punctate; apical margins of tergites 3–5 strongly concave.

Male

Unknown.

Distribution

Democratic Republic of Congo.

Figures

Fig. 12. Megarhyssa babaulti Seyrig, 1937, holotype, ♀. A. Habitus, lateral view (inset: data labels). B. Mesosoma, lateral view. C. Metasoma, dorsal view. D. Head, anterior view. E. Mandibles, anterior view.