Sceliphrum W. Schulz, 1906: 192

Pham, Phong Huy, Online, Published & Version, Final, 2016, Taxonomic notes on the genus Sceliphron Klug (Hymenoptera: Sphecidae) from northern Vietnam, with description of a new species, Turkish Journal of Zoology 40 (5), pp. 686-690 : 687-689

Sceliphrum W. Schulz, 1906: 192 . Emendation of Sceliphron Klug, 1801 .

Prosceliphron van der Vecht, 1968: 192 . Type species: Sceliphron coromandelicum ( Lepeletier de Saint Fargeau, 1845) [= Pelopoeus coromandelicus Lepeletier de Saint Fargeau, 1845 ], by original designation. Junior homonym of Prosceliphron Frenguelli, 1946 .

Hensenia Pagliano and Scaramozzino, 1990: 5 . Substitute name for Prosceliphron van der Vecht, 1968 .

Key to species of the genus Sceliphron occurring in northern Vietnam

1. Terminal gaster sternite of female rather sharply keeled. Lower half of inner eye-margins almost parallel; mandible without tooth on inner side; thorax dull, finely sculptured; metapleuron punctate; thorax with extensive yellow markings; petiole entirely black; fourth tergite with complete yellow band .............................................................. ..................................... S. deforme deforme (F. Smith, 1856)

- Terminal gaster sternite of female slightly convex, without feebly keeled; lower half of inner eye-margins distinctly converging towards the clypeus; mandible with distinct tooth on inner side; thorax less dull, finely sculptured; metapleuron impunctate; petiole entirely yellow; whole gaster black .................................................... 2

2. Body length 18 mm; petiole in lateral view distinctly straight; subalar and hypoepimeral area with yellow mark; apical half of fore and mid femur, and whole fore and mid tibia yellow ...... S. madraspatanum kohli Sickmann, 1894

- Body length 23 mm; petiole in lateral view distinctly curved; thorax entirely black; basic half of hind tibia, petiole deeply yellow; apical half of fore and mid femur, and whole fore and mid tibia brown ..... S. clypeatum sp. nov.

1. S. deforme deforme (F. Smith, 1856)

Pelopoeus deformis Smith, 1856: 231 , ♀, “ China: North , no specific locality” (lectotype: ♀, BMNH) .

Sceliphron deforme taiwanum Tsuneki, 1971: 6 , ♀, ♂, “ Taiwan: Taitung Prefecture, Chulu ” (holotype: ♀, USNM) .

Materials examined: Hoa Binh: 1♀, Mai Chau Town, Mai Chai District, 3.vi.2012, Pham P.H., IEBR. Regd. 00125/P12.

Distribution: China: Hong Kong, Japan, India, Korea, Montenegro, Taiwan, Russia, Tajikistan, Philippines, Mongolia, Southeast Kazakhstan, Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, Vietnam: Hoa Binh.

Remarks: Hensen (1987) recorded this species for northern Vietnam in Hoa Binh Province. The specimen of the species was a male and was collected in August 1918. Thus, after nearly 100 years, this species is reconfirmed to occur in northern Vietnam and has only been recorded in Hoa Binh Province so far.

2. S. madraspatanum kohli Sickmann, 1894

Sceliphron kohli Sickmann, 1894: 218 , ♀, ♂, “ China: Hopei Province , Tientsin” (syntypes: ♀, NHMW) .

Material examined: Hanoi: 1♂, Nghia Do Precinct, Cau Giay District, 29.vi.2013, Pham P.H., IEBR. Regd. 00046/P13; Quang Ninh: 1♀, Phuong Dong Precinct, Uong Bi City, 26.vi.2013, Pham P.H., IEBR. Regd. 00159/ P13; Thai Binh: 1♂, Hung Nhan Town, Hung Ha District, 25.vi.2013, Pham P.H., IEBR. Regd. 00142/P13; 1♀ + 3♂, Hong Minh Commune, Hung Ha District, 20.vi.2013, Pham P.H., IEBR. Regd. 000054/P13, 00148/P13, 00163/ P13; 1♂, Dong Minh Commune, Tien Hai District, 21.vi.2013, Pham P.H., IEBR. Regd. 00174/P13.

Distribution: China, Japan, Laos, Vietnam: Hanoi, Dong Nai, Quang Ninh (new record), Thai Binh (new record).

Remarks: van der Vecht and van Breugel (1968) examined this species based on 5♀ and 7♂ collected in April–May and August 1917. Thus, this species is reconfirmed to occur in northern Vietnam after nearly 100 years, and 2 new distributional localities (Quang Ninh Province and Thai Binh Province) are added.

3. S. clypeatum sp. nov. ( Figures 1–6 )

Holotype: 1♀, Vietnam: Hong Minh, Hung Ha , Thai Binh, 24.vi.2013, P. H. Pham, IEBR. Regd. No. 00053/P13.

Paratype: 1♀, Vietnam: Hong Minh, Hung Ha , Thai Binh, 24.vi.2013, P. H. Pham, IEBR. Regd. No. 00054/P13 .

Description: Female: Body length 23 mm, fore wing length 17 mm, body black except for following: antennal scape and pedicel, flagellomeres I–V ferruginous; the following are brown: basic half of mandible, short zone just before apex of clypeus (as shown in Figure 1 ), apical half of fore and mid femur, fore and mid tibia, fore and mid tarsi, and hind tarsus II–IV; hind trochanter, hind femur (except narrow apical part), basic half of hind tibia, petiole deeply yellow (as shown in Figure 6 ); wings and their veins yellowish (as shown in Figure 4 ).

Head (as shown in Figure 1 ): Clypeus conspicuously convex, nearly pointed at apex, with distinctly vertically risen median carina, outer margin of each clypeal lobe moderately truncate, 1.52× as long as wide. Mandible pointed at apex, with median carina extending from base to midlength. Lower half of inner orbits converging towards clypeus. Antennal scape moderately swollen. Minimum interocular distance across the vertex = 0.87× minimum interocular distance across the clypeus. Fore ocellar diameter = 1.15× distance between fore ocellus and hind ocellus, distance between the compound eye and hind ocellus = 1.5× distance between hind ocelli. Clypeal surface sparsely, shallowly punctate, punctures denser and shallower than on frons. Upper part of vertex irregularly, dully transverse striate. Long black setae scattered on frons and vertex, denser than on clypeus and lower part of vertex.

Thorax (as shown in Figure 2–5 ): Pronotal collar raised nearly as high as anterior part of scutum, with distinct median notch, each side with obviously deep impression. Scutum with admedian line, about one-third of length of scutum; parapsidal line deep, about half of length of scutum. Mesopleuron with episternal sulcus wide, deep; scrobe distinct (as shown in Figure 3 ). Scutellum and metanotum as well as metanotum and propodeum separated by distinct, deep grooves. Posterior portion of lower metapleural area with distinct transverse striations. Propodeum side sharply and coarsely striated, propodeal dorsum irregularly, incompletely striated (as shown in

Figure 2 ). Hind coxa somewhat swollen, rounded on anterior side, straight on posterior side (as shown in Figure 5 ). Forewing with parastigma length 2.7× that of stigma, outer veinlet of submarginal cell III 1.36× as long as basal veinlet (as shown in Figure 4 ). Punctation dense on scutum, mesopleuron, scutellum, metanotum; propodeal dorsum (here sparser than on pronotal collar); lower metapleural area, hind coxa (punctures more than 1 diameter apart). Setae on thorax black, sparse on propodeal dorsum, these denser than at upper portion of propodeal side.

Gaster (as shown in Figure 6 ): Integument smooth, shiny, with silvery pubescence. Petiole strongly curved. Tergum I with margins nearly fused ventrally. Terminal sternum flat, not keeled. Segment VI with a few long setae near apex.

Male: unknown

Name derivation: The specific name is a Latin adjective referring to the clypeus of the species.

Recognition: The characters described above demonstrate that the new species belongs to the S. madraspatanum species group of the subgenus Sceliphron . The color pattern resembles that of S. intrudens (F. Smith, 1858) , S. quartinae (Gribodo, 1884) , and S. paraintrudens Jha and Farooqi 1995 . The morphological characters of S. clypeatum , however, are quite different from those of these 3 species. In S. intrudens : the face is covered with silvery pubescence; the clypeus has 2 large teeth at its apex, formed by a deep notch in its anterior margin; the scape is reddish-yellow anteriorly; the meso- and metathorax are transversely striated; the wing veins are ferruginous. In S. quartinae : The pronotal collar is relatively long, the anterior surface not falling steeply away from the dorsal surface, the latter without a median impression; the sides of pronotum are dull, very finely and closely ridged and rather densely punctate. In S. paraintrudens : The outer of each clypeal lobes is obliquely truncate, a notch on either

Figures

Figures 1–6: Sceliphron clypeatum sp. nov. (1) head in frontal view; (2) propodeum in dorsal view; (3) thorax in lateral view; (4) fore wing; (5) hind coxa; (6) gaster in lateral view.