Lyteba Thomson, 1859

Quadros, Alex Leite & Brandão, Carlos Roberto F., 2017, Genera of Belytinae (Hymenoptera: Diapriidae) recorded in the Atlantic Dense Ombrophilous Forest from Paraíba to Santa Catarina, Brazil, Papéis Avulsos de Zoologia (São Paulo) 57 (6), pp. 57-91 : 65-66

Lyteba Thomson, 1859 (= Oxylabis auct., nec Förster 1856)

( Figs. 3 , 5 C-D, 14A, 23B)

Total of specimens found: 38 (16 females and 22 males) in five morphospecies.

Diagnosis: Mostly relatively medium-sized (2-4 mm); occipital carina complete; hypostomal bridge narrow; posterior keel of toruli medially produced; antenna 15-segmented in females ( Fig. 3E ), 14-segmented in males. Mesosoma wider than high; presence of teeth, one on each scutellar bridge, near the posterolateral margin of the scutellar fovea ( Fig. 3C ); lateral fovea smooth with dense pubescence ( Fig. 3D ); metascutellum as a tubercle or spine in lateral view ( Fig. 14A ). Forewing densely pubescent; Radial cell of forewings open ( Fig. 5C ) and in some species the Rs3 continues as a weak trail that reaches the anterior margin of the wing ( Fig. 5D ); stigmal vein almost perpendicular to the marginal vein ( Figs. 5 C-D); marginal vein longer than parastigma ( Figs. 5 C-D). Petiole relatively short ( Fig. 3B ) and at least as long as wide; basal sculpture of macrotergite with long medial furrow and short lateral striation; ovipositor short.

Material examined: BRAZIL: Santa Catarina: São Bento do Sul, CEPA Rugendas , 26°19’25.6”S, 49°18’26.5”W, 13-16.x.2001 (4), 16-19.x.2001 (2), 15.x.2001, A.M. Penteado-Dias e eq. col .,

2 ♀♀ / 5 ♂♂; São Francisco do Sul , CEPA Vila da Glória, 26°13’40.0”S, 48°40’49.1”W, 14-17.x.2001, 17-20.x.2001, A.M. Penteado-Dias e eq. col ., 2 ♀♀; São Paulo : Base Barra Grande, Parque Estadual de Intervales, 24°18’14.4”S, 48°21’50.4”W, 10-13. xii.2000 (6), 11-14.xii.2000 (3), 14-17.xii.2000 (2), 12.xii.2000 (2), 13.xii.2000 (5), M. T. Tavares e eq. col ., 8 ♀♀ / 10 ♂♂; Salesópolis , Estação Biológica de Boracéia, 23°39’01.8”S, 45°52’55.5”W, 04.iv.2001, S. T. P. Amarante e eq. col ., 1 ♂; Rio de Janeiro : Nova Iguaçu, Reserva Biológica do Tinguá, 22°34’32”S, 43°26’09”W, 09-12.iii.2002, S. T. P. Amarante e eq. col ., 1 ♂; Santa Maria Madalena , Parque Estadual do Desengano, 21°59’03.9”S, 41°57’08.4”W, 16-19.iv.2002 (4), 19-22.iv.2002 (2), 18.iv.2002, A.M. Penteado-Dias e eq. col ., 2 ♀♀ / 5 ♂♂; Espírito Santo : Santa Teresa, Estação Biológica de Santa Lúcia, 19°58’16.7”S, 40°32’06.9”W, 06-09.iv.2001, C.O. Azevedo e eq. col ., 1 ♀; Alagoas : Quebrangulo, Reserva Biológica Pedra Talhada, 09°18’57.6”S, 36°27’57.6”W, 11-14.ix.2002, A.M. Penteado-Dias e eq. col ., 1 ♀. A.L. Quadros det.

Remarks: The name Lyteba was proposed by Thomson (1859) for Belyta bisulca Nees, 1834 . Marshall (1873) synonymized Lyteba under Oxylabis Förster, 1856 . Apparently, Förster (1856) published the original diagnosis of Oxylabis without having seen any of the Nees species, Oxylabis picipes (Nees ab Esenbeck, 1834) and Oxylabis jurini (Nees ab Esenbeck, 1834), which he originally included in his genus Oxylabis . The disputable presence of the metascutellum spine as stated in the Nees’ brief diagnosis of O. picipes was the main character upon which Förster (1856) based his Oxylabis , and it became the main diagnosis character of Oxylabis henceforth accepted by later authors. Consequently, some of the authors assigned to Oxylabis other species possessing this character state, including some species of Pantoclis Förster, 1856 with closed radial cell. However, comparative analysis on the frequency of this character within other Belytinae evinced the presence of the metascutellum spine in other unrelated species, thus proving its homoplastic status in Belytinae ( Macek, 1995) . Furthermore, there is a high rate of variation in the development of the metascutellum spine in Lyteba bisulca (Nees ab Esenbeck, 1834), in which this structure is either reduced to a mere tubercle or missing at all ( Macek, 1995). Kieffer (1916) recognized 25 species of Oxylabis (18 Palearctic; 6 Nearctic; 1 Neotropical). Nixon (1957) keyed out four European species. Johnson (1992) listed 37 Lyteba species names in total, including Oxylabis neotropica Kieffer, 1909 , the only species officially recorded in the Neotropics (Mapiri, Bolivia). Macek (1995) revised and keyed out the West Palearctic species and recognized only four Lyteba species: L. bisulca (Nees ab Esenbeck, 1834), L. canaliculata (Kieffer, 1907) , L. carinifrons ( Kieffer, 1909) and L. pectinifer Macek, 1995 ; many nominal species in Johnson’s catalogue were synonymized by Macek (1995) with L. bisulca and one of them with L. canaliculata .

Distribution: Holarctic, Oriental and the Neotropics ( Macek, 1995). In our study, the genus was recorded in Alagoas state and from Santa Catarina to Espírito Santo ( Fig. 23B ).

Biology: Nothing is known about Lyteba hosts. Adults may be encountered from spring to autumn with at least one species ( L. bisulca Nees ab Esenbeck, 1834) probably overwintering in the adult stage ( Macek, 1995).

Figures

FIGURE 3: Lyteba sp. (Hymenoptera, Diapriidae, Belytinae) from Parque Estadual de Intervales, SP (Biota project 2000-2002): (A) head of male, frontal view; (B) habitus of male, lateral view; (C) part of mesosoma, dorsolateral view (arrow indicates the tooth in the scutellar bridge); (D) mesosoma of male, dorsal view; (E) female antenna.

FIGURE 5: Forewing of four different Belytinae spp. (Hymenoptera, Diapriidae) from Biota project (2000-2002): (A) male forewing of Aclista collected in CEPA Rugendas, SC; (B) male forewing of Camptopsilus collected in CEPA Rugendas, SC; (C) male forewing of Lyteba collected in Parque Estadual de Intervales, SP; (D) male forewing of Lyteba collected in Parque Estadual de Intervales, SP.

FIGURE 14: Scutellar disc, metascutellum and propodeum in lateral view of four Belytinae spp. (Hymenoptera, Diapriidae) from Biota project (2000-2002): (A) male of Lyteba collected in Parque Estadual de Intervales, SP; (B) female of Cinetus collected in Parque Estadual do Desengano, RJ; (C) female of Tropidopsilus collected in Parque Estadual do Desengano, RJ; (D) female of Tropidopsilus collected in CEPA Vila da Glória (arrow indicates the crenulation in the posterior margin of scutellar disc).

FIGURE 23: Distribution of Belytinae genera (Hymenoptera, Diapriidae) in the Atlantic Forest collected by the Biota project (2000-2002), at a scale of 1:1000: (A) Camptopsilus; (B) Lyteba; (C) Belyta.