Protopolybia holoxantha ( Ducke, 1904 )

Dos Santos Junior, José N. A., Silveira, Orlando T. & Carpenter, James M., 2015, Phylogeny of Protopolybia Ducke, 1905 and taxonomic revision of the Protopolybia exigua species-group (Hymenoptera: Vespidae, Polistinae), with description of four new species, Zootaxa 3956 (2), pp. 151-182 : 164

Protopolybia holoxantha ( Ducke, 1904)

( Figs 53, 55, 57 , 74, 81 , 88 )

Polybia holoxantha Ducke 1904: 349 (lectotype: ♀ Brasil, Oyapock [Oiapoque], 27.v.1904 (Ducke) (BMNH), designated by Richards (1978); examined).

Protopolybia holoxantha: Ducke 1905b: 675 .

Protopolybia holoxantha: Ducke 1910: 477 .

Protopolybia holoxantha: Bequaert 1944a: 104 .

Protopolybia holoxantha: Richards 1978: 137 , 140.

Protopolybia holoxantha: Carpenter & Wenzel 1989: 179 , 180.

Diagnosis. Length of fore wing 4.8 mm; cuticle very shiny, vitreous, color essentially yellow ( Fig. 57 ); T1 with petiole narrow; mesoscutum and pronotum with fine punctures ( Fig. 53 ); metanotum triangular, very little produced backwards into propodeum, with apex strongly pointed ( Fig. 55 ).

Redescription. FEMALE. Length of fore wing 4.8 mm; clypeus narrow (HClp=1.09; MxWClp=1.11; TeW=0.79; MiWClp = 0.56 mm), ventral margin narrowly subtruncated; tentorial pit closer to antennal socket than to eye margin; interantennal area narrow, its width approximately equal to diameter of antennal socket; mandibles considerably elongated, with length 0.72 × distance between eyes at vertex; occipital carina distinct, extending for three forth of height of gena; pronotal carina obtuse, visible laterally as protuberance; pronotal fovea distinct; pronotal prominence almost collinear with fovea and pronotal carina; mesoscutum as long as wide; mesepisternal groove absent; scrobal groove abbreviated; scutellum with median line; metanotum triangular, relatively short, with median axis 0.7 × width of central disk; metanotal lobe shiny, short, and with apex sharply pointed ( Fig. 55 ); propodeum gently convex around narrow median groove; T1, longer than wide; T1 notably narrower than T2.

Frons reticulated with fine punctures; mesoscutum with fine punctures ( Fig. 53 ); scutellum and metanotum with fine and sparse punctures; mesopleuron distinctly punctate; metasomal segments impunctate; cuticle shiny, vitreous ( Fig. 57 ); metanotal lobe shiny; eyes glabrous; body with short bristles; long bristles on ventral margin of clypeus, propodeum, metasomal petiole and last metasomal segment.

Yellow, with testaceous marks; antennae, mandibles, clypeus, frons, yellow; pronotum yellow with testaceous marks; mesoscutum yellow and commonly with three orange stripes; tegulae yellow to testaceous; mesopleuron and metapleuron yellow with testaceous marks; scutellum with small spot, mark on propodeum laterally, distal band on T1, basal and distal bands on T2, T3–T5 with distal band, yellow; legs yellow to testaceous; wings hyaline, venation orange.

MALE. Length of fore wing 4.4 mm; eyes enlarged, strongly produced inwards; clypeus very narrow; with elongated and golden bristles on ventral margin; ventral margin narrowly subtruncated and little produced; tentorial pit closer to eye margin than to antennal socket; gena distinctly narrow; color like female. Paramere as long as wide ( Fig.74 ); parameral spine without elongated bristles; basal angle widened; apical angle of paramere acute ( Fig. 74 ); anterior margin of digitus rounded, with short bristles ( Fig.81 ); cuspis with few short bristles; ventral process of aedeagus angular, poorly sclerotized with posterior margin serrated ( Fig. 88 ); pre-apical region of aedeagus not angular.

Material examined. GUYANA: 1 ♀, Kamakusa, ix.1922 (H. Lang) (UFRJ-MN); FRENCH GUIANA: 1 ♀, 16. 746 (UFRJ-MN); BRAZIL: Amapá, 1 ♀, S. do Navio, x.1957 (K. Lenko) ( UFPR); Amazonas, 2 ♀, Rio Purus, Beruri, 3°54’S 61°22’W, 17.x.1991 (G.A.R. Melo) ( UFPR); Pará, 3 ♀, Juruti, Barroso, 2°29`S 55°58`W, 28.x.2007 (Silva, S.S. e equipe) ( MPEG).

Distribution. Guyana, French Guiana, Brazil: AP, AM, *PA.

Remarks. Protopolybia holoxantha presents similar coloration to P. chanchamayensis Bequaert. However , the cuticle is very smooth and shiny.Distribution is restricted to the Amazon region, occurring in French Guiana, Guyana and Brazil with records in the states of Amapá and Amazonas ( Richards 1978), and now also in Pará.

Figures

FIGURES 53 – 58. 53, 55, 57. Protopolybia holoxantha; 54, 56, 58. P. rubrithorax. Prc, pronotal carina.

FIGURES 69 – 82. 69, 76. Protopolybia exigua; 70, 77. P. diligens; 71, 78. P. collombiana sp. nov.; 72, 79. P. clypeata sp. nov.; 73, 80. P. similis sp. nov.; 74, 81. P. holoxantha; 75, 82. P. scutellaris. 69 – 75. Parameres of male genitalia (Apa, apical angle). 76 – 82. Volsella of male genitalia in lateral view (digitus highlighted in gray). Scale 0.2 mm.

FIGURES 83 – 93. 83. Protopolybia exigua; 84. P. diligens; 85. P. collombiana sp. nov.; 86. P. clypeata sp. nov.; 87. P. similis sp. nov.; 88. P. holoxantha; 89 P. scutellaris; 90. P. bituberculata; 91. P. sedula; 92. P. bella; 93. P. nitida. Aedeagus in lateral and dorsal views. Scale 0, 2 mm. Par, preapical region.