Mischocyttarus pseudomimeticus ( Schulz, 1904 )

Silveira, Orlando Tobias, 2006, Revision of the subgenus Kappa de Saussure of Mischocyttarus de Saussure (Hym.; Vespidae, Polistinae, Mischocyttarini), Zootaxa 1321 (1), pp. 1-108 : 39-40

Mischocyttarus pseudomimeticus ( Schulz, 1904)

( Figs. 34 )

Polybia pseudomimetica Schulz, 1904: 803 .

Megacanthopus pseudomimeticus: Ducke, 1907b: 190 .

Mischocyttarus pseudomimeticus: Ducke, 1918: 351 (in part); Richards, 1945: 348; 1978: 300; Sarmiento, 1994: 360.

HOLOTYPE: ♀ Brazil, Amazonas, Tefé (Ega) (no date) (W. Bates) ( ZSMC), examined.

FEMALE. Length of fore wing 12–14 mm; head not as transverse as seen from above as in other species, MWH/DLH less than 2.3, in frontal view unusually high, FHH/ intOW 0.98; clypeus moderately convex, not exceedingly wide, H/WClp 0.91, median angle well projecting ventrally, apex narrowly rounded, lateral indentations moderately produced; malar space a little more than 1/3 of an antennal socket’s height; tentorial pit as close to antennal socket as to eye; mandible anterior surface without a prominent border; antennal scape short and wide, L/Wesc 2.34, flagellum with a more slender appearance, no antennomere looking exceedingly transversal; occeli no so widely separated, POL a little less than two diameters, POL/OOL never greater than 2/3; occiput with margin distinct, laterally reaching halfway of head’s height; gena as wide as the upper lobe of the eye in lateral view; foraminal area shaped ventrally as a shelf; hypostomal lamella narrow; mesosoma unusually elongated, not as robust as in most other species; pronotum elongated, with lateral fovea, central part of the anterior margin of pronotum with the lamella narrow, well raised but not reflexed, region just behind the lamella not produced into secondary margin; humeral angle not prominent, not forming a salient lobe, pronotal carina high at sides, abruptly extinct at the center, seen as seen from above with a sinuous profile, total width of carina a little larger than that of mesoscutum, sides of pronotum only moderately converging; mesoscutum distinctly longer than wide, L/WMsc 1.12; fore wing very long, LDis/HMpl 2.34, pterostigma about 3 times longer than wide; inner claw of hind tarsus with the apex distinctly rounded; propodeum very tumescent and prolonged backwards, with the median furrow deep, roughly triangular, narrowing behind, anterior part of propodeum adjacent to metanotum protuberant, nearly horizontal, propodeal valve very wide, triangular; first segment of metasoma short, LSI/HMpl only 1.08, apical part well expanded, seen as seen from above with sides diverging from the spiracles ( Fig. 34 ), but sometimes diverging promptly from the base, apex 2.67 times wider than the base, spiracles not noticeably prominent, basal sternum flattened, its limit with the tergum proximally marked by a prominent shining edge.

Sculpture: disk of clypeus mostly with moderately dense small shallow punctures, larger ones more sparse, interstices shining, area close to the ventral margin reticulate with a few large punctures; upper interantennal area and frons with dense medium to large punctures, interstices unusually shining; mesopleuron with moderately dense small punctures, and larger ones more sparse but fairly numerous, the two size classes well distinct.

Vestiture: eyes without distinct hairs.

Color: black; antennal flagellum below brown to yellowish brown at the apex; teeth of mandible, red brown; lower part of inner orbit, posterior margin of pronotum, two longitudinal stripes on mesoscutum fused or not posteriorly, inner part of tegula, spot on mesepisternal plate (some times reduced), scutellum, upper part of axilla, metanotum, two large elongated spots on propodeum, valves, one streak on mid coxa, one or two streaks on hind coxa, inner distal margin of trochanters, apex of femora, apex of tibiae, posterior margin of terga 1–5, posterior margin of sterna 2–4, dorsum of the fifth segment of fore tarsus, yellow; hind tibial spurs, brown; wings hyaline, veins brown.

MALE: unknown

NEST. Ducke (1907 b) mentions one small nest with a central peduncle. Richards (unpublished manuscript) describes another one from Porvenir, Bolivia (11/vii/1979; M. Cooper), presenting a circular comb with diameter of 2.8 cm, and a short central peduncle. The nest was attached to the central nervure of a Heliconia leaf 40 cm from the ground in primary forest .

Remarks

Mischocyttarus pseudomimeticus is an easily identifiable species, only superficially similar in size and color to M. zikaninus Richards. However , earlier authors have confounded the two species. The holotype was not previously examined by Richards (1978), but corresponds very well to his concept of the species.

Distribution SOUTH AMERICA: Colombia, Brazil (AM), Peru, Bolivia.

Examined material

BOLIVIA: Pando, 1♀ Porvenir , 30km S Cobija, 250m, 11/vii/1979 (M. Cooper) ( BMNH) ; BRAZIL: Amazonas, 1♀ Beruri, Rio Purus , 15/x/1991 (G.A. R. Melo) ( UFPR) , 1♀ Tefé , 14/vi/1906 (A. Ducke) ( MPEG) ; COLOMBIA: Meta, 1♀ La Macarena , 20–29/ xi/1976 (M. Cooper) ( BMNH) ; PERU: Loreto, 1♀ Iquitos , 27/vii/1906 (A. Ducke) ( MPE G) , 1♀ Amazon R. 40km NE Iquitos , 31/x/1990 (Quintero & Cambra) ( GBFM) .

Figures

FIGURES 26–42. M. tolensis: 26, mesosoma part dorsal, 28, female mandible, 29, male antenna, 30, T1; M. magdalenensis sp. n.: 27, mesosoma part dorsal, 31, T1; M. zikaninus: 32, male antenna, 33, T1; M. pseudomimeticus: 34, T1; M. mocsaryi: 35, mesosoma part dorsal, 36, male head, 37, male antenna; M. fitzgeraldi: 38, T1; M. villarricanus: 39, T1, 42, male antenna; M. funerulus: 40, T1, 41, male antenna.