Zethus (Zethus) Fabricius, 1804

Lopes, Rogerio Botion, Carpenter, James M. & Noll, Fernando Barabosa, 2021, Cladistic analysis of Zethus Fabricius, 1804 (Hymenoptera, Vespidae): a new subgeneric classification, Journal of Hymenoptera Research 82, pp. 253-283 : 253

Zethus (Zethus) Fabricius, 1804

Fig. 11

Zethus Fabricius, 1804: 282 (genus). Giordani Soika 1958: 75 (revision of Oriental species). Bohart and Stange 1965 (revision new world species). Giordani Soika 1979: 20 (revision African species). Carpenter, 1986

Zethus coeruleopennis Type species: Zethus coeruleopennis (Fabricius, 1798) (= Vespa coerulepennis Fabricius, 1798).

Lethus Say, 1837: 387 (misspelling).

Heros de Saussure, 1856: 115 (division of Zethus ).

Euzethus Dalla Torre, 1904: 14 (name for division I of Zethus in de Saussure 1852).

Vespa coeruleopennis Type species: Vespa coeruleopennis (Fabricius, 1798)

Zethus (Zethus) Bohart & Stange, 1965: 20 (dendrogram), 25 (key to subgenera, subgenus of Zethus ), 197-201 (figs). Lopes and Noll 2018 (paraphyletic).

Description.

Male antennae hook-like. Interantennal longitudinal and transversal carinas absent. Clypeus of females short, without microstriae and with or without apical teeth. Male mandible with two to four teeth. Galea short. Labial palpi usually 4-segmented with first palpomere curved. Occipital carina ventrally present or absent (Fig. 11B ). Vertex generally raised behind ocelli. Genal margin evenly convex. Pronotal carina lamellar or short with lateral portion straight or sinuous. Pre-tegular carina absent. Welts absent. Notaulices present, incomplete (Fig. 11C ) or complete in more derived groups. Tegula evenly convex or posteriorly angled, with outer margin beveled or raised on posterior half. Dorsal carina usually complete, sometimes dorsally incomplete. Mesepimeron without carina. Usually two tibial spurs, rarely one. Metanotum anteriorly margined, usually without lateral carina. Spines of hind tibia scattered. Marginal cell apically obtuse. Dorsal aperture of propodeum mostly present. Propodeum with submedian carina absent (present only in Z. wileyi ), lateral and sublateral carinas present. Apical lamella of propodeum absent (present only in Z. prominens ). T1 variable. S1 with anterior margin elliptical or quadrate. Lamellae of T3 and S3 usually developed. S5 and 6 of males without carinas.

Observations.

The inclusion of Z. wileyi in this clade was unexpected. As observed by Lopes et al. (2017), this taxon ran in Bohart and Stange’s (1965) key as closely related to the species-groups within Z. (Didymogastra) , but in the present analysis it is recovered in Z. (Zethus) . The former relationship may have been an artifact due to poor sampling of representatives in the nominotypical subgenus.

Distribution.

Nearctic and Neotropical.

Included species-groups.

Zethus chalybeus , Zethus coeruleopennis , Zethus discoelioides , Zethus infundibuliformis , Zethus magretti , Zethus prominens , Zethus spinipes , Zethus stangei , Zethus wileyi .

Included species.

52

Figures

Figure 11. Synapomorphic characters of Zethus (Zethus) A habitus of Z. coeruleopennis B head of Z. infundibuliformis, oblique posterior view. 42. Mesoscutum of Z. discoelioides, dorsal view; arrowhead indicates incomplete notaulus. Scale bars: 1.0 mm.