Pampsilota afer Konow, 1899

Liston, Andrew D., Goergen, Georg & Koch, Frank, 2017, Revisions of the Afrotropical genera of Argidae and species of Pampsilota Konow, 1899 (Hymenoptera, Tenthredinoidea), Deutsche Entomologische Zeitschrift 64 (1), pp. 1-25 : 5-6

Pampsilota afer Konow, 1899

Pampsilota afer Konow, 1899: 76-77. Described: female [syntype females; lectotype designated below]. Type locality: Kamerun [Cameroon].

Pampsilota afer var. maynéi Forsius, 1928: 234. Described: Female [holotype and paratype]. Type locality: Congo Belge [Democratic Republic of the Congo], Bena Bedi. Synonymy with Pampsilota afer by Pasteels (1953: 115-116).

Female.

Figures 4-7 , 38-40

Head, thorax and legs black with blue metallic lustre. Wings strongly infuscate, intercostal area fuscous; substigmal spot inconspicuous; stigma, costa, subcosta and rest of venation black. Abdomen black with blue metallic lustre; at least terga 9/10 and ovipositor sheath yellow-orange.

Head enlarged behind eyes. Antenna 1.6 × as long as maximum head width; flagellum enlarged towards apex, quadrangular in cross section, interior surface with sharply compressed longitudinal carina, other longitudinal carinae conspicuously more weakly compressed. Interior margins of eyes parallel-sided. Anterior margin of the clypeus circularly emarginate, supraclypeal area gently rounded and protruding up to ventral limit of interantennal carinae. Interantennal carinae obtusely ridged, strongly converging below, extending to the level of ventral margin of torulus. Frons, supraclypeal area and clypeus rugosely sculptured or densely punctate, weakly shiny, vertex and gena sparsely micropunctate, shiny; pubescence light brown. Metatibia distally conspicuously laterally compressed. Mesoscutum nearly impunctate, shiny; pubescence similar to that on head. Abdomen smooth and shiny. Valvulae 3: Figs 4 , 5 . Lancet with about 24-25 serrulae: Figs 6 , 7 .

Length: 10.5-15.3 mm.

Male.

Figure 8

Similarly coloured to female, only tergum 8 and sterna 6-9 yellow-orange. Head very slightly narrowed behind eyes. Antenna 1.8 × as long as maximum head width; flagellum not enlarged towards apex, quadrangular in cross section, flattened apically, interior surface with sharply compressed longitudinal carina, other longitudinal carinae more weakly compressed. Supraclypeal area scarcely protruding up to base of interantennal carinae. Interantennal carinae extending about one quarter of way to clypeus. Other characters as for female. Penis valve: Fig. 8 .

Length: 10.3 mm.

Type material examined.

Pampsilota afer : Lectotype, hereby designated: ♀. Labels: “Type” (red); “Kamerun”; "Coll. Konow"; "Coll. DEI, Eberswalde", " Pampsilota afer Knw., Kamerun"; "GBIF-GISHym, 2869"; "Lectotypus, Pampsilota afer Konow ♀, des.: F. Koch, 2016" (red) (SDEI). Paralectotype: 1 ♀. "Sierra Leone", "Coll. Konow", "Coll. DEI, Eberswalde", "GBIF -GISHym, 2870" (SDEI).

Pampsilota afer var. maynéi: Paratype: 1 ♀. Democratic Republic of the Congo: Bena Bedi, V.[19]15, R. Mayné (UZMT).

Other material examined.

1 ♂, 7 ♀♀. Democratic Republic of the Congo: Luluabourg, P. Janssens (1 ♀) ( RBINS); Sankuru , Komi, III.1930, J. Ghesquière (1 ♀); Eala, III.1936, J. Ghesquière (1 ♀) ( MRAC); Kabwe, Luluabourg, 1937, R. R. Soeurs du Carmel (1 ♂) ( MRAC); Fulubwe, sur herbes viv., E[lisabeth]' Ville, 27.XII.[19]55 (1 ♀) ( MRAC). Equatorial Guinea: Fernando-Po, 1901, L. Conradt (1 ♀) ( MNCN); Makom, Alcu., Benitogbt.,16.-31.XII.[19]06, G. Tessmann (1 ♀) (MFN); Uelleburg, VI.-VIII.1908, G. Tessmann (1 ♀) ( ZSM) .

Distribution.

Cameroon, Equatorial Guinea, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Sierra Leone (Fig. 36 ).

Diagnosis.

By its large size and distinctive coloration (infuscate wings; black body and legs, with only abdomen apically pale), Pampsilota afer is easily distinguished from all other Pampsilota species.

Remarks.

The coloration of the abdomen varies from the described typical (darker) form to the apical half of the abdomen yellow-orange with terga 5/6 medially more or less black. In these pale specimens sterna 2-4 are basally yellow-orange. This form with a more or less entirely yellow-orange apical half of abdomen was described under the name Pampsilota afer var. maynéi Forsius, 1928. Other morphological differences to the nominate form are not detectable. The holotype ( MRAC) of Pampsilota afer var. maynéi was not examined, but the paratype seems to have been collected on the same date and at the same place as the holotype, and there is no reason to doubt that the specimens are conspecific.

Pasteels (1953) first described the male of Pampsilota afer and misleadingly referred to the specimen as the allotype ( MRAC).

Figures

Figure 36. Distribution map for Pampsilota afer, Pampsilota africanus, Pampsilota brandbergensis, and Pampsilota dahomeyanus.

Figures 4 - 8. Pampsilota afer: 4. Valvulae 3 (lateral aspect); 5. Valvulae 3 (dorsal aspect); 6. Lancet; 7. Serrulae 11 - 13; 8. Penis valve (left, lateral aspect).

Figures 38 - 44. Pampsilota afer ♀: 38. Dark form, dorsal; 39 - 40. Pale form, dorsal / lateral. 41 - 44. Pampsilota africanus. 41 - 42. ♀ (LT), dorsal / lateral; 43 - 44. ♂, dorsal / lateral. Scale bars = 1 mm.