Pedinopelte, KRIECHBAUMER, 1898

Sime, Karen R. & Wahl, David B., 2002, The cladistics and biology of the Callajoppa genus-group (Hymenoptera: Ichneumonidae, Ichneumoninae), Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society 134 (1), pp. 1-56 : 42-43

PEDINOPELTE KRIECHBAUMER, 1898

Pedinopelte Kriechbaumer, 1898: 26 . Type-species: ( Ichneumon gravenhorstii Guérin ) = Ichneumon gravenstii Guérin. Monotypic.

Autapomorphies. Apical margin of clypeus concave (#4–1); postpetiole of T1 with basal convexity (#45–1); median longitudinal carinae of T1 apically incomplete (#46–1).

Species and distribution. With the addition of latipennis (Cresson) , there are 3 described species ( Yu & Horstmann, 1997) and at least two undescribed species [AEIC, JHIC, NHML]. They are found in Central and South America.

Comments. P. latipennis was formerly placed in Macrojoppa (see Taxonomy, above).

Biology. Published host records for P. gravenstii (Guerin) are vague: neither the Brazilian reports from ‘ Automeris sp. ’ ( Saturniidae ) and Papilio anchisiades Esper ( Sauer, 1946) nor the report from Papilio thoas L. (or P. lycophron Hübner ; identification was uncertain) in Argentina ( Schrottky, 1910) can be traced to any insect remains or contain supporting natural history information. However, on the more convincing evidence of several series of reared specimens, we consider Pedinopelte to be a genus of larval-pupal parasitoids of Papilio . One series consists of 18 specimens of an undescribed species reared from Papilio anchisiades in Costa Rica [AEIC, JHIC]. A second series consists of five specimens of another undescribed species reared from P. anchisiades in Costa Rica (‘99- CALI-480’) [JHIC]; the host larvae were collected on Xanthophylus sp. ( Rutaceae ). The host larvae were collected as penultimate or final instars on Xanthoxylum setulosum P. Wilson (Rutaceae) . The third series establishes P. latipennis as a parasitoid of Central American Papilio species feeding on Piperaceae as well as Rutaceae . It includes five specimens reared from Papilio thoas ; three of the host larvae were collected on Piper marginatum Jacquin , one on Piper pseudofuligineum C.DC. , and one on Piper peltatum L. (‘81-SRNP-1046A’, ‘81-SRNP-1320’, ‘82-SRNP-742’, ‘93-SRNP-7857’, ‘95-SRNP-11365’, respectively [AEIC, JHIC]). Another four specimens were reared from the Rutaceae-feeder Papilio cresphontes Cramer ; three of these hosts were collected on Citrus limetta (introduced) and one on Angostura nicaraguiensis Standl. & Williams (‘93-SRNP-2253’, ‘93-SRNP-2283’, ‘96-SRNP-3057’, ‘96-SRNP-3056’ [AEIC, JHIC]). All P. latipennis specimens were reared from hosts collected as final and penultimate instars in Area de Conservación Guanacaste, Costa Rica (D. Janzen, pers. comm.).

In addition, two specimens of another undescribed Pedinopelte species have been reared from Papilio caiguanabus Poey ( Cuba, 1932; M.E. Fontaine [NHML]), a rare Cuban species that is suspected to feed on Rutaceae , although no certain food-plant records have been published ( Tyler et al., 1994).