New Records of the Family Chalcididae (Hymenoptera: Chalcidoidea) from Egypt

Home , Chalcidinae, Chalcidini, Chalcis (wasp), El Hamam, Epitranus, Gabal Elba

Zootaxa 4410 (1): 136–146 ISSN 1175-5326 (print edition) http://www.mapress.com/j/zt/ Article ZOOTAXA Copyright © 2018 Magnolia Press ISSN 1175-5334 (online edition) https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.4410.1.7 http://zoobank.org/urn:lsid:zoobank.org:pub:6431DC44-3F90-413E-976F-4B00CFA6CD2B

New records of the family Chalcididae (Hymenoptera: Chalcidoidea) from Egypt

MEDHAT I. ABUL-SOOD1 & NEVEEN S. GADALLAH2,3 1Zoology Department, Faculty of Science (Boys), Al-Azhar University, P.O. Box 11884, Nasr City, Cairo, Egypt. E-mail: [email protected] 2Entomology Department, Faculty of Science, Cairo University, Giza, Egypt 3Corresponding author. E-mail: [email protected]

Abstract

In the present study, a checklist of new records of the family Chalcididae of Egypt is presented based on a total of 180 specimens collected from 24 different Egyptian localities between June 2011 and October 2016, mostly by sweeping and Malaise traps. Nineteen species as well as the subfamily Epitraninae and the genera Bucekia Steffan, Epitranus Walker, Proconura Dodd, and Tanycoryphus Cameron, are newly recorded from Egypt. A single species previously placed in the genus Hockeria is transferred to Euchalcis Dufour as E. rufula (Nikol’skaya, 1960) comb. nov.

Key words: Parasitic wasps, Chalcidinae, Dirhininae, Epitraninae, Haltichellinae, new records, new combination

Introduction

The Chalcididae (Hymenoptera: Chalcidoidea) is a medium-sized family represented by more than 1500 described species in 93 genera (Aguiar et al. 2013; Noyes 2017; Abul-Sood et al. 2018). A large number of described species are classified in the genus Brachymeria Westwood (about 21%), followed by Conura Spinola (20.3%) (Noyes 2017). The family is almost cosmopolitan, but has diversified mainly in tropical areas (Steffan 1958). Individuals are medium-sized (1.5‒15 mm in length), predominantly black in colour or sometimes with yellow and/or reddish markings, but rarely with metallic luster (Delvare 2017). They are mostly recognized by the following combination of features: enlarged hind femur with ventral margin toothed or serrulate; hind tibia markedly curved; mesothoracic spiracle, except Cratocentrinae, hidden; lateral panel of prepectus quite small, except Dirhinini; mesonotum strongly punctured; mesopleuron very often with completely delimited epicnemium; propodeum almost always areolate (Bouček & Halstead 1997; Narendran & van Achterberg 2016; Delvare 2017; Noyes 2017). Six subfamilies and six tribes are currently recognized in the family: Chalcidinae (Brachymeriini, Chalcidini, Phasgonophorini), Cratocentrinae, Dirhininae, Epitraninae, Haltichellinae (Haltichellini, Hybothoracini, Tropimeridini), and Smicromorphinae (Delvare 2017). Studies based on both morphological and molecular data strongly support the monophyly of the Chalcididae (Heraty et al. 2013), but the monophyly of the subfamily Chalcidinae is doubtful (Heraty et al. 2013). The previous tribe Cratocentrini was upgraded as a separate subfamily Cratocentrinae (Heraty et al. 2013; Delvare 2017). The Egyptian fauna includes elements of the Palaearctic and Afrotropical realms. Larsen (1990) divided Egypt into eight ecozones: Coastal Strip, Lower Nile Valley with its delta, Upper Nile Valley, Eastern and Western Deserts, Fayoum, Sinai Peninsula and Gabal Elba. The Nile and its large delta enable Palaearctic species to extend far southwards and also enable Afrotropical species to reach far to the north of their usual limits. The area between the Nile and the Red Sea (Eastern Desert), including the Sinai Peninsula, includes the greatest number of Afrotropical species. On the other hand, the Western Desert Oases have the Palaearctic characteristics of the Nile Valley. Gabal Elba in the extreme southwestern corner of Egypt is typically Afrotropical (Steyskal & El-Bialy 1967). Records of Chalcididae from Egypt have sometimes been included among other studies in different regions of

136 Accepted by G. Gibson: 9 Mar. 2018; published: 16 Apr. 2018 the world (e.g. Klug 1834; Radoszkowsky 1876; Masi 1944, 1951; Bouček 1952, 1956) or in studies on the biology or ecology of some species in Egypt (e.g. Kamal 1937; Awadallah et al. 1970; Youssef & Moursi 1988; El-Agoze et al. 1989a, b; Hussain et al. 1992; Ragab 1992; Badr-El Sabah et al. 2004; El-Husseini et al. 2008; Kolaib et al. 2009; Abdel-Khalek 2010; El-Fakharani & Hendawy 2014; Gadallah et al. 2014). In Egypt, Masi (1931) recorded three brachymeriine species, Brachymeria aegyptiaca Masi, B. somalica Masi and Trigonura rubens (Klug). In his monograph of the Palaearctic Brachymeria, Masi (1951) added another four species, B. ancilla Masi, B. brevicornis (Klug), B. kassalensis (Kirby), and B. obtusata (Förster). A new species of the genus Hockeria, H. aegyptiaca, was described from Ain Sukhna and El-Hamam by Masi (1936). Noyes (2017) reported 21 chalcidid species in 10 genera from Egypt. Abul-Sood et al. (2018) in their study of the Palaearctic Cratocentrinae reported three species of this subfamily from Egypt, two species in Cratocentrus Cameron and a new species of the newly recorded genus Philocentrus Steffan. The first comprehensive attempt to study the taxonomy of Chalcididae of Egypt was by Karrom (1974) as part of a thesis that was unpublished. He reported 24 chalcidid species in five subfamilies (Brachymeriinae (now tribe Brachymeriini within Chalcidinae), Chalcidinae, Epitraninae, Dirhininae and Haltichellinae) from Egypt and Syria. Some of Karrom’s data are considered to be doubtful because of the absence of some reported specimens and species from the various Egyptian insect collections, in addition to incorrect taxonomic status and incorrect identification of some species. Nevertheless, some of the newly reported species based on newly collected specimens in our present work were reported by Karrom (1974). Because they were not published they are considered as new records in the present study. In the present study, the subfamily Epitraninae, as well as four genera, Bucekia Steffan, Epitranus Walker, Proconura Dodd and Tanycoryphus Cameron, together with 19 species are reported for the first time for the Egyptian fauna. A single species previously placed in the genus Hockeria is transferred to Euchalcis Dufour as E. rufula (Nikol’skaya, 1960) comb. nov. Twenty new species that were also collected will be described as part of future work. A comprehensive catalogue/checklist of the family Chalcididae of Egypt will be compiled once these species are described.

Material and methods

Regular surveys of chalcidid wasps were undertaken between June 2011 and October 2016, covering various localities in Egypt (Fig. 1; Table 1). The map obtained from WIKIMEDIA COMMONS in raster format was then referenced and the localities determined by ArcGIS 9.3.1. The sampling was done using sweep nets and Malaise traps (Table 1), the most efficient of collecting methods. The collected specimens were pinned, and are deposited in the Efflatoun Bey Collection (EFC), Entomology Department, Faculty of Science, Cairo University. Resources used to identify the specimens to generic level included Masi (1931), Steffan (1957), Bouček (1952, 1988), Narendran (1989), and Delvare (2017). Classification of Chalcididae in the present study follows Delvare (2017). Identification of species was made with the help of Gerard Delvare (CIRAD, Montpellier, France) during a visit by the second author to France. Most of the identifications were made by comparison with specimens and some types deposited in the CIRAD collection, in addition to the available literature and keys, such as Masi (1929, 1951), Steffan (1951), Bouček (1952, 1956), Habu (1960, 1962), Narendran (1989), Rasplus & Delvare (1996). The names of valid species are listed alphabetically within subfamilies, tribes and genera respectively. The extralimital distributions listed for each species newly recorded from Egypt are based mainly on Noyes (2017), though recent publications are also included to validate some records. Abbreviations used for the zoogeographic realms are: AF = Afrotropical, AU = Australasian, NEA = Nearctic, NEO = Neotropical, OR = Oriental, and PA = Palaearctic. The acronyms used to designate insect repositories in Egypt, following Evenhuis (2017), are:

ASUA Ain Shams University collection, Cairo, Egypt. AUCE Al Azhar University collection, Cairo, Egypt BMNH British Museum of Natural History, London, England EFC Efflatoun Bey collection, Cairo University, Faculty of Science, Entomology Department, Giza, Egypt. PPDD Plant Protection collection, Ministry of Agriculture, Giza, Egypt.

NEW RECORDS OF THE EGYPTIAN CHALCIDIDAE Zootaxa 4410 (1) © 2018 Magnolia Press · 137 TABLE 1. Collecting sites, dates and collection method for included records Collecting sites Lat/longs Dates collected Collecing method Abu Khalifa (Isamilia) 30°45'22''N, October, 2013 Sweeping 32°15'02''E Al-Alamein (Matruh) 30°49'35''N, April, 2015 Sweeping 28°57'35''E Bahariya Oasis (Giza) 28°22'13''N, June, 2013 Malaise trap 28°55'35''E Cairo 30°07'23''N, September, 1945 31°34'57''E El-Salehiya (Sharqiya) 30°39'21''N, August, 2015 Sweeping 31°52'35''E El-Qantara Sharq (Ismailia) 29°58'49''N, October, 2013; January, 2015; May, 2016 Sweeping 32°07'45''E Farafra Oasis (New Valley) 27°02'45''N, July, 2013; August, 2013 Sweeping 27°58'50''E Fayoum 29°36'39''N May, 1961 31°28'34''E Gireis (Minufiya) 30°13'29''N, August, 2015 Malaise trap 30°59'23''E Giza 20°53'45''N, September, 2014 Sweeping 30°46'51''E Kafer El-Hamam (Sharqiya) 30°38'18''N, October, 2015 Sweeping 31°31'37''E Kamshush (Minufiya) 30°25'10''N, September, 2015; October, 2016 Malaise trap & Sweeping 30°53'46''E Kom Osheim (Fayoum) 29°32'04''N, November, 2013; January, 2016 Malaise trap & Sweeping 30°54'28''E Marsa Matruh 31°20'11''N, September, 2015 Sweeping 27°15'19''E Meadi (Cairo) 29°57'33''N, July, 1933 31°17'41''E Munsa (Minufiya) 30°21'41''N, November, 2014; July, 2015 Malaise trap 30°55'26''E Ramlet El-Injib (Minufiya) 30°20'37''N, August, 2015 Sweeping 30°57'18''E Sadat City (Minufiya) 30°22'28''N, October, 2014; November, 2014; April, 2016 Malaise trap & Sweeping 30°36'41''E Sharm El-Sheikh (S. Sinai) 27°57'54''N, July, 2013; September, 2013; April, 2016; Sweeping 34°21'09''E September, 2016 Shebin El-Kom (Minufiya) 30°29'58''N, September, 2015 Sweeping 31°02'07''E Siwa Oasis (Matruh) 29°12'22''N, September, 2015; April, 2016 Sweeping 25°31'22''E Wadi Digla (Cairo) 29°57'24''N, November, 2014 Sweeping 31°18'50''E Wadi Khoshb (S. Sinai) 27°46'31''N, January, 2013; April, 2015; April, 2016 Sweeping 34°12'46''E Wadi Khoreiza (North Sinai) 30°22'14.9''N, June, 2011 Sweeping 34°31'33.6''E

138 · Zootaxa 4410 (1) © 2018 Magnolia Press ABUL-SOOD & GADALLAH FIGURE 1. Egyptian localities for chalcidid specimens: 1, Abu Khalifa (Isamilia); 2, Al-Alamein (Matruh); 3, Bahariya Oasis (Giza); 4, Cairo; 5, El-Salhiya (Sharqeya); 6, El-Qantara Sharq (Ismailia); 7, Farafra Oasis (New Valley); 8, Fayoum; 9, Gireis (Minufiya); 10, Giza; 11, Kafer El-Hamam (Sharqiya); 12, Kamshush (Minufiya); 13, Kom Osheim (Fayoum); 14, Marsa Matruh; 15, Meadi (Cairo); 16, Munsa (Minufiya); 17, Ramlet El-Injib (Minufiya); 18, Sadat City (Minufiya); 19, Sharm El-Sheikh (S. Sinai); 20, Shebin El-Kom (Minufiya); 21, Siwa Oasis (Matruh); 22, Wadi Digla (Cairo); 23, Wadi Khoshb (S. Sinai); 24, Wadi Khoreiza (North Sinai).

Chalcididae newly reported from Egypt

Chalcidinae Latreille, 1817

Brachymeriini Mani, 1938

Brachymeria Westwood, 1829

Brachymeria inermis (Fonscolombe, 1840)

Material examined. 1♀, Bahariya Oasis (Giza), Malaise trap, 25.vi.2013, leg. M. Abul-Sood; 1♂, Farafra Oasis (New Valley), 10.vii.2013, leg. Abul-Gheit; 1♂, Sharm El-Sheikh (S. Sinai), sweeping, 29.vii.2013, leg. A. Soliman; 1♀, Farafra Oasis (New Valley), 30.viii.2013, leg. Abul-Gheit; 1♀, Munsa (Minufiya), Malaise trap, 19. xi.2014, leg. M. Abul-Sood [EFC].

NEW RECORDS OF THE EGYPTIAN CHALCIDIDAE Zootaxa 4410 (1) © 2018 Magnolia Press · 139 Extralimital distribution. AF: UAE (Delvare 2017). OR: India. PA: Austria, Croatia, Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia, Czech Republic, Slovakia, France, Greece, Hungary, Romania, Turkey, Italy, Moldova, Spain, Syria, Turkmenistan.

Dirhininae Ashmead, 1904

Dirhinus Dalman, 1818

Dirhinus anthracia Walker, 1846

Material examined. 1♂, Munsa (Minufiya), Malaise trap, 15.xi.2014, leg. M. Abul-Sood; 1♀, Munsa (Minufiya), Malaise trap, 10.iii.2015, leg. M. Abul-Sood [EFC]. Extralimital distribution. AF: South Africa, UAE (Delvare 2017), Zambia. AU: Australia. OR: India, Philippines, Taiwan, Vietnam. PA: Iran (Falahatpisheh et al. 2018).

Dirhinus himalayanus Westwood, 1836

Material examined. 1♀, Wadi Digla (Cairo), sweeping, 20.xi.2014, leg. A. Soliman; 1♂, Sharm El Sheikh (S. Sinai), sweeping, 16.ix.2016, leg. M. Abul-Sood [EFC]. Extralimital distribution. AF: UAE (Delvare 2017). OR: India, Malaysia, Pakistan, Philippines, Thailand. PA: Central Asia, Iran, Japan, Turkmenistan.

Epitraninae Burks, 1936

The subfamily Epitraninae was first reported from Egypt by Karrom (1974) as part of his unpublished thesis. He reported two species of Epitranus, which according to him were deposited in the Ministry of Agriculture collection (PPDD). The two species were E. erythrogaster Cameron “under the name Chalcis pensilis”, and another described as a new species with a manuscript name. However, he did not designate a holotype for his new species. In addition, his specimens are no longer in PPDD and therefore could not be examined. Only a single specimen of this subfamily (1♂, Cairo, 19.ix.1945) was seen during the present study (AUCE), under the name Anacryptus sp.; it will be discussed in a future work within the genus Epitranus.

Haltichellinae Ashmead, 1904

Haltichellini Ashmead, 1904

Antrocephalus Kirby, 1883

Antrocephalus cameroni Delvare, 2017

Material examined. 1♂, Sadat city (Minufiya), Malaise trap, 30.x.2014, leg. M. Abul-Sood; 3♂, 12♀, Kamshush (Minufiya), Malaise trap, 4.ix 2015, leg. M. Abul-Sood; 3♂, 2♀, Kamshush (Minufiya), Malaise trap, 11.ix.2015, leg. M. Abul-Sood; 3♂, 1♀, Sadat city (Minufiya), Malaise trap, 28.iv.2016, leg. M. Abul-Sood [EFC]. Extralimital distribution. OR: India. Remarks. This species is likely what Roy & Farooqi (1984) described as A. brevidentata. However, Gerard Delvare (personal communication) suggested using the name A. cameroni Delvare because he believes A. brevidentata likely is the same as Stomatocerus rufipes Cameron, 1907. The latter name is a secondary homonym, for which he provided the new name, A. cameroni (Delvare 2017).

Material examined. 1♀, Sadat City (Minufiya), sweeping, 30.x.2014, leg. M. Abul-Sood; 1♀, Munsa (Minufiya), Malaise trap, 10.vii.2015, leg. M. Abul-Sood; 5♂, 1♀, Kamshush (Minufiya), Malaise trap, 4.ix.2015, leg. M. Abul-Sood [EFC]. Extralimital distribution. AF: UAE (Delvare 2017). OR: Indonesia. PA: Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, Iran (Falahatpisheh et al. 2018).

Hockeria Walker, 1834

Hockeria brachygaster Bouček, 1956

Material examined. 2♀, Wadi Khoreiza (S. Sinai), sweeping, 5.vi.2011, leg. M. Abul-Sood [EFC]. Extralimital distribution. OR: India. PA: Israel, Libya, Turkey.

Euchalcis Dufour, 1861

Euchalcis rufula (Nikol’skaya, 1960) comb. nov.

Hockeria rufula Nikol’skaya, 1960.

Material examined. 2♀, Wadi Khoreiza (S. Sinai), sweeping, 5.vi.2011, leg. M. Abul-Sood [EFC]. Extralimital distribution. PA: Turkmenistan. Remarks. This new combination is based on the revised concept of the genus Euchalcis by Delvare (2017), the latter genus is distinguished from Hockeria by the surface area of the wing being entirely clothed with dark setae; the postmarginal vein being distinctly longer than the stigmal vein; and the outer side of hind tibia having an additional sharp longitudinal carina.

Hybothoracini Bouček, 1952

Bucekia Steffan, 1951

Bucekia differens (Bouček, 1949)

Material examined. 1♀, 1♂, Fayoum, 11.v.1961, leg. Seleem [ASUA]; 1♀, W. Khoshb (S. Sinai), sweeping, 13.i.2013, leg. M. Abul-Sood; 3♀, Qantara Sharq (Ismailia), 18-20.i.2015, leg. A. Soliman; 3♀, Siwa Oasis (Matruh), 10.ix.2015, leg. M. Abul-Sood; 1♀, W. Khoshb (S. Sinai), sweeping, 17.iv.2016, leg. M. Abul-Sood; 1♂, Siwa Oasis (Matruh), sweeping, 29.iv.2016, leg. M. Abul-Sood [EFC]. Extralimital distribution. AF: Senegal, UAE (Delvare 2017)). OR: India. PA: Iran (Falahatpisheh et al. 2018), Israel. Remarks. Bucekia differens was first found in Egypt (Gabal Asfar (Giza), Assiut) by Karrom (1974, unpublished)

Bucekia dissimilis Nikol’skaya, 1960

Material examined. 14♀, W. Khoshb (S. Sinai), sweeping, 29.iv.2015, leg. M. Abul-Sood; 2♀, W. Khoshb (S. Sinai), sweeping, 17.iv.2016, leg. M. Abul-Sood; 1♀, Kom Osheim (Fayoum), Malaise trap, 5.xi.2013, leg. M. Abul-Sood [EFC]. Extralimital distribution. AF: UAE (Delvare 2017). PA: Tajikistan, Turkmenistan.

Lasiochalcidia agilis (Klug, 1834)

Material examined. 1♂, Meadi (Cairo), 11.vii.1933, leg. Walker Wittmer [BMNH]; 2♂, Al-Alamein (Matruh), sweeping, 8.ix.2015, leg. M. Abul-Sood; 2♀, Kom Osheim (Fayoum), sweeping, 8.i.2016, leg. M. Abul-Sood; 1♂, Sadat City (Minufiya), Malaise trap, 10.iv.2016, leg. M. Abul-Sood; 2♀, Sharm El-Sheikh (S. Sinai), sweeping, 16.iv.2016, leg. M. Abul-Sood; 1♂, Siwa Oasis (Matruh), sweeping, 29.iv.2016, leg. M. Abul-Sood; 12♂, 13♀, Qantara Sharq (Ismailia), sweeping, 10.v. 2016, leg. M. Abul-Sood [EFC]. Extralimital distribution. PA: France, Saudi Arabia.

Lasiochalcidia guineensis (Steffan, 1951)

Material examined. 18♀, Wadi Khoshb (S. Sinai), sweeping, 17.iv.2016, leg. M. Abul-Sood [EFC]. Extralimital distribution. AF: Guinea. PA: Czech Republic, France, Hungary, Iran, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia.

Lasiochalcidia pilosella (Cameron, 1904)

Material examined. 3♀, W. Khoshb (S. Sinai), sweeping, 29.iv.2015, leg. M. Abul-Sood; 1♀, Al-Alamein (Matruh), sweeping, 10.iv.2015, leg. M. Abul-Sood; 1♀, Sharm El-Sheikh (S. Sinai), sweeping, 16.iv.2016, leg. M. Abul-Sood; 7♀, W. Khoshb (S. Sinai), sweeping, 17.iv.2016, leg. M. Abul-Sood [EFC]. Extralimital distribution. OR: India. PA: China.

Lasiochalcidia pubescens (Klug, 1834)

Material examined. 1♀, Abu Khalefah (Isamilia), sweeping, 19. x. 2013, A. Soliman; 1♀, Giza, sweeping, 15.ix.2014, leg. M. Abul-Sood; 1♂, Sadat City (Minufiya), Malaise trap, 30.x. 2014, leg. M. Abul-Sood; 1♀, W. Khoshb (S. Sinai), sweeping, 17.iv.2015, leg. M. Abul-Sood; 1♂, 1♀, W. Khoshb (S. Sinai), sweeping, 29.iv.2016, leg. M. Abul-Sood; 4♂, 2♀, El- Qantara Sharq (Isamilia), sweeping, 10.v. 2016, leg. M. Abul-Sood [EFC]. Extralimital distribution. AF: UAE (Delvare 2017). PA: Algeria, Italy, Morocco, Iran, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia.

Proconura Dodd, 1915

Proconura barbara (Masi, 1929)

Material examined. 1♂, Kom Osheim (Fayoum), Malaise trap, 5.xi.2013, leg. M. Abul-Sood; 1♂, Giza, sweeping, 15.ix.2014, leg. M. Abul-Sood; 2♂, Sadat City (Minufiya), Malaise trap, 7.xi.2014, leg. M. Abul-Sood; 1♂, Gireis (Minufiya), Malaise trap, 8.viii.2015, leg. M. Abul-Sood; 1♀, Shibin El-Kom (Minufiya), sweeping, 19.ix.2015, leg. M. Abul-Sood [EFC]. Extralimital distribution. AF: UAE (Delvare 2017). PA: Libya.

Proconura eublemmae (Steffan, 1951)

Material examined. 1♀, Kom Osheim (Fayoum), Malaise trap, 30.v. 2013, leg. M. Abul-Sood; 1♀, Gireis (Minufiya), Malaise trap, 8.viii.2015, leg. M. Abul-Sood; 2♀, Ramlet El-Injib (Minufiya), sweeping, 20.viii.2015,

142 · Zootaxa 4410 (1) © 2018 Magnolia Press ABUL-SOOD & GADALLAH leg. M. Abul-Sood; 1♀, El- Salehiya (Sharqiya), sweeping, 28.viii.2015, leg. M. Abul-Sood; 1♀, Kamshush (Minufiya), Malaise trap, 4.ix.2015, leg. M. Abul-Sood; 2♀, Sharm El- Sheikh (S. Sinai), sweeping, 16.iv.2016, leg. M. Abul-Sood [EFC]. Extralimital distribution. AF: Senegal.

Psilochalcis Kieffer, 1905

Karrom (1974, unpublished) reported this genus in Egypt under the name Peltochalcidia Steffan, 1948. He recorded a single unidentified species, which is not present at any of the Egyptian collections that we have examined.

Psilochalcis dentata (Steffan, 1951)

Material examined. 1♀, Farafra Oasis (New Valley), sweeping, 30.viii.2013, leg. Abul-Gheit; 1♀, Sharm El- Sheikh (S. Sinai), sweeping, ix.2013, leg. A. Soliman; 1♀, El-Qantara Sharq (Ismailia), sweeping, 20.x.2013, leg. A. Soliman; 1♀, Giza, sweeping, 15.ix.2014, leg. M. Abul-Sood; 1♂, 2♀, Sadat City (Minufiya), Malaise trap, 7.xi.2014, leg. M. Abul-Sood; 1♀, Munsa (Minufiya), Malaise trap, 19.xi.2014, leg. M. Abul-Sood; 1♀, Matruh, sweeping, 1-7.ix.2015, A. El-Shahat; 3♀, Shibin El-Kom (Minufiya), sweeping, 19.ix.2015, leg. M. Abul-Sood [EFC]. Extralimital distribution. AF: Chad, Senegal. PA: Iran (Falahatpisheh et al. 2018).

Psilochalcis elegantula (Masi, 1929)

Material examined: 1♀, Kom Osheim (Fayoum), Malaise trap, xi. 2013, leg. M. Abul-Sood [EFC]. Extralimital distribution. PA: Libya.

Tanycoryphus Cameron, 1905

Tanycoryphus moderator (Walker, 1862)

Material examined. 1♀, Kafer El-Hamam (Sharqiya), sweeping, 20.x.2015, leg. M. Abul-Sood; 1♀, Kamshush (Minufiya), sweeping, 20.x.2016, leg. M. Abul-Sood [EFC]. Extralimital distribution. PA: Algeria.

Discussion

The present study newly records from Egypt 19 species belonging to 11 genera of Chalcididae, including the subfamily Epitraninae and four genera (Bucekia, Epitranus, Proconura, and Tanycoryphus). Some of the new records were previously known to Karrom (1974, unpublished), who reported 24 species in 10 genera as part of his thesis on the taxonomy and ecology of Chalcididae of Egypt and Syria. However, many of the specimens and species he reported were not found in the Egyptian insect collections that he mentioned. Those species he reported for which his voucher specimens were not found or collected for the present study are omitted from our list. Among the 180 collected specimens, 76.1% belong to the genera Lasichalcidia (76 specimens), Antrocephalus (33 specimens) and Bucekia (28 specimens), respectively, in the subfamily Haltichellinae (Fig. 2). Available data suggests Lasiochalcis are mostly associated with Myrmeleontidae (Neuroptera). This neuropteran family is represented in Egypt by 70 species in 29 genera and are distributed in almost all Egyptian ecozones comprising the Coastal strip, Lower Nile Valley and its delta, Upper Nile Valley, Sinai Peninsula, Gabal Elba (El-Hamuli & Fadl

NEW RECORDS OF THE EGYPTIAN CHALCIDIDAE Zootaxa 4410 (1) © 2018 Magnolia Press · 143 2011). They mostly live on trees and shrubs in forests, parks, orchards, gardens and tree avenues (El-Hamouli & Fadl 2011). This may attribute the predominance of the Lasiochalcis in Egypt. Little is known about the biology and host associations of Antrocephalus and Bucekia (Noyes 2017), but from what is known both genera are mostly associated with lepidopterous larvae, mainly of the families Pyralidae (Antrocephalus and Bucekia), and Oecophoridae and Tortricidae (Antrocephalus) (Noyes 2017). These lepidopterous pests are widely distributed in different cultivated areas of Egypt. Almost all Antrocephalus specimens were collected from different localities of Minufiya Governorate, which is well-known for its fertile land in the Nile Delta, and is famous for the production of several cash crops including cotton (Malvaceae), maize and wheat (Poaceae), as well as vegetable crops (potatoes and green bean) (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monufia_Governorate), that are infested by numerous major species of insect lepidopterous pests. The present study supplies new information on the global distribution of the chalcidid species newly recorded from Egypt. About 26% of these newly recorded species (5 out of the 19 species), Dirhinus anthracia (Dirhininae), Antrocephalus cameroni, Lasiochalcidia pilosella, Proconura eublemmae, and Psilochalcis denata (Haltichellinae), are new records for the entire Palaearctic realm. On the other hand, more than half of the recorded species (52%), Brachymeria inermis (Chalcidinae), D. anthracia (Dirhininae), A. cameroni, A. subelongatus, Hockeria rufula, L. agilis, L. pilosella (Haltichellinae), are first records for the African continent. Bucekia differens, B. dissimilis and Euchalcis brachygaster are also first records for the African continent, but they were previously known from Israel (Bouček 1956; Noyes 2017) so they could have been expected to occur in Egypt. The species A. cameroni and L. pilosella seem to be anomalous as they have been previously recorded from India (the former) (Narendran 1986), and from India and China (the latter) (Narendran 1986; Liu 2002). This may be considered either to be a large range extension or perhaps the result of previous misidentifications.

FIGURE 2. Number of specimens of genera of the family Chalcididae collected in Egypt between June 2011 and October 2016.

Sincere gratitude is offered to Gerard Delvare (Cirad-CBGP, Montferrier-sur-Lez Cedex, France) for his kind hospitality during the visit of the second author to Cirad, France, and for his kind and generous help with the identification of the species under study. We are also grateful to Gavin Broad and Natalie Dale-Skey (Natural History Museum, London, United Kingdom) for their kind hospitality during the visit of the second author to the Natural History Museum of London. Sincere thanks also to Adrian Pont (Oxford University Museum of Natural History, United Kingdom) for his kind suggestions for the treatment of some taxonomic problems and for revising the manuscript linguistically. We thank Drs Ahmed M. Soliman and Usama Abul-Gheit for providing us with some specimens, as well as Yusuf Edmardash for constructing the Histogram.

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