DOCSLIB.ORG

Apoidea (Spheciformes), Crabronidae

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Apoidea (Spheciformes), Crabronidae Zootaxa 4754 (1): 020–073 ISSN 1175-5326 (print edition) https://www.mapress.com/j/zt/ Article ZOOTAXA Copyright © 2020 Magnolia Press ISSN 1175-5334 (online edition) https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.4754.1.6 http://zoobank.org/urn:lsid:zoobank.org:pub:F180E4FF-2E26-406D-B988-AA7505CAA90A Biodiversity of the aculeate wasps (Hymenoptera: Aculeata) of the Arabian Peninsula: Apoidea (Spheciformes), Crabronidae NEVEEN S. GADALLAH Entomology Department, Faculty of Science, Cairo University, Giza, Egypt. E-mail: [email protected] Abstract An updated checklist of the Arabian species of Crabronidae is provided here. The list includes 383 identified valid species in 54 genera and seven subfamilies: Astatinae (3 genera, 16 species), Bembicinae (10 genera, 86 species), Crabroninae (27 genera, 199 species), Dinetinae (1 genus, 3 species), Eremiaspheciinae (2 genera, 7 species), Pemphredoninae (7 genera, 14 species) and Philanthinae (4 genera, 58 species). Distributions, both on the Peninsula and extra-limital, are provided for each species and subspecies; 77 species (20%) are endemic to the Arabian Peninsula, as is one subspecies. Key words: Astatinae, Bembicinae, Crabroninae, Dinetinae, Eremiaspheciinae, Pemphredoninae, Philanthinae, distribution Crabronidae Latreille, 1802 The paraphyletic (or perhaps even polyphyletic) Crabronidae (Ohl & Bleidorn 2006; Lohrmann et al. 2008; Ohl & Spahn 2010; Peters et al. 2017) are a large family of primarily solitary wasps that are worldwide in distribution, especially in arid and semi-arid areas (Bohart & Menke 1976; Schmid-Egger 2011). It currently includes 9009 species in 248 genera and eight subfamilies (Pulawski 2019). Crabronidae were formerly treated as several sub- families within the family Sphecidae (s.l.) (superfamily “Sphecoidea”), which is now divided into four families, Ampulicidae, Crabronidae, Heterogynaidae and Sphecidae (s.s.), together with the bees forming the superfamily Apoidea (Hanson & Menke 2006; Pulawski 2019). Although a recent molecular-phylogenetic study (Debevec et al. 2012) found that the families Ampulicidae and Heterogynaidae are sequential sister taxa to the other two families (the Sphecidae and the paraphyletic Crabronidae), Branstetter et al. (2017) suggested that both Heterogynaidae and a paraphyletic Sphecidae (s.s.) are embedded in a polyphyletic Crabronidae. Sann et al. (2018) found Sphecidae (s.s.) to be monophyletic but within “Crabronidae”, which they suggested should be broken up into eight families. Given the many uncertainties remaining, these recent proposals for reclassification have not been implemented here. Crabronidae comprise 90% of all known extant apoid wasp species (Ohl & Engel 2007; Pulawski 2019). Species of the family Crabronidae are minute to large day-active wasps that prefer high temperatures. Almost all of them are solitary hunting wasps, but social life ranging from communal nesting to eusociality is also known in some crabronid genera such as Cerceris Latreille, Microstigmus Ducke and Spilomena Shuckard (Matthews 1968; Turillazzi et al. 2014). Females nest in the soil or in dead wood, or build mud cells in the open or on house walls, rocks or even tree trunks. Most Arabian species nest in the ground (Schmid-Egger 2011). After paralyzing its hosts/ prey (usually insects but also spiders), the female places them in a nest cell and lays an egg on the host’s body. The hatched larva feeds externally on such prey. The Crabronidae of Arabia have been extensively studied; some of the genera as well as the whole family were revised by several authors (see sources below). An updated list of the species on the Arabian Peninsula is provided here. In total, 383 identified species in 54 genera and seven subfamilies are reported: Astatinae (3 genera, 16 spe- cies), Bembicinae (10 genera, 86 species), Crabroninae (27 genera, 199 species), Dinetinae (1 genus, 3 species), Eremiaspheciinae (2 genera, 7 species), Pemphredoninae (7 genera, 14 species) and Philanthinae (4 genera, 58 species). They represent 4% of the total number of crabronid species worldwide, and the family represents 35% of the recorded aculeate wasps of the region. Crabroninae are the most diverse subfamily, comprising 52% of the total 20 Accepted by Denis J. Brothers: 17 Dec. 2019; published: 20 Mar. 2020.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • The Digger Wasps of Saudi Arabia: New Records and Distribution, with a Checklist of Species (Hym.: Ampulicidae, Crabronidae and Sphecidae)
    NORTH-WESTERN JOURNAL OF ZOOLOGY 9 (2): 345-364 ©NwjZ, Oradea, Romania, 2013 Article No.: 131206 http://biozoojournals.3x.ro/nwjz/index.html The digger wasps of Saudi Arabia: New records and distribution, with a checklist of species (Hym.: Ampulicidae, Crabronidae and Sphecidae) Neveen S. GADALLAH1,*, Hathal M. AL DHAFER2, Yousif N. ALDRYHIM2, Hassan H. FADL2 and Ali A. ELGHARBAWY2 1. Entomology Department, Faculty of Science, Cairo University, Giza, Egypt. 2. Plant Protection Department, College of Food and Agriculture Science, King Saud University, King Saud Museum of Arthropod (KSMA), Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. *Corresponing author, N.S. Gadalah, E-mail: [email protected] Received: 24. September 2012 / Accepted: 13. January 2013 / Available online: 02. June 2013 / Printed: December 2013 Abstract. The “sphecid’ fauna of Saudi Arabia (Hymenoptera: Apoidea) is listed. A total of 207 species in 42 genera are recorded including previous and new species records. Most Saudi Arabian species recorded up to now are more or less common and widespread mainly in the Afrotropical and Palaearctic zoogeographical zones, the exception being Bembix buettikeri Guichard, Bembix hofufensis Guichard, Bembix saudi Guichard, Cerceris constricta Guichard, Oxybelus lanceolatus Gerstaecker, Palarus arabicus Pulawski in Pulawski & Prentice, Tachytes arabicus Guichard and Tachytes fidelis Pulawski, which are presumed endemic to Saudi Arabia (3.9% of the total number of species). General distribution and ecozones, and Saudi Arabian localities are given for each species. In this study two genera (Diodontus Curtis and Dryudella Spinola) and 11 species are newly recorded from Saudi Arabia. Key words: Ampulicidae, Crabronidae, Sphecidae, faunistic list, new records, Saudi Arabia. Introduction tata boops (Schrank), Bembecinus meridionalis A.Costa, Diodontus sp.
    [Show full text]
  • Cresson) (Hymenoptera: Sphecidae
    Great Basin Naturalist Volume 35 Number 1 Article 16 3-31-1975 The nest and larva of Diploplectron brunneipes (Cresson) (Hymenoptera: Sphecidae) Howard E. Evans Colorado State University, Fort Collins Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/gbn Recommended Citation Evans, Howard E. (1975) "The nest and larva of Diploplectron brunneipes (Cresson) (Hymenoptera: Sphecidae)," Great Basin Naturalist: Vol. 35 : No. 1 , Article 16. Available at: https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/gbn/vol35/iss1/16 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Western North American Naturalist Publications at BYU ScholarsArchive. It has been accepted for inclusion in Great Basin Naturalist by an authorized editor of BYU ScholarsArchive. For more information, please contact [email protected], [email protected]. THE NEST AND LARVA OF DIPLOPLECTRON BRUNNEIPES (CRESSON) (HYMENOPTERA: SPHECIDAE) Howard E. Evans^ Abstract.— Diploplectron brunneipes (Cresson) makes a shallow nest in compact clay-sand con- taining at least two cells. It is provisioned with immature Heteroptera. The larva resembles that of Astata in a general way but differs in several particulars. Wasps of the genus Diploplectron es- the entrance. Each cell contained 6 im- ( ape frequent detection because of their mature bugs, Uhleriola floralis (Uhler) small size (4-7 mm) and secretive behav- (Lygaeidae) [det. J. A. Slater] and a ior. For many years the genus was poorly small larva, one of which was reared to understood, but in 1972 there appeared maturity and is described below. Both of two important papers: Parker presented these cells had been closed off with a bar- a revision of the 15 New World species, rier of sand.
    [Show full text]
  • Changes in the Insect Fauna of a Deteriorating Riverine Sand Dune
    ., CHANGES IN THE INSECT FAUNA OF A DETERIORATING RIVERINE SAND DUNE COMMUNITY DURING 50 YEARS OF HUMAN EXPLOITATION J. A. Powell Department of Entomological Sciences University of California, Berkeley May , 1983 TABLE OF CONTENTS INTRODUCTION 1 HISTORY OF EXPLOITATION 4 HISTORY OF ENTOMOLOGICAL INVESTIGATIONS 7 INSECT FAUNA 10 Methods 10 ErRs s~lected for compar"ltive "lnBlysis 13 Bio1o~ica1 isl!lnd si~e 14 Inventory of sp~cies 14 Endemism 18 Extinctions 19 Species restricted to one of the two refu~e parcels 25 Possible recently colonized species 27 INSECT ASSOCIATES OF ERYSIMUM AND OENOTHERA 29 Poll i n!ltor<'l 29 Predqt,.n·s 32 SUMMARY 35 RECOm1ENDATIONS FOR RECOVERY ~4NAGEMENT 37 ACKNOWT.. EDGMENTS 42 LITERATURE CITED 44 APPENDICES 1. T'lbles 1-8 49 2. St::ttns of 15 Antioch Insects Listed in Notice of 75 Review by the U.S. Fish "l.nd Wildlife Service INTRODUCTION The sand dune formation east of Antioch, Contra Costa County, California, comprised the largest riverine dune system in California. Biogeographically, this formation was unique because it supported a northern extension of plants and animals of desert, rather than coastal, affinities. Geologists believe that the dunes were relicts of the most recent glaciation of the Sierra Nevada, probably originating 10,000 to 25,000 years ago, with the sand derived from the supratidal floodplain of the combined Sacramento and San Joaquin Rivers. The ice age climate in the area is thought to have been cold but arid. Presumably summertime winds sweeping through the Carquinez Strait across the glacial-age floodplains would have picked up the fine-grained sand and redeposited it to the east and southeast, thus creating the dune fields of eastern Contra Costa County.
    [Show full text]
  • Checklist of the Spheciform Wasps (Hymenoptera: Crabronidae & Sphecidae) of British Columbia
    Checklist of the Spheciform Wasps (Hymenoptera: Crabronidae & Sphecidae) of British Columbia Chris Ratzlaff Spencer Entomological Collection, Beaty Biodiversity Museum, UBC, Vancouver, BC This checklist is a modified version of: Ratzlaff, C.R. 2015. Checklist of the spheciform wasps (Hymenoptera: Crabronidae & Sphecidae) of British Columbia. Journal of the Entomological Society of British Columbia 112:19-46 (available at http://journal.entsocbc.ca/index.php/journal/article/view/894/951). Photographs for almost all species are online in the Spencer Entomological Collection gallery (http://www.biodiversity.ubc.ca/entomology/). There are nine subfamilies of spheciform wasps in recorded from British Columbia, represented by 64 genera and 280 species. The majority of these are Crabronidae, with 241 species in 55 genera and five subfamilies. Sphecidae is represented by four subfamilies, with 39 species in nine genera. The following descriptions are general summaries for each of the subfamilies and include nesting habits and provisioning information. The Subfamilies of Crabronidae Astatinae !Three genera and 16 species of astatine wasps are found in British Columbia. All species of Astata, Diploplectron, and Dryudella are groundnesting and provision their nests with heteropterans (Bohart and Menke 1976). Males of Astata and Dryudella possess holoptic eyes and are often seen perching on sticks or rocks. Bembicinae Nineteen genera and 47 species of bembicine wasps are found in British Columbia. All species are groundnesting and most prefer habitats with sand or sandy soil, hence the common name of “sand wasps”. Four genera, Bembix, Microbembex, Steniolia and Stictiella, have been recorded nesting in aggregations (Bohart and Horning, Jr. 1971; Bohart and Gillaspy 1985).
    [Show full text]
  • Phylogeny and Evolution of Wasps, Ants and Bees (Hymenoptera, Chrysidoidea, Vespoidea and Apoidea) Phylogeny of Aculeata D. J. B
    Phylogeny and evolution of wasps, ants and bees (Hymenoptera, Chrysidoidea, Vespoidea and Apoidea) DENIS J. BROTHERS Accepted 25 November 1998 Brothers, D. J. (1999) Phylogeny and evolution of wasps, ants and bees (Hymenoptera, Chrysidoidea, Vespoidea and Apoidea). Ð Zoologica Scripta 28, 233±249. The comprehensive cladistic study of family-level phylogeny in the Aculeata (sensu lato)by Brothers & Carpenter, published in 1993, is briefly reviewed and re-evaluated, particularly with respect to the sections dealing with Vespoidea and Apoidea. This remains the most recent general treatment of the subject, but several of the relationships indicated are only weakly supported, notably those of Pompilidae and Rhopalosomatidae. Characters used were almost entirely morphological, and re-evaluation of ground-plan states and hypotheses of character-state changes, specially from examination of different exemplars, is likely to lead to slightly different conclusions for some taxa, as is the use of additional or new characters, including molecular ones. The relationships of taxa within the Vespoidea are much better known than for those in the Apoidea, but recent work on the two major groups of bees (by Michener and colleagues) and various groups of sphecoid wasps (by Alexander and Melo) have provided greater clarity, for some families at least. A single cladogram showing the putative relationships of those taxa which should be recognized at the family level for the entire Aculeata is presented. These are, for the Chrysidoidea, Apoidea and Vespoidea, respectively (limits indicated by curly brackets): {Plumariidae + (Scolebythidae + ((Bethylidae + Chrysididae) + (Sclerogibbidae + (Dryinidae + Embolemidae))))} + ({Heterogynaidae + (Ampulicidae + (Sphecidae + (Crabronidae + Apidae)))} + {Sierolomorphidae + ((Tiphiidae + (Sapygidae + Mutillidae)) + ((Pompilidae + Rhopalosomatidae) + (Bradynobaenidae + (Formicidae + (Vespidae + Scoliidae)))))}).
    [Show full text]
  • Wasps and Bees in Southern Africa
    SANBI Biodiversity Series 24 Wasps and bees in southern Africa by Sarah K. Gess and Friedrich W. Gess Department of Entomology, Albany Museum and Rhodes University, Grahamstown Pretoria 2014 SANBI Biodiversity Series The South African National Biodiversity Institute (SANBI) was established on 1 Sep- tember 2004 through the signing into force of the National Environmental Manage- ment: Biodiversity Act (NEMBA) No. 10 of 2004 by President Thabo Mbeki. The Act expands the mandate of the former National Botanical Institute to include respon- sibilities relating to the full diversity of South Africa’s fauna and flora, and builds on the internationally respected programmes in conservation, research, education and visitor services developed by the National Botanical Institute and its predecessors over the past century. The vision of SANBI: Biodiversity richness for all South Africans. SANBI’s mission is to champion the exploration, conservation, sustainable use, appreciation and enjoyment of South Africa’s exceptionally rich biodiversity for all people. SANBI Biodiversity Series publishes occasional reports on projects, technologies, workshops, symposia and other activities initiated by, or executed in partnership with SANBI. Technical editing: Alicia Grobler Design & layout: Sandra Turck Cover design: Sandra Turck How to cite this publication: GESS, S.K. & GESS, F.W. 2014. Wasps and bees in southern Africa. SANBI Biodi- versity Series 24. South African National Biodiversity Institute, Pretoria. ISBN: 978-1-919976-73-0 Manuscript submitted 2011 Copyright © 2014 by South African National Biodiversity Institute (SANBI) All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form without written per- mission of the copyright owners. The views and opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect those of SANBI.
    [Show full text]
  • Sphecos: a Forum for Aculeate Wasp Researchers
    APRIL 1991 SPHECOS A FORUM FOR ACUlEATE WASP. RESEARCHERS MINUTIAE FROM THE ty• of digger wasps had a slightly une­ MUD D'AUB ARNOLDS. MENKE, Edhor ven distribution while the •nesting Tony Nuhn, Assistant Editor com­ Systematic Entomology Labratory munity• had a more patchy distnbution. Still no official word from the old Agricultural Research Senrice,USDA Sphecid communHies were more di· BMNH regarding personnel changes, c/o National Museum of Natural History verse on patches w~h relatively low but as of last November, Nigel Fergus­ Smithsonian I1Stitution, Washington, DC 20560 plant diversHy and cover. Diversity de· FAX: (202) son (a cynipoidist) was put in charge 786-9422 Phone: (202) 382-t803 creased in response to watering and of Coleoptera. Nigel informed me that watering combined wHh mechanical iso­ Tom Huddleston is now in charge of lation and increased after removal oi Hymenoptera. By the time you receive the upper layer of soil and plants. this issue of Sphecos, Mick Day may RESEARCH NEWS no longer be employed at The Natural lynn Kimsey (Dept. of Entomology, Alexander V. Antropov History Museum (aka BMNH). (Zoological Univ. of California. Davis, CA 95616, Museum of the Moscow lomonosov George Eickwort of Cornell Universi­ USA) reports "I am revising the wasp State ty is the President-elect of the Interna­ University, Herzen Street 6, Mos­ family Tiphiidae for the world, and have cow K-9 I tional Society of Hymenopterists. The 03009 USSR) has described begun sorting all of our miscellaneous a new genus of Crabroninae Society's second quadrennial meeting from Bra­ tiphiid wasps to genus and species.
    [Show full text]
  • The Sphecid Wasps (Hym. Ampulicidae, Sphecidae & Crabronidae) of Egypt. Part 2: Checklist C. Giles Roche ABSTRACT INTRODUCTI
    Egyptian Journal of Natural History, 2007, Vol. 4 , pp 1 - 9 © Printed in Egypt. Egyptian British Biological Society (EBB Soc) _________________________________________________________________________________________________________ The sphecid wasps (Hym. Ampulicidae, Sphecidae & Crabronidae) of Egypt. Part 2: Checklist C. Giles Roche Lot 44, Taman Wong Wo Lo, Phase 1, Jalan Tun Mustapha, 87008 W.P. Labuan, MALAYSIA (email: [email protected]) ABSTRACT The list of Egyptian sphecid wasps includes the current names of those species recorded in the literature with indications where these have changed together with previously unrecorded genera and species. Three genera have not been recorded from Egypt hitherto (Spilomena, Crossocerus, Lestica). Twenty-four species are recorded for the first time (Chalybion heinii, Sceliphron madraspatanum tubifex, Sphex lanatus, Sphex libycus, Prionyx judaeus, Ammophila djaouk, Diodontus brachycerus, Spilomena sp., Astata boops, Dryudella beaumonti, Liris pictipennis, Solierella compedita, Miscophus pseudomimeticus, Belomicrus dimorpha, Belomicrus odontophorus, Oxybelus dissectus, Oxybelus haemorrhoidalis, Crossocerus adhaesus, Lestica clypeata, Bembix joeli, Cerceris clytia, Cerceris lunata, Cerceris rybyensis, Cerceris sabulosa algirica). INTRODUCTION This checklist forms part of a series of papers (Roche, 2007a,b; Roche & Gadallah, 1999; Roche & Zalat, 1994) dealing with the Egyptian sphecid wasps, of which the generic key (Roche & Gadallah, 1999) and Sinai list (Roche & Zalat, 1994) have already been published. The last complete checklist of the sphecid wasps of Egypt was that of Honoré (1942) which also included species of neighbouring countries which could perhaps be found in Egypt. This present list is based on a search of the literature, augmented by some species found in collections. It excludes some names given in the literature which are nomina dubia and nomina nuda, together with some where it is now believed that the species were recorded from Egypt in error.
    [Show full text]
  • Sphecos: a Forum for Aculeate Wasp Researchers
    SEPTEMBER 1990 SPHECOSA FORUM FOR ACULEATE WASP RESEARCHERS THE MUD D'AUB SPEAKS Selected Studies has finally complet- ARNOLDS. MENKE, Editor ed all of the review process by Oxford Terry Nuhn, Assistant Editor In our last issue I promised an article Systematic Entomology Labratory University Press and we hope to see it on Brethes types by Jorge Genise and Agricultural Research Service, USDA published before the middle of 1991 (I an essay on aculeate wing venation by c/o National Museum of Natural History have been told by some not to be so Mick Day and Jim Carpenter. Well Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC 20560 hopeful)". Also, he has collected two Jorge's article is here, but the wing FAX: (202) 786-9422 Phone: (202) 382-1803 species of Miscophus in Panama, and thing isn't. However, Mick and Jim hopes to publish a paper on them. promise to get the job done soon. The absence of a winger print essay Walter Borsato (Museo Civico di is more than compensated for by an in- Storia Naturale, Lung. Porta Vittoria, 9, triguing preliminary cladistic analysis of I 37129 Verona, Italy) writes: "I'm a the Sphecidae and Apidae by Byron Al- collaborator on the Verona Museum of exander - enjoy! Storia Naturals, and also a member of In Sphecos 19:19 we made refer- th A.I.S.A.S.P. (Associazione ltaliana ence to "disturbing news" at the Br ish per lo Studio degli Artropodi Sociali e Museum (N.H.). I have been promised Presociale) Italian section of the Inter- an official statement about what is hap- national Union for the study of social in- pening in Hymenoptera in particular, sects.
    [Show full text]
  • Review of the Genus Tachytes Panzer (Hymenoptera: Crabronidae: Crabroninae) of South Korea, with Description of One New Species
    Zootaxa 3795 (3): 301–310 ISSN 1175-5326 (print edition) www.mapress.com/zootaxa/ Article ZOOTAXA Copyright © 2014 Magnolia Press ISSN 1175-5334 (online edition) http://dx.doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.3795.3.5 http://zoobank.org/urn:lsid:zoobank.org:pub:9A2E77BA-28C5-4962-B009-FB39DBD38E34 Review of the genus Tachytes Panzer (Hymenoptera: Crabronidae: Crabroninae) of South Korea, with description of one new species YEONG-BIN BACK1 & JEONG-KYU KIM2,3 1Biodiversity Institute, Hanseo University, Seosan-si, Chungcheongnam-do, 356-706 Korea 2Korean Bio-resources Research Center, Seosuwon-ro 607-303, Gweonseon-gu, Suwon-si, Gyeonggi-do, 441-746 Korea 3Corresponding author. E-mail: [email protected] Abstract Korean species of the genus Tachytes Panzer are reviewed. Four previously known species are confirmed, and one new species, Tachytes gyusanus is described. The new species is very similar to T. modestus, but it differs critically in the form of male genitalic capsule. A revised key to South Korean species, a description of the new species, and digital images and line drawings of diagnostic characteristics are provided. Key words: Tachytes, Crabronidae, sphecid wasps, new species, South Korea Introduction The genus Tachytes Panzer is one of fifteen genera in the cosmopolitan tribe Larrini (Hymenoptera: Crabronidae: Crabroninae) and comprises about 296 species (Pulawski, 2014). The members of the genus are medium to large size wasps easily recognized by very elongated ocellar scars, comma-like in shape (Bohart & Menke, 1976). They are solitary, ground-nesting predators mainly provisioning orthopterans for young (Iwata, 1971; O’Neil, 2001). Six Far Eastern species of Tachytes including four from Korea are known (Tsuneki, 1964a, 1964b; Kim, 1970, 1980; Tsuneki, 1974; Bohart & Menke, 1976; Nemkov et al., 1995; Li et al., 2008; Terayama, 2008; Nemkov, 2009; Pulawski, 2014).
    [Show full text]
  • REVISION of HAWAIIAN CRABRONINAE with SYNOPSIS of HAWAIIAN SPHECIDAE (Hym.)
    Pacific Insects 2 (3) : 301-337 October 10, 1960 REVISION OF HAWAIIAN CRABRONINAE WITH SYNOPSIS OF HAWAIIAN SPHECIDAE (Hym.) By Carl M. Yoshimoto BISHOP MUSEUM, HONOLULU, HAWAII The present study involves descriptions, keys to genera and species, distribution, and biology of the Hawaiian crabronids. Also included are keys to the genera and species of introduced sphecids in Hawaii. A key to the 6 subfamilies of Sphecidae in Hawaii was given in a previous paper (Yoshimoto, 1959), which covered the subfamily Pemphredoni­ nae. Only the Pemphredoninae (previous paper) and Crabroninae contain sphecid species limited to Hawaii. The Hawaiian Crabroninae consist of 22 endemic species, including 2 new species, be­ longing to the cosmopolitan genus Ectemnius Dahlbom. They are placed in 2 subgenera, Nesocrabro Perkins and Oreocrabro Perkins. Both subgenera are endemic to the Hawaiian Islands. Perkins (1899) placed the Hawaiian Crabroninae in the subgenus Crabro (Solenius) Lepeletier and Brulle and genus Nesocrabo Perkins. Later, Perkins (1902) concluded that the Hawaiian species of the subgenus Solenius are not congeneric with the European geno­ type, Crabro vagus (L.), and he erected 4 new genera to receive them, Oreocrabro, Hylo- crabro, Melanocrabro and Xenocrabro. Pate (1944) placed all of the Hawaiian Crabroninae in the subgenera Nesocrabro and Oreocrabro of the genus Ectemnius Dahlbom, and synony­ mized the 3 remaining genera of Perkins with the subgenus Oreocrabro. Leclercq (1954) followed Pate's classification, as is done in this paper. A single species of Nesocrabro collected in Japan was described by Tsuneki (1958). From the description, it is evident that this species, Ectemnius (Nesocrabro} shimoyamai Tsuneki, is significantly different from the Hawaiian forms; therefore, I believe that this species does not belong to Nesocrabro, although it appears to belong to a closely related group.
    [Show full text]
  • Notes on a Nesting Aggregation of Digger Wasps in Seattle, Washington (Hymenoptera)
    THE WASMA NN JO URNAL OF BIOLOGY VoL. 3 1, No. 2 F ALL, 197 3 Notes on a Nesting Aggregation of Digger Wasps in Seattle, Washington (Hymenoptera) JOHN ALCOCK, Department of Zoology, Arizona Stat.e University, Tempe, Arizona 85281. In the summers of 1971 and 1972, I observed the nesting behavior of a group of digger wasps in a vacant lot near Union Bay, Lake Washington, in Seattle. The behavior of a majority of the species in this aggregation has not been described in detail before. The methods employed in this study were simple. I watched the main nesting area, a 10 m. portion of a path running through a grassy field by the edge of a large blackberry patch, for periods ranging from 1- 4 hours on most sunny days between July 17 and September 4, 197 1, and between June 2 and August 4, 1972. The path was less than 1 m. wide. It was weakly banked on either side and composed of sand patches with earth and pebbles elsewhere. Small grasses and a few weeds were scattered about the path with a dense mat of grasses and weeds on the sloping sides of the trail. The results are presented in the form of a list of the species observed nesting in the study site with a description of their natural history based on notes taken during and immediately after each observation period. POMPILIDAE Pompilus angularis ( Banks). Although this wasp was often seen about the path apparently hunting over the ground , only 1 nest was located. This was dug in an open area of hard-packed earth in the center of the path.
    [Show full text]