J. HYM. RES. Vol. 3, 1994, pp. 119-132 A Review of the Agile Species Group of Pison (Hymenoptera: Sphecidae: Trypoxylini) Alexander V. Antropov Zoological Museum of the Moscow State University, Herzen Street 6, Moscow K-9, 103009 Russia — is are a is for Abstract. The agile species group of Pison redescribed, the 12 included species reviewed, and key provided Palearctic is identification. The agile group is restricted to the Oriental and eastern Regions, although one species, koreense, adventive in North America. Five species are new: agiloides from Sri Lanka; chrysoptilum from Borneo; mngyuenfuense from southwestern China; vechti from Malaya and Indonesia; and pulawskii from India. Other species of the group are: agile (Smith) from southern India and Sri Lanka; erythropus Kohl from western India; koreense (Radoszkowski) from eastern Asia and North America; rothneyi Cameron from southeast Asia; browni (Ashmead) from the Philippines; different Turner from Assam, India; and hissancum Gussakovskij from Uzbekistan and Tajikistan. Lectotypes are designated for agile, differens and rufipes (Smith) and a neotype is designated for koreense. Pison koreense is removed from synonymy with agile. INTRODUCTION CAS California Academy of Sciences, San Francisco, California (W. J. Pulawski). The genus Pison, which contains nearly 200 NMNH Nationaal Natuurhistorisch Museum, Leiden, The Netherlands van described species (Bohart and Menke 1976; Menke (C. Achterberg). OUM Hope Entomological Collections, University Mu- 1988), is well represented in all faunal regions seum, Oxford, England (C. OToole). except North America where only an adventive USNM U.S. National Museum, Washington, DC, USA (K. is known. species, koreense, V. Krombein, A. S. Menke). In this paper I review the agile species group ZIN Zoological Institute, Russian Academy of Sciences, St. Russia I. which contains 12 species, five of which are new. Petersburg, (V. Tobias). ZMK Museum, Denmark Members of this assemblage have been placed in Zoological Copenhagen, (O. Lomholdt). the subgenera Pisonoides and Krombeiniellum, but Menke (1988) used species groups rather than The specimens from the collection of the Zoo- subgenera for infrageneric groups. The agile group Museum of the Moscow State is restricted to the eastern Palearctic and the Orien- logical University (ZMUM) were also used in the review. tal Regions, except for the east Asian species koreerxse which was introduced into North America after World War II (Krombein 1958a). presumably THE AGILE GROUP Morphological terminology used here follows Bohart and Menke and Menke The (1976) (1988). This group is characterized as follows: com- abbreviations are used in the text: following OOD pound eyes densely setose, antenna clavate, oc- = ocello-ocular distance; OD = ocellus diameter; cipital carina complete or nearly so, anterior POD = distance between ocelli. posterior pronotal pit small, subomaulus present, episternal The museum and institutions lent following sulcus straight, forewing with only two submar- for this are used specimens study (abbreviations ginal cells (true second submarginal cell lost in the text): through diminution), hindcoxa without dorsolat- eral carina, lamelli- AUZM Universiteit van Amsterdam, Zoologisch Museum, metapleural flange usually Amsterdam, The Netherlands (W. Hogenes). form, propodeum without lateral carina or crenu- BMNH The Natural History Museum, London, England late ridge, male sternum VIII narrow, gonostyle (C. R. L. Ficken). Vardy, simple, volsella small, penis valve compressed 120 Journal of Hymenoptera Research laterally and without teeth or notched ventrally. (really 3rd) usually not petiolate; recurrent veins Menke (1988) regarded the setose eyes, the received by 1st and 2nd submarginal cells or 2nd clavate antenna, the two submarginal cells, the recurrent vein interstitial between 1st and 2nd presence of a subomaulus, the straight episternal submarginal cells; hind coxa dorsum with low sulcus, the lamelliform metapleural flange and inner carina, without outer carina; legs finely sculp- claw shape as apomorphies of the agile group. Its tured, without stout spines on tibiae and species apparently represent a monophyletic as- tarsomeres; all tarsomeres IV with small plantulae; semblage. Morphologically they are very similar tarsal claw thick to just before apex; propodeum and differ mainly in leg color, tergal bands, punc- rounded, without lateral carinae or lines of foveae tation, vestiture and proportions of tergum I. Male and crenulate ridges, punctate with smooth genitalia are also similar. One of the new species, interspaces; propodeal dorsum not delimited pulaivskii, stands apart from the others in the group (browni with shallow lateral sulcus), with medium because its metapleural flange is narrow. I regard furrow containing short to complete ridge; abdo- it as a plesiomorphic state. Two other species have men compact; tergum I simple or with preapical in unique autapomorphies: browni the propodeal transverse depression (Figs. 15-19); apical bands dorsum is delimited a laterally by shallow, broad of terga often translucent and with silvery or golden sulcus and tergum I has a distinct preapical de- pubescence; male sternum VIII long, narrow, in pression; agiloides submarginal cell II is open rounded or weakly notched apically; genitalia distally. compact, compressed laterally; volsellae small, —Inner Description. orbits of eyes moderately rounded and weakly setose; gonostyle triangular, emarginate, parallel (eyes equidistant at vertex simple, with long, coarse lateral setae curved be- and or clypeus) slightly converging below (rarely neath; penis valve compressed laterally, consider- above); eyes covered densely with short, erect ably widened apically, without teeth or notches setae (Fig. 3); clypeus convex, in female rounded ventrally. in male or Included — (Figs. 4a, 5a), angulate prominent apically Species. agile (Smith), agiloides sp. n., frons antennae (Figs. 4b, 5b); convex; clavate, com- browni (Ashmead), chrysoptilum sp. n., differens paratively short, with distal flagellomeres wider Turner, erythropus Kohl, hissaricum Gussakovskij, than labrum truncate or long; subquadrate, slightly koreense (Radoszkowski), ningxjuenfuense sp. n., carina a emarginate apically; occipital complete pulaivskii sp. n., rothneyi (Cameron), vechti sp. n. almost — (or complete) circle, narrowly separated Biology. Information is available for two spe- from hypostomal carina; male mandible simple, cies of the group, koreense and erythropus. The that of female with inner tooth slightly distad of former was studied by Iwata (1964) in Japan and midpoint; pronotum with small round pit anteri- by Sheldon (1968) in North America. The Indian without orly, lamellae; scutum and mesopleuron species, en/thropus, was studied by Home (1870). moderately, uniformly punctate; episternal sul- These wasps construct small, clay cells, placing cus almost straight, not curved forward ventrad; them separately or in groups on variable surfaces, subomaulus recurved ventrad; omaulus and ac- but not within linear cavities (borings in wood or etabular carina sulcus absent; mesopleural paral- empty stems of plants). The groups may include leled anteriorly by a row of foveolae; metapleuron up to 21 cells which do not merge in a common smooth; metapleural flange usually broadly lamel- mass but keep their independence. Prey consists liform of posteriorly (Figs. 6-8); tegula entirely punc- 6-31 paralyzed, small, usually immature spi- tate; forewing media diverging after cu-a; forew- ders. ing with two submarginal cells (Figs. 10-13), 2nd KEY TO SPECIES OF THE AGILE GROUP —1 All femora completely reddish 2 Mid- and hindfemora brown, forefemora mainly brown 6 narrow India —2(1) Metapleural flange (Fig. 9); pulaivskii sp. n. Metapleural flange broadly lamelliform posteriorly (Figs. 6-8) 3 Volume 3. 1994 121 3(2) Pronotum, scutum, scutellum, metanotum and propodeal dorsum and hindface with suberect golden setae; Borneo chrysoptilum sp. n. Thorax and propodeum with only silvery pubescence 4 4(3) All legs including tarsi and base of trochanters yellowish-red; western India erythropus Kohl — Trochanters, hintibiae apically and tarsi dark brown 5 5(4) Abdominal tergum I densely punctate (punctures separated by a diameter or less), dull due to dense microsculpture; translucent apical bands of terga I-III whitish, at middle hardly broader than hindtarsal — diameter; Uzbekistan, Tajikistan hissaricum Gussakovskij Abdominal tergum I finely, sparsely punctate (punctures more than a diameter apart), surface smooth, weakly shiny in spite of microstriae; translucent apical bands of terga golden, broad, those of 1 1— 1 1 1 at of middle almost equal to diameter hindtibia; Malaysia, Indonesia vechti sp. n. Abdominal I same as —6(1) tergum polished, sculpture nearly following terga 7 Abdominal tergum I dull or weakly shiny in contrast to following terga 8 7(6) Tibiae reddish; scutal punctures fine, dense, less than a diameter apart; translucent apical bands of abdominal terga golden, apical bands of terga I-III at middle at least twice as broad as diameter of hindtarsomere cell II Sri Lanka n. — I; submarginal open distally (Fig. 14); agiloides sp. Mid- and hindtibiae brown, foretibia partly reddish; scutal punctures coarse, more than a diameter apart; translucent apical bands of abdominal terga mainly whitish, those on I-III equal to or hardly broader than diameter of hindtarsomere I (Fig. 15); submarginal cell II closed; southern India and Sri