The genus Polistes Latreille, 1802 (Hymenoptera: Vespidae) of Brazil: morphological diagnoses, identification key, and geographical distribution Author Brito, Samanta 0000-0002-0945-6894 Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas da Amazônia, Coordenação de Biodiversidade, Manaus, AM, Brazil brito.samanta25@gmail.com Author Oliveira, Marcio L. 0000-0002-3950-1086 Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas da Amazônia, Coordenação de Biodiversidade, Manaus, AM, Brazil mlolivei@inpa.gov.br Author Carpenter, James M. 0000-0001-6754-8028 American Museum of Natural History, Division of Invertebrate Zoology, New York, USA carpente@amnh.org Author Somavilla, Alexandre Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas da Amazônia, Coordenação de Biodiversidade, Manaus, AM, Brazil text Zootaxa 2024 2024-08-21 5496 4 509 545 http://dx.doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.5496.4.3 journal article 10.11646/zootaxa.5496.4.3 1175-5326 CC25A6CB-0783-4917-BEF7-0F332F6451F5 Polistes ( Aphanilopterus ) brevifissus Richards, 1978 (Figs 7, 8) Polistes brevifissus Richards, 1978: 468 (key), 481, ♀ , ♂ . Diagnosis. Female. Body and wing pigmentation reddish to brown. Size intermediate, about 20 mm in total length. Clypeus slightly wider than long or as long as wide, covered by long bristles, and with medium-sized deep punctures, present only in the apical region, apex rounded, clypeus-eye touching for an extent smaller than width of antennal socket; gena width at midlength equal to or slightly wider than eye; occipital carina strong; humeri not projecting; mesepisternum with short and dense bristles, with small and shallow punctation; propodeal concavity widely extended in the center, propodeal striae strong in the center and weak on the sides; tergum I longer than wide, with short and dense bristles, punctures strong, medium sized, and deep; tergum II wider than or as wide as long, short, and dense bristles, with corrugation. Male. Similar to the females, except for the face lighter than the body, propodeum totally black, terga with black apical bands. Material examined . 14♀ , 1♂ in total. Brazil : Mato Grosso , 2♀ ( NHM ) , 2♀ ( MZSP ); Pará , 1♀ [ Paratype ] ( NHM ) , 4♀ ( NHM ); Paraná , 1♂ ( AMNH ); Rio Grande do Sul , 1♀ ( AMNH ) , 4♀ ( NHM ) . Distribution. Brazil : Amapá , Bahia , Espírito Santo , Goiás , Mato Grosso , Mato Grosso do Sul , Minas Gerais , Pará, Paraíba , Paraná , Rio de Janeiro , Rio Grande do Sul , Roraima , São Paulo ; Paraguay ; Argentina .