Afrotropical Cynipoidea (Hymenoptera)
Author
Noort, Simon van
Author
Buffington, Matthew L.
Author
Forshage, Mattias
text
ZooKeys
2015
493
1
176
http://dx.doi.org/10.3897/zookeys.493.6353
journal article
http://dx.doi.org/10.3897/zookeys.493.6353
1313-2970-493-1
1FBFFA4CA71F495CAD22F2EB680FEF95
1FBFFA4CA71F495CAD22F2EB680FEF95
Taxon classification Animalia Hymenoptera Figitidae
Didyctium Riley, 1879
Remarks.
Among the most common genera of eucoilines in the Afrotropical region (yet not recorded by Quinlan). Not always certainly distinguished from
Ganaspis
,
Hexacola
and
Endecameris
.
Diagnosis.
Didyctium
are usually recognisable through the combination of a concave scutellar plate and the characteristically half-open marginal cell. Furthermore, unlike in typical representatives of the closely related
Ganaspis
, the head is transverse (not deep), the mesosoma is short (propodeum not extended), the coxae bear small hair tufts (not elongate hairlines), the scutellar plate is relatively small, the lateral bars of the scutellum are striate, and the posterior margin of the metapleuron is straight (not with a circular or elongate incision). However, the diverse
Ganaspis
may vary in all these traits.
Didyctium
females usually have very unusual antennae, where the flagellomeres are strongly differentiated into very short annelli and very long club articles. Very small specimens of
Didyctium
approach the character states of
Endecameris
, and the boundary between the two genera is uncertain.
Figure 30.
Didyctium
species (Kenya). A habitus lateral view B head and mesosoma dorsal view C propodeal plate anterior dorsal view.
Distribution.
Worldwide. Afrotropical records: Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Comoros, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Kenya, Madagascar,
Republic
of Congo, Sierra Leone, South Africa, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe (here).
Biology.
Attacks
Phoridae
and other flies in concealed habitats (
Beardsley 1989
,
Riley 1879
, label data); no host records are from Africa.
Species richness.
Didyctium naivashae
(Kieffer, 1913b), comb. n. (
Cothonaspis
) Type in MNHN studied by MF (Kenya, Rwanda)
Numerous African species remain to be described.