Revision of the Western Palearctic Meteorini (Hymenoptera, Braconidae), with a molecular characterization of hidden Fennoscandian species diversity 3084
Author
Stigenberg, Julia
Author
Ronquist, Fredrik
text
Zootaxa
2011
2011-10-28
3084
1
1
95
https://biotaxa.org/Zootaxa/article/view/zootaxa.3084.1.1
journal article
10.11646/zootaxa.3084.1.1
11755334
5244448
Meteorus affinis
(Wesmael)
Fig. 83
Perilitus affinis
Wesmael, 1835:31
.
Holotype
♀
,
Belgium
:
Wesmael
coll. (IRSNB Brussells) examined.
Meteorus punctiventris
Ruthe, 1862:25
.
Holotype
♀
,
Germany
:
Ruthe
coll. (BMNH London) examined
Meteorus gracilis
Ruthe, 1862:31
.
Holotype
♀
,
Germany
: Ruthe coll. (BMNH London). Junior primary homonym of
gracilis
Ratzeburg, 1852
.
Meteorus ruthei
Schmiedeknecht, 1897:205
. Replacement name for
gracilis
Ruthe, 1862
. Synonymized by
Huddleston 1980:22
.
Meteorus voloscensis
Fischer, 1959:
14
Holotype ♀
Yugoslavia
: Volosca,
Graeffe
coll. (NM, Vienna) Synonymized by
Huddleston, 1980:22
examined.
Diagnosis
:
Meteorus affinis
is similar to
M. vexator
but has distinctly lobed claws and larger ocelli than the latter. These differences are visible also in small specimens, which are otherwise very similar due to their weaker sculpture and the reduction in the number of antennal articles. The mesosoma of
M. affinis
sometimes has yellow markings, but we never found this to be true for
M. vexator
.
Studied material
: ~
100 specimens
.
Description
: Size about
4 mm
. Antennal articles 27–30. Head strongly rounded behind eyes. Ocelli large, OOL=1.5–2.0. Eyes large, protuberant and strongly convergent. Malar space short, much less than basal width of mandible. Face as broad as high, not protuberant but rugulose. Clypeus not strongly protuberant. Mandible stout, moderately twisted. Precoxal sulcus foveolate. Propodeum rugose, the transverse carinae of the propodeum often most developed. Petiolar tergum narrow with distinct dorsal pits, about twice as long as apically broad. Ovipositor long, 3.0–3.5 times length of petiolar tergum, slender. Legs long, slender; hind coxae rugose ventrolaterally; tarsal claws with small but distinct lobe. Colour generally black with yellow areas.
♂
antennal articles 30–33; eyes smaller and not strongly convergent; sculpture of precoxal sulcus and of hind coxa obsolescent.
Distribution
: Western and Eastern Palearctic. Country records:
Armenia
;
Belgium
;
Bulgaria
;
China
;
Croatia
;
Czechoslovakia
;
Finland
;
France
;
Germany
;
Hungary
;
Ireland
;
Italy
;
Korea
;
Netherlands
;
Norway
;
Romania
;
Russia
;
Sweden
;
Switzerland
;
United Kingdom
;
Yugoslavia
.
Biology
:
Meteorus affinis
is a solitary endoparasitoid that is attracted to light. Most host records involve the lepidopteran family
Psychidae (
Yu et al. 2005
)
. We found
59 specimens
within the SMTP.
M. affinis
was caught from June to November in both deciduous and coniferus forests.