Revision of the Afrotropical genus Protoleptops Heinrich, 1967 (Hymenoptera, Ichneumonidae, Ichneumoninae), with description of a new species from Burundi
Author
Dal Pos, Davide
0000-0002-9122-934X
Department of Biology, University of Central Florida, Orlando, FL 32816, USA
Author
De Ketelaere, Augustijn
https://orcid.org/0009-0007-0260-5483
Beernem, Belgium
Author
Di Giovanni, Filippo
0000-0002-9811-5599
Department of Life Sciences, University of Siena, Siena, Italy
text
ZooKeys
2024
2024-10-07
1214
197
216
journal article
10.3897/zookeys.1214.131071
18C44EAA-F2CF-4E87-A87A-394AA7E5BBFC
Genus
Protoleptops
Heinrich, 1967
Protoleptops
Heinrich, 1967: 71–72
.
Type
species
Protoleptops heinrichi
Heinrich, 1967
, by original designation.
Apatetorops
Heinrich, 1967: 79–81
.
Type
species
Apatetorops magnificus
Heinrich, 1967
, by original designation. Synonymized by
Townes and Townes (1973: 226)
.
Diagnosis.
We hereby provide a brief diagnosis of
Protoleptops
by including the traits of its junior synonym
Apatetorops
, therefore expanding the concept of the genus. We discovered a new character that separates well the former two genera that was not reported by
Heinrich (1967)
: the presence / absence of a scopa on the ventral section of the hind coxa. The dimension of the scopa also works well in separating some of the species (see key above). A phylogenetic analysis with the inclusion of more specimens will be necessary to understand if the synonymy of the two genera proposed by
Townes and Townes (1973)
still stands. Since
Apatetorops
and
Protoleptops
were included by
Heinrich (1967)
in the now-dissolved tribe
Protichneumonini
, we invite the reader to either use
Heinrich’s (1967)
key to the Afrotropical tribe or review our diagnosis in the Introduction. Within this former tribe,
Protoleptops
can easily be distinguished from all the other Afrotropical genera of
Ichneumoninae
by the following combination of characters: (1) carination of the propodeum not fully complete, at least with area superomedia and area basalis confluent (divided in
Chasmopygium
Heinrich, 1967
and
Holcichneumon
Cameron, 1911
); (2) postpetiole with either irregular striation or puncto-striate (uniformly and densely punctate in
Aethiamblys
Heinrich, 1967
,
Afrocoelichneumon
Heinrich, 1938
,
Corymbichneumon
Morley, 1919
, and
Punctileptops
Heinrich, 1967
); (3) hypostomal carina not lamellate nor with triangular projections (modified in
Genaemirum
Heinrich, 1936
,
Leptophatnus
Cameron, 1906
,
Oriphatnus
Heinrich, 1967
); (4) lower tooth of the mandible lying in the same plane as the upper tooth (bent inward in
Apatetorides
Heinrich, 1938
); (5) T 2 with punctures (almost completely smooth and impunctate in
Apatetor
Saussure, 1892
); (6) area between gastrocoeli bigger than the width of a gastrocoelus (gastrocoeli extremely enlarged in
Stenapatetor
Heinrich, 1938
); (7) metascutellum not carinated or carinated only at the base; (8) mandible wide and robust (slender in
Pseudocoelichneumon
Heinrich, 1967
); (9) upper tooth longer than lower tooth (shortened in
Liojoppa
Szépligeti, 1908
); (10) mesoscutum longer than wide (as long as wide in
Liojoppa
Szépligeti, 1908
); (11) metascutellum not globular (globular in
Coeloleptops
Heinrich, 1967
); (12) first flagellar segment longer than second (shorter in
Punctileptops
Heinrich, 1967
); and (13) area dentipara not well defined (bordered by carinae in
Punctileptops
Heinrich, 1967
).