Vespa mocsaryana du Buysson, 1905

Vu, Thuong Thi, Nguyen, Lien Thi Phuong & Wiśniowski, Bogdan, 2020, Taxonomic notes on the genus Vespa Linnaeus, 1758 (Hymenoptera: Vespidae Vespinae) from Vietnam, with a new record of a species and an updated key to species, Zootaxa 4801 (3), pp. 584-590 : 585

Vespa mocsaryana du Buysson, 1905

( Figs. 3–5 )

Vespa Mocsaryana du Buysson, 1905 (1904) , Ann. Soc. Entomol. Fr. 73: 490 (key), 537, pl. VII fig. 3, female, male—“Presqu’ile de Malacca: Pérak ...; Sikkim ...; Assam: Khasia Hills ...; Tenasserim: Thagatâ” (Budapest, Wien, London, Genova).

Material examined. VIETNAM: Tuyen Quang: 2 workers, Cham Chu NP, Cao Duong, Yen Thuan, Ham Yen , 22°17′32.5′′N 104°59′28′′E, alt. 650 m, 17.v.2019, Vu TT ; Lang Son: 2 workers, Huu Lien NR, Huu Lien, Lang Son , 21°43’22.9”N, 106°22’40.2”E, ca 300 m, 12 June 2019, Nguyen LTP, Tran NT & Wiśniowski B ; Gia Lai: Kon Chu Rang NP, K Bang, Son Lang , 14°31′08′′N 108°28′24′′E [1 queen, alt. 840 m, Nest#VN-2016-TN-V-01, 2.v.2016, Nguyen LTP; 1 queen, 2 workers, alt. 850 m, 19.iv.2017, Nguyen LTP] .

A complete queen nest of this species was found in April, 2016 in Kon Chu Rang NP, Gia Lai province in Tay Nguyen highland. The nest ( Fig. 5 ) was attached to a branch of a tree in the genus Gomphandra (family Icacinaceae ), about 1.5 m above the ground. Its greatest diameter was about 5 cm, with the entrance tube about 4.5 cm long. This nest had one queen inside. The queen’s coloration was as follows: body ground color black, except clypeus, head, thorax except mesoscutum, narrow apical band of T 1, irregular bands on T 2–5, entirely of T 6 ( Fig. 4 ) yellowish-brown; fore leg brownish-yellow except coxa and femur black; middle and hind legs black, except tibia with medial yellow mark and tarsus yellow. The worker’s body ground color was black, the head and mesosoma were brown, except mesoscutum black, the metasomal segments were black, except a narrow yellow apical band on the first tergum, and the legs were brown ( Fig. 3 ).

Distribution. India: Meghalaya, Sikkim, Assam; China: Sichuan, Anhui, Fujian, Hong Kong; Myanmar; Thailand; Laos; Vietnam; Malaysia: Peninsular Malaysia; Indonesia: Sumatra.

Figures

FIGURES 1–5. Characters of Vietnamese Vespa. 1–2. Vespa fumida van der Vecht, 1959. 1. Head in frontal view. 2. Habitus. 3–5. Vespa mocsaryana du Buysson, 1905. 3. Worker. 4. Queen. 5. Complete queen nest.