Antepipona aurantiaca Giordani Soika, 1982

Kumar, Girish P., Carpenter, James M. & Sureshan, Pavittu M., 2016, A taxonomic review of the genus Antepipona de Saussure, 1855 (Hymenoptera: Vespidae: Eumeninae) from India, Zootaxa 4150 (5), pp. 501-536 : 503-504

1. Antepipona aurantiaca Giordani Soika, 1982

Antepipona aurantiaca Giordani Soika 1982: 210 (key), 243, figs 44–45, ♀, Ƌ, “ India: Raipur, 300 m ” (holotype, Ƌ, RMNH); Lambert 2004: 557 (key); Gusenleitner 2006a: 690 ( India: Tamil Nadu).

Diagnosis. ♀. Similar to A. minutissima and A. siamensis ; but differs from both by following characters: apex of clypeus slightly emarginate, its width 1, 3 × that of maximum width of clypeus; clypeus thickly punctured with punctures larger than those of front; anterior carina of pronotum widely arched at shoulder, absent throughout dorsal surface; posterior face of metanotum convex, with small teeth; propodeum with fully rounded sides; S2 weakly convex at base. Head, mesosoma and propodeum finely and densely punctured, as in A. siamensis ; but side faces of propodeum with thicker and deeper punctures than in A. siamensis . Terga, except last, with punctation fine, dense, interspaces almost always with minor punctures.

Colour. Ferruginous. Yellow markings: mandible; clypeus; front; temple; pronotum entirely; much of mesepisternum; tegulae; parategulae; scutellum; metanotum; two large spots on propodeum; legs, except part of coxa and most of hind femora; band, wide at middle and close to sides, on T1; broad band apical, enlarged at middle and at sides, and two large spots at sides near base on T2; band apical, extended to sides on T3; band apical enlarged at middle and at sides on T4; band apical enlarged at middle and short at sides on T5; almost all of T6; an apical band, relatively narrow, slightly enlarged at middle and at sides on S2; triangular spots on sides of apical margin of S3 and S4. Wings lightly browned.

Ƌ. Clypeus wider than long, slightly emarginated at apex, with large punctures, moderately dense; apical antennal article weakly curved, gradually narrowed from base to apex, reaching to about midpoint of 10th article. Other characters as that of ♀.

Size (H+M+T1+T2). ♀, 6.5– 7 mm; Ƌ, 6 mm.

Material examined. INDIA: Tamil Nadu, Nedungadu, Tanjore , 1Ƌ, 14.v, Coll. P.S. Nathan ( AMNH).

Distribution. India: Chhattisgarh, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Uttarakhand ; Sri Lanka.