Vespa mandarinia Smith

Figs. 33–35

Vespa mandarinia Smith, 1852: 38 . Holotype female; China: ‘ Teintung, near Ning-po-foo’ (LONDON-NHM).

Vespa magnifica Smith, 1852: 45 . Syntype females; Nepal ‘ Nepaul’ (LONDON-NHM, OXFORD) .

Vespa japonica Radoszkowski (in Motschulsky), 1857: 410. Type?; Japan, ‘Japon’ (ST. PETERSBURG).

Vespa bellona Smith, 1871: 248 . Holotype female; China: ‘ Yunan’ (LONDON-NHM).

Vespa magnifica var. latilineata Cameron, 1903: 278 . Holotype female; Japan: ‘ Hitoyoshi’ (LONDON-NHM).

Vespa mandarina; Dalla Torre, 1894: 149. Misspelling of Vespa mandarinia Smith.

Vespa magnifica var. nobilis Sonan, 1929: 140 . Holotype female; Taiwan: ‘ Musha’ (TAICHUNG).

Vespa magnifica sonani Matsumura, 1930: 1 . Lectotype female (designated by Kojima, 1997: 22); Taiwan: ‘ Sina’ (SAPPORO).

Distribution. India, Sri Lanka, Bhutan, Nepal, Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, Malaysia, Malaya, China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, eastern Russia, Korea, Japan (including Ryukyus).

Discussion. This species occurs in hilly regions. It nests in the ground, starting with mammal burrows or decayed root cavities, enlarging them as the colony develops (Archer 1995, 2008). This is another species of Vespa that preys on honeybees. Zhang (1989) reported the presence of Vespa magnifica in Miocene deposits in Shandong, China. This identification needs to be verified. This species has also been introduced into the Pacific Northwest, where nests have been found recently (Anonymous 2020).