Protopolybia aliciae, Silveira, Orlando Tobias, 2004

Silveira, Orlando Tobias, 2004, Protopolybia aliciae, a new polistine social wasp from Brazilian Amazonia (Hym.; Vespidae, Polistinae, Epiponini), Zootaxa 598, pp. 1-5 : 2-5

Protopolybia aliciae sp. n.

( Figs. 1 , 2 , 3 )

Diagnosis

Small species, length of anterior wing ca. 4.0 mm; first metasomal segment roughly triangular from above, almost as wide as long, with a short basal petiole armed with paired wing­like processes ( Fig. 2 ); propodeum with median furrow narrow; ground color black or dark brown richly marked with yellow, but scutellum and metanotum only partially marked with yellow ( Fig. 1 ); nest with envelope ( Fig. 3 ).

Description

Female: Length of anterior wing ca. 4.0 mm; head subcircular in frontal view, from above distinctly wider than thorax but not exceedingly transverse in shape, its posterior profile as a shallow curve concave backwards, hind corners little produced; clypeus practically as high as wide at the point of smallest distance between eyes, apical margin broadly round; tentorial pit closer to antennal socket than to eye margin; interantennal area slightly bulging, with a short shallow median sulcus, frons little swollen and scarcely sulcate; mandible relatively short, its length about 0.69 times distance between eyes on vertex; ocelli nearly equidistant; antennal scape slightly curved, flagellum short and rather strongly clavate, tenth antennal article about 0.6 times as long as wide, eleventh about 0.57, and twelfth about as long as wide; occipital margin low but distinct, extending downwards up to a point situated at 2/3 of head’s height, but not approaching articulation of mandible; pronotal carina obtuse throughout, appearing at sides as a blunt protuberance, pronotal fovea distinct, preceded by a linear blunt protuberance extending up and forward to the anterior pronotal margin; mesoscutum only slightly longer than wide, secondary spiracular entrance narrow and moderately raised, transparent; mesepisternal sulcus absent, scrobal sulcus abbreviated; scutellum with an impressed median line; metanotum fairly convex, length of the median axis about 0.83 times width of the central disc, the latter as wide as the scutellum, metanotal posterior median lobe round, smooth and shiny; upper metapleural plate with lower angle acute; propodeum with median furrow narrow, lateral propodeal limit with metapleuron indistinct, valve wide and round; first metasomal segment roughly triangular, almost as wide as long, with a short basal petiole armed with paired wing­like processes ( Fig. 2 ), distal part of tergum moderately convex, narrower than half the width of the second metasomal tergum, the latter about 0.82 times as long as wide.

Sculpture and Vestiture: Body impunctate, at most with shallow punctures on distal margin of metasomal terga and sterna. Eyes nearly glabrous, any perceptible hairs being very short. Other body parts including legs with outstanding hairs, longer on ventral margin of clypeus and propodeum.

Color: Ground color black or dark brown, richly spotted with yellow ( Fig. 1 ). Most of antennal scape and flagellum ventrally light testaceous, antenna above dark brown; frons with two symmetrical bifurcating dark brown marks which together with a narrow supraclypeal mark (shaped either as a cross or inverted Y) enclose a pattern of three adjacent yellow spots; disk of clypeus with a light brownish mark resembling a horseshoe; mandible except for a basal diffuse brownish spot and distal teeth, most of frontal aspect of head, outer orbit plus the ventral extremity of postgena, yellow; pronotum extensively yellow letting as brown colored a side­to­side transversal anterior band and humeral marks; most of proepisternum and fore coxa yellow; most of fore leg light testaceous except for the femur which has the upper outer surface dark brown and the inner ventral one yellow; mesoscutum with two yellow stripes; mesopleuron with a large dorsal yellow spot extending to subalar area; tegula, mid and hind pleural articular processes for the coxae, large central anterior area on scutellum and upper part of axilla, anterior band on metanotum, mid coxa, yellow; remaining of mid leg brown, with mid femur darker; hind leg brown, with hind femur and tibia dorsally darker; upper metapleural plate and lateral region of propodeum connecting at each side to two large dorsal oval propodeal spots which further may join paired smaller anterior marks, narrow distal band on metasomal tergum 1, broad basal band (with the posterior edge angular) on tergum 2, narrow distal band on terga 2­5 and sterna 2­3, yellow; wings hyaline, venation brown.

Male: unknown.

Nest: The only nest found shows the typical features of the genus ( Fig. 3 ). It is oval measuring 4.7 X 2.7 cm, being suspended from the mid rib of a leaf by a robust central peduncle. Additionally, there are about six narrow delicate lateral peduncles, two of them attaching the envelope to another smaller leaf laterally positioned and whose tip had been enclosed by the envelope. The exit­hole (damaged) was positioned laterally at one extremity. The whole nest is extensively marked with cream­colored streaks that may join in fully continuous pale surfaces at parts of the envelope and comb.

Distribution

Brasil, Pará (PA).

Type material

HOLOTYPE: female, Brasil, PA, Melgaço, Caxiuanã, ECFPn, 1:44 S / 51:28 O, 28/vi/ 1998, Silveira & Dias; PARATYPES: 4 females (same data as holotype)

All five specimens and nest are deposited in the collection of the “Museu Paraense Emílio Goeldi” ( MPEG). A large part of the captured colony (50 to 100 individuals) was unfortunately lost after collecting, due to fungus growth that followed evaporation of preserving agent out of a defective jar.

Etymology

The specific name is in memory of Dr. Alicia Rodríguez Palafox, who passed away on July 2003. She was a devoted researcher of social wasps, and a generous colleague.

Remarks

Protopolybia aliciae sp. n. corresponds morphologically to the group of species in the genus that have a narrow petiolate first metasomal segment, and the propodeum with a narrow median furrow. It further shares a distinctive synapomorphy with P. scutellaris Bequaert in the presence of wing­like processes on first metasomal segment, but the two species are nonetheless very distinct. Protopolybia scutellaris is larger (wing length 5 mm), having the pronotal carina a little stronger, the upper metapleural plate being nearly square below while ending in a distinct acute angle in P. aliciae . The metanotum is also different, proportionally shorter in P. scutellaris . Color differences between the species are many, P. aliciae being far more richly marked with yellow, and showing no special similarity with the pattern typical in Polybia scutellaris . Finally, the nest of P. aliciae has the usual aspect in the genus, with an envelope quite similar to that of nests of P. exigua (de Saussure).

Figures

FIGURE 1. Lateral view of Protopolybia aliciae sp. n. (wing length: 4 mm)

FIGURE 2. First metasomal segment of Protopolybia aliciae sp. n. in dorsal view (scale bar = 0.5 mm).

FIGURE 3. Nest of Protopolybia aliciae sp. n. (scale bar = 1 cm).