Sceliphron caementarium (Drury, 1773)

Ceccolini, Filippo, 2021, New records for the alien mud-dauber wasp Sceliphron caementarium (Drury, 1773) (Hymenoptera: Sphecidae) in Peru, Revista Chilena de Entomología (Rev. Chil. Entomol.) 47 (4), pp. 951-954 : 952-953

Sceliphron caementarium (Drury, 1773)

( Figs. 1-2 )

Material examined. PIURA: Talara Province. Máncora, - 4.1069° N - 81.054248° E (un. = 400 m), 24.IV.2019, 1 specimen, photo by Patricio Palomino Armas . LA LIBERTAD: Trujillo Province. Trujillo city, Distrito de VÍctor Larco Herrera , San Andrés V Etapa, - 8.132842° N - 79.050593° E (un. = 2 m), 24.XI.2019, 1 specimen, photo by Rob Westerduijn ( Fig. 1 ); Jirón Las Begonias, - 8.126905° N - 79.044778° E (un. = 6 m), 19.I.2021, 1 specimen, photo by Calo Calvo Mac; Universidad Nacional de Trujillo , - 8.111712° N - 79.038867° E (un. = 15 m), 12.II.2015, 1 specimen, photo by Jose Carlos Villanueva Villalva . LIMA: Cañete Province. Azpitia, - 12.605127° N - 76.630463° E (un. = 170 m), 16.III.2016, 1 specimen, photo by Ulises Infante ; Lima Province. Pantanos de Villa, - 12.216477° N - 76.990268° E (un. = 1210 m), 20.III.2021, 1 specimen, photo by David F. Belmonte; San Borja District , near Calle Estremadoyro, - 12.086169° N - 76.99553° E (un. = 6 m), 30.IV.2021, 1 specimen, photo by Antonio W. Salas; Los Olivos, Parque Piscobamba, - 11.97415° N - 77.085325° E (un. = 10 m), 5.IV.2018, 1 specimen, photo by Annika Lindqvist; Chaclacayo, El Cuadro, - 11.984577° N - 76.796294° E (un. = 11 m), 24.V.2020, 1 specimen, photo by Ariel Cárdenas . ICA: Ica Province. Ica city, Universidad Nacional San Luis Gonzaga , - 14.087132° N - 75.733515° E (un. = 208 m), 24.X.2015, 1 specimen, photo by Ulises Infante . AREQUIPA: Arequipa Province. Arequipa city, Umacollo , - 16.403325 N - 71.54847° E (un. = 300 m), 17.II.2019, 1 specimen, photo by “cstobie” ( Fig. 2 ) .

Each record was identified or confirmed by the author. Some features make S. caementarium recognizable through photo thanks to its color pattern, having some yellow markings on the base of the antenna and in the thorax and at the same time trochanters and femurs of hind legs are completely black (see Fernández and Castro-Huertas 2014). With the present work first records of S. caementarium are provided for the departments of La Libertad and Arequipa, whilst in the department and the province of Lima the records are the only precise localities known for this mud-dauber wasp. Moreover, the first record for Talara province is given. These new occurrence records suggest that S. caementarium is well established in Peru and it is widespread in the country, including in its internal regions. Maybe, one or more introductions could be a consequence of transports on port areas and from the coast the species seems to have reached the inland areas with some records at high altitudes, like the one of Arequipa, which is located at over 2000 m a.s.l. The currently known distribution of S. caementarium in Peru is summarized in Fig. 3 .

La Libertad; 3 = Lima (including Lima province); 4 = Ica; 5 = Arequipa. Further research will be needed to ascertain the population dynamics of S. caementarium in Peru and general in South America, eventually also to carry out an eradication program of this alien species which could be an ecological competitor of native species of Sceliphron . Indeed, all species of the genus have similar biology, since in all of them the female creates nests attached to various substrates (often the walls of buildings), constructed out of mud collected and carried in the form of globules from the collection site and then provisioned with spiders or other invertebrates on which larvae feed ( Bohart and Menke 1976; Chatenoud et al. 2012).

Figures

Figure 3. Updated distribution of Sceliphron caementarium in Peru. Red colored: departments where the species was already known in literature; green colored: departments where the species is recorded for the first time through the present work. In the map the province of Lima is incorporated in the department of Lima, even if it is the only province in the country not belonging to any departments. 1 = Piura; 2 = La Libertad; 3 = Lima (including Lima province); 4 = Ica; 5 = Arequipa. / Distribución actualizada de Sceliphron caementarium en Perú. Color rojo: departamentos donde la especie ya era conocida en la literatura; color verde: departamentos donde se registra la especie por primera vez mediante el presente trabajo. En el mapa la provincia de Lima está incorporada al departamento de Lima, aunque es la única provincia del paÍs que no pertenece a ningún departamento. 1 = Piura; 2 =

Figures 1-2. Sceliphron caementarium. 1. Specimen of from Trujillo (Peru) (photo Rob Westerduijn) / 1. Espécimen Trujillo (Perú) (foto Rob Westerduijn). 2. Specimen from Arequipa (Peru) (photo “cstobie”) / 2. Espécimen de Arequipa (Perú) (foto “cstobie”).