Mischocyttarus tapuya ( Schulz, 1905 )

Silveira, Orlando Tobias, 2006, Revision of the subgenus Kappa de Saussure of Mischocyttarus de Saussure (Hym.; Vespidae, Polistinae, Mischocyttarini), Zootaxa 1321 (1), pp. 1-108 : 32-33

Mischocyttarus tapuya ( Schulz, 1905)

( Figs. 23, 25 )

Polybia tapuya Schulz, 1905: 133 .

Megacanthopus tapuya: Ducke, 1907a: 140 .

Mischocyttarus tapuya: Ducke, 1918: 353 ; Richards, 1945: 348, fig. 34; Zikán, 1949: 117; Richards, 1978: 293.

HOLOTYPE: ♂ Brazil, Pará , Belém, 22/xii/1893 (W. Schulz) ( BMNH), examined.

FEMALE: unknown.

MALE. Length of fore wing 8.5 mm; head strongly transverse as seen from above, in frontal view very low and wide, FHH/intOW 0.83; clypeus very wide, convex, H/WClp 0.82, median angle obtuse, apex narrowly rounded; malar space not completely obsolete; tentorial pit far closer to eye than to antennal socket; interantennal area prominent; antenna with scape very short and wide, L/Wesc 2.16, third antennomere a fraction more than three times longer than wide, antennal apex rather elongated but not showing potential to be spirally rolled, decrease in diameter rather abrupt, antennomeres 11–13 not flattened below, 12 almost two times longer than wide, 13 slender, about 3.5 times longer than wide, about 1.4 times longer than 12; occeli widely separated, POL more than two diameters, POL/OOL about 1; occiput with margin distinct; pronotum with lateral fovea, anterior margin medially with lamella wide and little reflexed, region just behind the lamella raised into distinct secondary margin, humeral angle prominent, pronotal carina low obtuse but reflexed and projecting at sides, forming well developed lateral lobe, carina nearly straight as seen from above, total width distinctly larger than that of mesoscutum; inner claw of hind tarsus with the apex narrow but not really acute; propodeum with the median furrow rather shallow, anterior area of propodeum adjacent to metanotum protuberant, nearly horizontal, propodeal valve very wide, approximately triangular; first segment of metasoma exceedingly long and narrow ( Fig. 23 ), LSI/HMpl 1.54, distal part behind the spiracles almost linear, spiracles prominent, apex only 1.57 times wider than the basal petiole, sternum flattened, limit between sternum and tergum proximally marked by a prominent shining edge.

Sculpture: clypeus with moderately dense fine punctures, and with more sparse less conspicuous larger ones; mesoscutum with moderately dense medium sized punctures; mesopleuron with moderately dense fine punctures, and with numerous very large punctures, polygonal in shape and relatively close to each other; lower metapleuron and propodeum with polygonal punctures still larger than those on mesopleuron ( Fig. 25 ).

Vestiture: clypeus and frons with silvery hairs.

Color: black; basal spot on mandible, antenna above, dark brown; antennal scape below, yellow, flagellum bellow orange yellow; lower lateral angle of pronotum, lower metapleuron and sides of propodeum, reddish orange; mandible, narrow dorsal streak on gena, clypeus and interantennal area around antennal sockets, carina and posterior margin of pronotum, small spot on mesepisternal plate, ventral spot on mesopleuron, axilla and scutellar crest, anterior margin of metanotum, paired medium sized spots on propodeum, valves, articular process on meso and metapleuron, anterior spot and posterior streak on fore and mid coxae, two streaks on hind coxa, small spot on anterior trochanter, distal margin of all trochanters, distal third of fore femur, apex of mid and hind femora, apical spot on tibiae, apex of first metasomal tergum and sternum, band on distal margin of terga 2–6 and sterna 2–4, dorsum of the fifth segment of fore tarsus, mid and hind tibial spurs, yellow; wings hyaline, veins brown.

NEST: unknown.

Remarks

This species was described from a single male collected in forest near Belém, PA, about a hundred years ago, never being found again in Brazilian Amazonia. Considering that the region of Belém has been sampled with some intensity through the years by entomologists associated to the Goeldi Museum (including A. Ducke), it is probable that M. tapuya is now locally extinct.

Distribution SOUTH AMERICA: Brazil (PA).

Figures

FIGURES 8–25. M. laurae sp. n.: 8, 11, female head frontal and dorsal, 16, first metasomal tergum (T1); M. latior: 9, 12, female head frontal and dorsal, 10, male antenna, 14, hind 5th. tarsomere, 19, T1; M. immarginatus: 13, male antenna, 15, hind 5th. tarsomere, 17, T1; M. mirus sp. n.: 18, T1; M. paris sp. n.: 20, mesosoma part dorsal, 21, male antenna, 22, T1, 24, propodeal large punctures; M. tapuya: 23, T1, 25, propodeal large punctures.