Ditropinotellinae incertae sedis new placement

Burks, Roger, Mitroiu, Mircea-Dan, Fusu, Lucian, Heraty, John M., Jansta, Petr, Heydon, Steve, Papilloud, Natalie Dale-Skey, Peters, Ralph S., Tselikh, Ekaterina V., Woolley, James B., van Noort, Simon, Baur, Hannes, Cruaud, Astrid, Darling, Christopher, Haas, Michael, Hanson, Paul, Krogmann, Lars & Rasplus, Jean-Yves, 2022, From hell's heart I stab at thee! A determined approach towards a monophyletic Pteromalidae and reclassification of Chalcidoidea (Hymenoptera), Journal of Hymenoptera Research 94, pp. 13-88 : 13

Ditropinotellinae incertae sedis new placement

Ditropinotellinae Bouček, 1988. Type genus: Ditropinotella Girault, 1915.

Diagnosis.

Antenna with 11 flagellomeres, without a 4th clavomere (Fig. 62 ). Eyes slightly divergent ventrally. Clypeus without a transverse subapical groove, with a small median incision. Labrum hidden behind clypeus, flexible. Mandibles with 3 teeth. Occipital carina absent. Subforaminal bridge with a postgenal bridge. Notauli complete. Mesoscutellum with a densely setose frenum that is indicated laterally, without axillular sulcus (Fig. 63 ). Mesopleural area without an expanded acropleuron; mesepimeron not extending over anterior margin of metapleuron. All legs with 5 tarsomeres; protibial spur stout and curved; basitarsal comb longitudinal. Metasoma with an elongate, T-shaped syntergum in females that may resemble an epipygium because of its shape (Fig. 64 ).

Discussion.

Ditropinotella Girault is a morphologically enigmatic Australasian genus of gall associates, transferred out of Torymidae and placed in its own subfamily in Pteromalidae by Bouček (1988). It renders Eupelmidae paraphyletic in next-generation molecular data (Cruaud et al., submitted), although it lacks the expanded acropleuron of that family and lacks the diagnostic features of all genera in Calosotinae . Ditropinotella has a broad membranous area posterior to its mesocoxae, although this also occurs in various other chalcidoids that are not related to Eupelmidae . The possibility remains that Ditropinotella may be a reduced eupelmid, but morphological evidence in support of this possibility is lacking. Because of the possible instability of this situation, Ditropinotellinae is removed from Pteromalidae to be treated as incertae sedis in Chalcidoidea .

The general habitus, setose frenum, and approximated, slightly advanced axilla of Ditropinotella invite comparison with Torymidae , which differ in having a true epipygium in females that is shorter and not so elongate. Males are more difficult to distinguish, differing in the slightly divergent eyes and incised clypeus of Ditropinotella , features that do not occur together in Torymidae . Most Megastigmidae also resemble Ditropinotella , although most Megastigmidae and Torymidae have an occipital carina. Megastigminae additionally differ from Ditropinotellinae in having an enlarged fore wing stigma and along with Chromeurytominae have a true epipygium in females, while Keiraninae have an occipital carina and do not have an elongate syntergum. Although some pteromalid fig associates have an elongate epipygium that resembles the syntergum of Ditropinotella , these differ from Ditropinotella in having a larger axillula with a distinct axillular sulcus. Male Eupelminae can strongly resemble those of Ditropinotella , but differ in having a distinct frenal arm laterally.

Figures

Figures 61 - 66. 61 Austrosystasis atricorpus Girault (Austrosystasinae, incertae sedis): mesosoma lateral view 62 - 64 Ditropinotella sp. (Ditropinotellinae, incertae sedis) 62 antenna 63 mesosoma lateral view 64 metasoma 65 Enoggera reticulata Naumann (Enoggerinae, incertae sedis): mesosoma lateral view 66 Eopelma sp. (incertae sedis): apex of mesotibia and mesotarsus.