Mesostenus laticinctus Walker, 1874

Shimizu, So & Broad, Gavin R., 2020, Photographic catalogue of the oldest primary types of Japanese Ichneumonoidea (Hymenoptera), those described by Frederick Smith and Francis Walker in 1874, Journal of Natural History 54 (17), pp. 1115-1198 : 1185-1188

Mesostenus laticinctus Walker, 1874

( Figure 46 )

Taxonomic history. Morley (1913b) synonymised this species under Exolytus laevigatus ( Gravenhorst, 1820) , with Exolytus Holmgren, 1859 since synonymised with Mesoleptus Gravenhorst, 1829 .

Taxonomy. Jussila et al. (2010) synonymised many names in Mesoleptus (particularly those by Förster) under M. laticinctus . Jussila et al. (2010) partly characterised Mesoleptus laticinctus by the distinctive ‘tooth-like’ tyloids on the male antenna. The holotype male of M. laticinctus has tyloids of a different shape ( Figure 46 (j,k)) and this clearly represents a different species to the European specimens identified as Mesoleptus laticinctus by Jussila et al. (2010). The valid name for the European species should be Mesoleptus angustulus ( Förster, 1876) stat. rev., as has been used previously. Förster (1876) published many names in the same publication that are regarded as synonymous by Jussila et al. (2010), so we make a first reviser choice of M. angustulus stat. rev. as the senior synonym, in accordance with older identifications in collections.

Current taxonomy. Mesoleptus laticinctus ( Walker, 1874) ( Ichneumonidae : Phygadeuontinae ).

Type number. Type 3b.411. Specimen # NHMUK010634932

Type status. Holotype.

Sex. Male.

Type locality. Japan.

Label data. First label, ‘Type’ (round label, with red margin; printed); second label, ‘B.M. TYPE /HYM./3.b.411’ (square label; first and second lines printed and third line handwriting); third label, ‘ Japan./Coll.F. Walker./ 1913–71.’ (square label; printed); fourth label, ‘262’ (square label; handwriting); fifth label, ‘ Mesostenus 3/laticinctus’ (square label; handwriting); sixth label, ‘ Exolytus /laevigatus, gr./Morley det.’ (square label; first and second lines handwriting and third line printed).

Condition. Good; both antennae medially broken and apical flagellomeres glued to card; fourth and fifth tarsomeres of left mid leg and left hind tarsus lost.

Remarks. A key to two Japanese species and M. laevigatus was provided by Momoi (1966).

Figures

Figure 46. Holotype male of Mesostenus laticinctus Walker, 1874 (= Mesoleptus laticinctus (Walker, 1874)): (a) labels (b) lateral habitus (c) head, frontal view (d) head, dorsal view (e) head, lateral view (f) mesoscutum, dorsal view (g) propodeum, dorsal view (h) mesosoma, lateral view (i) wings (j) tyloids on flagellar segments 9 and 10 (k) tyloids on flagellar segments 11 and 12 of Mesoleptus angustulus male (specimen NHMUK010634931).