Eopelma Gibson 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

Eopelma Gibson incertae sedis new placement

Eopelma Gibson, 1989. Type species. Eopelma mystax Gibson, 1989.

Diagnosis.

Antenna with 8 flagellomeres, with an undivided clava. Eyes ventrally divergent. Clypeus without transverse subapical groove. Labrum hidden behind clypeus, flexible. Mandibles with 3 teeth or with a ventral tooth and dorsal slightly emarginate truncation. Axilla long, separated anteromedially. Axillular sulcus more or less distinct. Frenum absent. Acropleuron enlarged, convex and pad-like; covering most of mesopleural area, separated from mesocoxa by the lower mesepimeron, metapleuron, and a dorsal extension of the metasternal area. All legs with 5 tarsomeres; protibial spur stout and curved; basitarsal comb longitudinal; ventral membranous area anterior to mesocoxal attachment lacking; mesotibial spur stout; mesotarsus with 1 row of pegs anteroventrally (Fig. 66 ). Metasoma with syntergum, therefore without epipygium.

Discussion.

Eopelma is consistently the sister group of another incertae sedis taxon, Storeya Bouček ( Storeyinae ), in next-generation molecular analysis (Cruaud et al., submitted). These two groups do not strongly resemble each other in body shape. Storeya does not have an expanded acropleuron, and has not previously been indicated as a relative of any eupelmid. They do share an antennal flagellomere count, a long radicle, general coloration, and an undivided clava, but the list of shared features possessed by these two genera is much shorter than the list of differences between them. A new subfamily is not described for Eopelma because it is a single genus, the position of which in Chalcidoidea is still in question.

Eopelma vaguely resembles Neanastatus Girault in body shape and coloration. Neanastatus differs in having a much smaller axilla, which may not be clearly visible.

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.