Didineis mokrousovi Schmid-Egger, 2022

Schmid-Egger, Christian & Harten, Antonius Van, 2022, Additions to the digger wasps (Hymenoptera, Spheciformes) of the United Arab Emirates with description of ten new species, Zootaxa 5219 (6), pp. 543-575 : 544-546

Didineis mokrousovi Schmid-Egger , sp. nov.

( Figs 1–8 )

Holotype. ♁, United Arab Emirates, Wadi Bih (dam), 19.i.2010, leg. AvH ( CSE) . Paratypes: 1 ♁, 4.iv.2009, 1♀, 29.xi.2009. 1♀, 11.ii.2010, 1♀, 2.v.2006, all Wadi Bih (dam); ♀, 29.xi.2009, Al Wathba Wetland Reserve ; 1 ♁ 1 ♀ , 22.06.2019, Al Bida’a Protected Area , all leg. AS &AvH, in Malaise traps ( CSE) .

Remark: In former reviews of Crabronidae from the UAE ( Schmid-Egger, 2011, 2014), specimens of Didineis from Wadi Bih were identified as D. bucharica with the key of Nemkov (2015). In the meantime, we could examine two males and two females of true D. bucharica from Russia, Kalmykia (see Mokrousov et al. (2016) for location and discussion of species). The specimens from the UAE differ in some important details from the Russian specimens, and belong to an undescribed species. A male was choosen as the holotype, because the description of D. bucharica is also based on a male. D. bucharica is restricted in its distribution to southern Russia (Dagestan, Kalmykia and Orenburg Prov.) and to Uzbekistan.

Diagnosis. Males of both species are characterized by short and thick flagellomeres, flagellomere I beeing emarginate below. Remaining species have longer and normally rounded flagellomeres. Females of both species have also short and thick flagellomeres, but they share this character with other species from North Africa. See also Nemkov (2015) for further details. For distincion of D. bucharica and D. mokrousovi , see Table 1 .

.

Description of male, holotype (copied and modified from description in Schmid-Egger, 2011). Body length 6 mm. Colour: Black, yellow are: basal 2/3 of mandible, clypeus, large band on inner eye margin, ending in upper 2/3, scape and flagellum below, AS 13, pronotal lobe, basal spot on basal sclerite of forewing. Femora and tibiae reddish, tarsi partly reddish, mostly brown. Wing venation brown, forewing greyish with some darker parts below stigma. Tergum I except base and tergum II laterally red, remaining terga black, last tergum apically somewhat reddish. Morphology: Apical clypeal margin slightly emarginate medially. Flagellum see Figs 2 and 3 . Frons, pronotum, mesonotum and upper half of mesopleuron finely punctate, punctures 1–3 diameters apart, interspaces shiny. Punctuation of lower frons very dense. Lower mesopleuron rugulose-punctate. Propodeal surface evenly striate, propodeal enclosure triangular, surrounded by fine keel. Propodeum laterally and on backside rugulose. Terga II–V: basally shiny and with very fine micropunctation, apically punctate with shiny interspaces. Tergum VII densely punctate, apically truncate.

Description of female: Body length 8.0 mm. Colour. Black, yellow are basal 2/3 of mandible, clypeus except for basal and lateral margin, narrow band along lower half of inner eye margin, scape below, last tarsomeres. Red are fore tibia, outer side of mid tibia, terga and sternum I and II, tergum II with black apical margin, apex of tergum VI. Wings as in male. Morphology: Flagellum: see fig. 6. Punctuation of head and thorax similar as in male, but much denser. Terga I and II shiny, impunctate, terga III–V similar as in male. Tergum VI in apical half surrounded by keel, forming a large pygidial plate with dense punctuation in apical half and with dense reddish setae. All femora below with long pale setae (2/3 as long as femoral diameter).

Distribution. United Arab Emirates.

Etymology. The species is dedicated to Mikhail Mokrousov from Nizhny Novgorod, Russia, a specialist of Aculeata, who kindly supported this and other projects of the author by sending specimens and information.

Figures

FIGURES 1–8. Didineis mokrousovi; 1. ♀ lateral view. 2. ♁ holotype, mesosoma and head dorsal view. 3. ♁ holotype, antenna. 4. ♀ lateral view. 5. ♀ propdeal dorsum. 6. ♀ face. 7. ♀ clypeus. 8. ♀ terga.

Tables

TABLE 1. Comparison of Didineis bucharica and D. mokrousovi

Male of Didineis bucharica	Male of Didineis mokrousovi
Pronotum red (in one male only partly so)	Pronotum black
Frons and vertex behind midocellus with fine micropunctures	Frons and vertex behind midocellus shiny, with only few very indistinct punctures
Tergum II impunctate.	Tergum II with fine, but distinct punctation.
Terga I–III red.	Terga I and II only basally red, remaining terga black.
Propodeal enclosure with irregular rugae, medial keel indistinct.	Propodeal enclosure with distinct medial keel, rugae between keel and lateral border of enclosure finer than keel.
Female Didineis bucharica	Female Didineis mokrousovi
Vertex behind hindocelli with fine and dense punctuation	Vertex behind hindocelli impunctate, except a few minute and indistinct punctures.
Lateral teeth of apical clypeal margin larger than medial tooth	Medial tooth of apical clypeal margin as large as lateral teeth
Pronotum red	Pronotum black
Tergum II impunctate	Apical depression of tergum II with regular and fine punctation, similar to that of tergum III
Propodeal enclosure with irregular rugae, without medial keel	Propodeal enclosure with distinct medial keel, rugae between keel and lateral border of enclosure finer than keel (keel indistinct in one specimen)