Paroplitis wesmaeli (Ruthe, 1860)

Fujie, Shunpei, Japoshvili, George & Fernandez-Triana, Jose, 2021, Review of the world species of Paroplitis Mason, 1981 (Hymenoptera, Braconidae, Microgastrinae), with description of three new species, Deutsche Entomologische Zeitschrift 68 (1), pp. 33-43 : 33

Paroplitis wesmaeli (Ruthe, 1860)

Microgaster picipes Wesmael, 1837: 38. See Microgaster wesmaeli Ruthe below.

Microgaster wesmaeli Ruthe, 1860: 148. Replacement name for Microgaster picipes Wesmael, 1837.

Apanteles wesmaeli (Ruthe, 1860). Transferred by Dalla Torre 1898: 185.

Hypomicrogaster wesmaeli (Ruthe, 1860). Transferred by Nixon 1965: 210.

Paroplitis wesmaeli (Ruthe, 1860). Transferred by Mason 1981: 71.

Holotype.

Female, IRSNB (not examined). Holotype label: environs de Bruxelles.

Other specimens examined.

1 female ( CNC), Netherlands: Utrecht, Leersum, VI.1975, H. J. Vlug, DNA Voucher CNCHYM 01946; 1 female ( CNC), Switzerland: Jura, Delémont, 47.373056°N, 7.324722°E, 19.VI-6.VII.2014, Malaise Trap, forest edge, J. Squire, CNC486249; 1 female ( CNC), same data, except for collecting date 26.V-19.VI.2014, CNC475799; 1 female ( CNC), Georgia: Lagodekhi Reserve, Mt. Kudigora, 41.852483°N, 46.287767°E, 666 m alt., 15-25.VI.2014, Malaise Trap, G. Japoshvili, CNC506804; 2 females ( CNC), same data, except for collecting date 25.VI-5.VII.2014, CNC508005 and CNC508036; 1 female ( CNC), same data, except for collecting date 26.VII-5.VIII.2014, CNC507604; 1 female ( CNC), Georgia: Lagodekhi Reserve, Mt. Kudigora, 41.855850°N, 46.292733°E, 847 m alt., 25.VI-5.VII. 2014, Malaise Trap, G. Japoshvili, CNC497135.

Description.

A detailed description and images of the species in Papp (1991) and Fernandez-Triana et al. (2013).

Hosts.

Gregarious. Hosts: A gregarious parasitoid of scopariine Crambidae feeding in mosses ( Shaw 2012); see also Yu et al. (2016).

Distribution.

Western Palearctic Region: Azerbaijan, Belgium, Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Hungary, Poland, Romania, Russia (Krasnodar Kray), Sweden, Switzerland, Ukraine and United Kingdom ( Fernandez-Triana et al. 2013, 2020).

Comments.

This species has a widespread distribution in the western Palaearctic Region and it also has relatively large morphological variation - for example, propodeum with a transverse carina (commonly) or without a transverse carina (rarely); areola size small (commonly) or relatively larger (rarely). We suspect that, under the name P. wesmaeli , there could be a complex of species. However, more collecting and study of specimens (throughout the Palaearctic Region), as well as DNA barcoding, will be needed before any attempt to unravel this complex is made.