Pseudepipona lativentris (de Saussure, 1855)

Fateryga, Alexander V. & Selis, Marco, 2024, Unexpected diversity in the Pseudepipona lativentris species-group (Hymenoptera: Vespidae: Eumeninae), Zootaxa 5529 (2), pp. 318-340 : 320-321

publication ID	https://doi.org/ 10.11646/zootaxa.5529.2.5
publication LSID	lsid:zoobank.org:pub:CD62C48C-395B-4568-B24F-C4829FAEBF27
DOI	https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.14053024
persistent identifier	https://treatment.plazi.org/id/AA1B878A-FF83-8673-FF16-FBA77C1AFADE
treatment provided by	Plazi
scientific name	Pseudepipona lativentris
status

Treatment

Pseudepipona lativentris View in CoL -group

Diagnosis. The notion of a species-group is not defined by the International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature ( ICZN 1999) and its interpretation is flexible. For the purpose of the current study, the P. lativentris -group is here defined to include those members of the subgenus Pseudepipona s. str. in which there are long setae on the gena, the scutum, and the propleuron (former subgenus Trichepipona ). In contrast to the P. lativentris -group, in the P. herrichii -, P. peculiaris -, and P. tripunctata -groups, only very short setae are present. A key to the species groups (as subgenera) was published by Blüthgen (1951).

Key to the species of the Pseudepipona lativentris View in CoL -group

1. Females............................................................................................ 2

- Males.............................................................................................. 9

2. Apical margin of clypeus usually distinctly emarginate ( Fig. 1C View FIGURE 1 ); body with whitish pattern, legs predominantly orange and thus contrasting starkly with light parts of the body ( Fig. 1A View FIGURE 1 )............................ P. beckeri ( Morawitz, 1867)

- Apical margin of clypeus hardly emarginate ( Figs 3B View FIGURE 3 , 4B View FIGURE 4 , 5B View FIGURE 5 , 6B View FIGURE 6 , 7B View FIGURE 7 , 8B View FIGURE 8 , 9B View FIGURE 9 ); body usually with either pure yellow ( Figs 3A View FIGURE 3 , 4A View FIGURE 4 , 5A View FIGURE 5 , 6A View FIGURE 6 , 7A View FIGURE 7 , 9A View FIGURE 9 ) or orange pattern ( Fig. 8A View FIGURE 8 ), legs predominantly of the same color as light parts of the body and thus not contrasting starkly with them; rarely body with whitish-yellow pattern but legs less brightly orange, not so contrasting with the body pattern (fig. 7 in Girish Kumar el al. 2017)............................................................ 3

3. Body with orange pattern, legs predominantly orange ( Fig. 8A View FIGURE 8 )......................... P. rubricans Kurzenko, 1976

- Body usually with pure yellow pattern, legs usually predominantly yellow ( Figs 3A View FIGURE 3 , 4A View FIGURE 4 , 5A View FIGURE 5 , 6A View FIGURE 6 , 7A View FIGURE 7 , 9A View FIGURE 9 ).............. 4

4. Antero-lateral angles of pronotum in dorsal view almost rounded ( Fig. 3A View FIGURE 3 ).................. P. cretensis Blüthgen, 1942 View in CoL

- Antero-lateral angles of pronotum in dorsal view from blunt to rectangular but always distinctly angled ( Figs 4C View FIGURE 4 , 5C, D View FIGURE 5 , 6A View FIGURE 6 , 7C View FIGURE 7 , 9C View FIGURE 9 ) ............................................................................................ 5

5. Mesosoma almost entirely black, scutellum and metanotum without yellow bands ( Fig. 6A View FIGURE 6 ); punctation on T2 very fine, interspaces exceeding diameter of a puncture ( Fig. 6C View FIGURE 6 ).............................. P. gineri (von Schulthess, 1934) View in CoL

- Mesosoma with rich yellow pattern, scutellum and metanotum always with yellow bands ( Figs 4A View FIGURE 4 , 5A View FIGURE 5 , 7A View FIGURE 7 , 9A View FIGURE 9 ); punctation on T2 coarser, interspaces often not exceeding diameter of a puncture ( Figs 4D View FIGURE 4 , 7D View FIGURE 7 , 9D View FIGURE 9 ) or, if exceeding, then punctation very coarse ( Fig. 5E View FIGURE 5 )...................................................................................... 6

6. Punctation on T2 very coarse and relatively sparse, interspaces exceeding diameter of a puncture ( Fig. 5E View FIGURE 5 )............................................................................................... P. falsa ( Kostylev, 1927)

- Punctation on T2 less coarse, interspaces not exceeding diameter of a puncture ( Figs 4D View FIGURE 4 , 7D View FIGURE 7 , 9D View FIGURE 9 )..................... 7

7. Clypeus relatively shorter (about 1.1× as wide as long), its apical margin usually slightly wider than distance between antennal sockets ( Fig. 9B View FIGURE 9 ); antero-lateral angles of pronotum usually rectangular ( Fig. 9C View FIGURE 9 )........... P. vicina Gusenleitner, 1973 View in CoL *

- Clypeus relatively longer (about 1.04× as wide as long), its apical margin approximately as wide as distance between antennal sockets ( Figs 4B View FIGURE 4 , 7B View FIGURE 7 ); antero-lateral angles of pronotum from almost rectangular to blunt ( Fig. 4C View FIGURE 4 , 7C View FIGURE 7 )................ 8

8. Antero-lateral angles of pronotum usually almost rectangular ( Fig. 7C View FIGURE 7 ); punctation on T2 usually slightly finer ( Fig. 7D View FIGURE 7 )........................................................................... P. lativentris (de Saussure, 1855) View in CoL *

- Antero-lateral angles of pronotum usually blunter ( Fig. 4C View FIGURE 4 ); punctation on T2 usually slightly coarser ( Fig. 4D View FIGURE 4 ).......................................................................................... P. cypria Blüthgen, 1942 *

9. F11 very robust and apically truncate, with a submedian tyloid on ventral side ( Fig. 5J View FIGURE 5 ).......... P. falsa ( Kostylev, 1927)

- F11 less robust ( Figs 4G View FIGURE 4 , 8G View FIGURE 8 , 9G View FIGURE 9 ) or even slender ( Figs 1H View FIGURE 1 , 3F View FIGURE 3 , 6F View FIGURE 6 , 7G View FIGURE 7 ), apically rounded, with a subapical tyloid on ventral side ( Figs 4G View FIGURE 4 , 8G View FIGURE 8 ) or without it ( Figs 1H View FIGURE 1 , 3F View FIGURE 3 , 6F View FIGURE 6 , 7G View FIGURE 7 , 9G View FIGURE 9 ).................................................... 10

10. F11 with a subapical tyloid on ventral side ( Figs 4G View FIGURE 4 , 8G View FIGURE 8 ); paramere very slender ( Fig. 10G, T, U View FIGURE 10 ).................... 11

- F11 without a tyloid ( Figs 1H View FIGURE 1 , 3F View FIGURE 3 , 6F View FIGURE 6 , 7G View FIGURE 7 , 9G View FIGURE 9 ); paramere less slender ( Fig. 10A, N, Q, X View FIGURE 10 ) to very broad ( Fig. 10D View FIGURE 10 )...... 12

11. Body and legs with yellow pattern ( Fig. 4F View FIGURE 4 )............................................. P. cypria Blüthgen, 1942

- Body and legs with orange pattern ( Fig. 8F View FIGURE 8 )......................................... P. rubricans Kurzenko, 1976

12. Antero-lateral angles of pronotum in dorsal view almost rounded ( Fig. 3D View FIGURE 3 ); paramere very broad ( Fig. 10D View FIGURE 10 )........................................................................................... P. cretensis Blüthgen, 1942 View in CoL

- Antero-lateral angles of pronotum in dorsal view rather rectangular ( Figs 1F View FIGURE 1 , 6D View FIGURE 6 , 7F View FIGURE 7 , 9F View FIGURE 9 ); paramere less broad ( Fig. 10A, N, Q, X View FIGURE 10 )................................................................................................ 13

13. Mesosoma almost entirely black, scutellum and metanotum without yellow or whitish bands ( Fig. 6D View FIGURE 6 )............................................................................................ P. gineri (von Schulthess, 1934) View in CoL

- Mesosoma with rich yellow pattern, scutellum and metanotum always with yellow or whitish bands ( Figs 1F View FIGURE 1 , 7F View FIGURE 7 , 9F View FIGURE 9 ).... 14

14. Ventral lobe of aedeagus rather acutely triangular ( Fig. 10Z View FIGURE 10 ); F11 more robust ( Fig. 9G View FIGURE 9 ); body and legs usually with yellow pattern ( Fig. 9F View FIGURE 9 ), if rarely body with whitish pattern, then legs also predominantly whitish (fig. 1 in Girish Kumar el al. 2017)............................................................................. P. vicina Gusenleitner, 1973 View in CoL

- Ventral lobe of aedeagus rounded ( Fig. 10C, S View FIGURE 10 ); F11 slenderer ( Figs 1H View FIGURE 1 , 7G View FIGURE 7 ); body with either yellow or whitish pattern, legs either predominantly yellow or orange ( Figs 1F View FIGURE 1 , 7F View FIGURE 7 )........................................................ 15

15. Body with whitish pattern, legs predominantly orange and thus contrasting starkly with light parts of the body ( Fig. 1F View FIGURE 1 )................................................................................. P. beckeri ( Morawitz, 1867)

- Body with yellow pattern, legs predominantly yellow and thus not contrasting starkly with light parts of the body ( Fig. 7F View FIGURE 7 )............................................................................ P. lativentris (de Saussure, 1855) View in CoL

Note to the key: *These species are very similar in the female sex and their identification is sometimes challenging.