Pison psammophilos Pulawski, 2018

Pulawski, Wojciech J., 2018, A Revision of the Wasp Genus Pison Jurine, 1808 of Australia and New Zealand, New Guinea, and the Pacific Islands (Hymenoptera: Crabronidae), Proceedings of the California Academy of Sciences 65, pp. 1-584 : 361-363

Pison psammophilos Pulawski , species nova

Figures 873 -879.

NAME DERIVATION.– Psammophilos derives from two Greek words, ψάμμΟς, sand, and φίλΟς, a friend, lover, a noun in apposition to the generic name; an allusion to the presumed habit of nesting in sand (as suggested by the presence of the psammophores in the female).

RECOGNITION.– Pison psammophilos has a black body (mandible yellowish brown mesally, flagellum and tarsi brown in some specimens), three submarginal cells, the second recurrent vein interstitial with second intersubmarginal vein or nearly so, and setae silvery, appressed on tergum I.

The female is characterized by the lower gena impunctate and glabrous on each side of the oral fossa and the presence of a psammophore on the mandible, lower gena, and forefemur. The clypeal lamella has an obtuse lateral corner and the distance between the corners is 1.3 × as great as the distance between a corner and the adjacent orbit. Several species are similar, but P. psammophilos differs in having sternum II apicomesally and sterna III and IV mesally sparsely punctate, with punctures many diameters apart. In the other species, the punctures are no more than 2-3 diameters apart, except somewhat sparser in occidentale . In that species, however, several punctures on the scutal disk behind center are more than one diameter apart, the propodeal dorsum, side and posterior surface are punctate, without well-defined ridges, and the propleuron is sparsely punctate anteriorly. In psammophilos , all scutal punctures are less than one diameter apart, the propodeum is ridged, and the propleuron is densely punctate.

The male of psammophilos has an acutely angulate clypeal lamella and sternum VIII rounded apically ( Fig. 876 ), without posterolateral angles, and the scutal punctures compressed against each other, with linear interspaces (rather than non-compressed, with nonlinear interspaces). This character combination is shared with P. ciliatum (in which the ocellocular distance equals 1.7-1.8 × hindocellar diameter, the setae of the lower gena are curved and subappressed, the sterna are densely, uniformly punctate, and the legs are ferruginous). In P. psammophilos , the ocellocular distance equals 0.9-1.2 × hindocellar diameter, the setae of the lower gena are sinuous and erect, the punctures of sternum II apicomesally and of sterna III and IV (except laterally) are several diameters apart, and the legs are black or the tibiae are dark ferruginous.

DESCRIPTION.– Frons dull, largely concealed by vestiture in fresh specimens, punctures compressed against each other, middle supraantennal carina short, about as long as midocellar diameter. Gena narrow in dorsal view. Labrum not emarginate. Anteromedian pronotal pit transversely elongate, about twice as long as midocellar diameter. Scutum not foveate along flange, without longitudinal ridges adjacent to posterior margin; scutal punctures well defined, compressed against each other (interspaces linear). Tegula enlarged, in most males with one row of punctures along its inner margin that extends to the tegula apex; males from Queensland have several such rows (the combined width of rows about half width of tegula). Mesopleural punctures well defined, less than one diameter apart (many interspaces linear). Postspiracular carina present, about half as long as midocellar diameter or slightly longer. Metapleural sulcus costulate between dorsal and ventral metapleural pits. Propodeum with irregular longitudinal carina separating side from dorsum and posterior surface and extending from gastral socket area toward spiracle; dorsum rugose or longitudinally ridged except laterally; side irregularly, coarsely ridged, punctate between ridges; posterior surface irregularly, transversely ridged mesally, rugose laterally. Hindcoxal dorsum with outer margin obtusely carinate. Punctures of tergum I averaging less than one diameter apart on horizontal part. Sternum II apicomesally and sterna III and IV (except laterally) sparsely punctate, many diameters apart in female, several diameters apart in male.

Setae silvery, appressed on frons, strictly appressed on scutum and tergum I; oriented ventrally in lower half of frons, oriented dorsally in upper half of frons, oriented radially around midocellus (setae of lower and upper frons divided by well defined partition); completely concealing integument on clypeus (except lamella); see below for setae of lower gena. Apical depressions of terga with silvery, setal fasciae.

Body black, mandible yellowish brown (black basally, brown apically), flagellum brown to black, tarsi black to brown; tibiae dark ferruginous in specimens from Hann River, Queensland.

♀.– Upper interocular distance equal to 0.58-0.62 × lower interocular distance; ocellocular distance equal to 0.6 × hindocellar diameter, distance between hindocelli equal to 1.0-1.1 × hindocellar diameter; eye height equal to 0.96-1.0 × distance between eye notches. Clypeal lamella with lateral corner, distance between corners 1.3 × distance between corner and adjacent orbit, free margin of lamella broadly arcuate ( Fig. 873 ). Dorsal length of flagellomere I 1.9-2.0 × apical width, of flagellomere IX 0.9 × apical width. Lower gena ( Fig. 875 ), mandibular posterior margin, propleural and forecoxal outer margins, and forefemoral venter with psammophores (longest setae of genal, mandibular, and forefemoral psammophores about 0.7-1.0 ×, 0.7-1.0 ×, and 0.8-1.0 ×, respectively, of greatest forefemoral width); lower gena impunctate and asetose between oral fossa and psammophore. Mandible: trimmal carina with small incision at about two thirds of length. Length 6.3-6.9 mm; head width 2.0- 2.2 mm.

♂.– Upper interocular distance equal to 0.80-0.86 × lower interocular distance; ocellocular distance equal to 0.9-1.2 × hindocellar diameter, distance between hindocelli equal to 1.1-1.4 × hindocellar diameter; eye height equal to 0.98-1.06 × distance between eye notches. Free margin of clypeal lamella acutely angulate ( Fig. 874 ). Dorsal length of flagellomere I 1.6-1.8 × apical width, of flagellomere X 0.7-0.8 × apical width. Setae of lower gena suberect, slightly sinuous, longest ones slightly longer than midocellar diameter. Sternum VIII with glabrous swelling basally, its apical margin rounded, without apicolateral corner ( Fig. 876 ). Genitalia: Figs. 877, 878 . Length 5.3-5.9 mm; head width 1.6-1.9 mm.

GEOGRAPHIC DISTRIBUTION (Fig. 879).–

Northern parts of Northern Territory, of

Quensland, and of Western Austalia.

RECORDS.– HOLOTYPE: ♀, AUSTRALIA: Northern Territory: Keep River National Park at

15°47ʹ49ʺS 29°06ʹ31ʺE, 31 May – 3 June 2001,

T. Weir, K. Pullen, and P. Bouchard (ANIC).

PARATYPES: AUSTRALIA: Northern Territory :

Keep River National Park at 15°45ʹ30ʺS

129°06ʹ28ʺE, 6-9 June 2001, M.E. Irwin, F.D. Park-

er, and C. Lambkin (1 ♀, ANIC), at 15°45ʹ44ʺS

129°05ʹ55ʺE, F.D. Parker and M.E. Irwin, 8 June

2001 (2 ♂, CAS) and 9 June 2001 (1 ♂, CAS), at

15°47ʹ49ʺS 129°06ʹ31ʺE, C. Lambkin, F.D. Parker,

FIGURE 879. Collecting localities of Pison psammophilos and M.E. Irwin, 3-6 Jun 2001 (2 ♀, 3 ♂, ANIC; 3 ♀,

Pulawski, sp. nov.

1 ♂, CAS), 6-8 June 2001 (1 ♂, CAS), and 8-10

June 2001 (1 ♂, ANIC) , at 15°57ʹ33ʺS 129°01ʹ44ʺE, 3-8 June 2001, M.E. Irwin, F.D. Parker, and C. Lambkin (1 ♂, CAS) , at 15°57ʹ55ʺS 129°01ʹ52ʺE, 3-8 Jun 2001, M.E. Irwin, F.D. Parker, and C. Lambkin (1 ♀, ANIC; 1 ♀, 1 ♂, CAS) and 9 June 2001 (1 ♀, CAS) ; Victoria Highway 38.5 km SW Timber Creek at 15°42ʹ40ʺS 130°07ʹ48ʺE, M.E. Irwin, F.D. Parker, and C. Lambkin, 6-13 Jun 2001 (2 ♀, CAS) , 13-19 June 2001 (2 ♀, CAS) , and 15-19 June 2001 (4 ♂, CAS) . Queensland: Hann River at 15°11ʹS 143°52ʹE, 17 Aug – 15 Sept 1003, P. Zborowski and S. Shattuck (1 ♂, ANIC; 1 ♂, CAS) . Western Australia: Carson escarpment at 14°49ʹS 126°49ʹE, 9-15 Aug 1975, I.F.B. Comon and M.S. Upton (1 ♂, ANIC) .

Figures

FIGURES 873-878. Pison psammophilos Pulawski, sp. nov. (873) Female clypeus; (874) Male clypeus; (875) Female gena (arrow shows psammophore); male: (876) Sternum VIII (ventral surface); (877) Genitalia in dorsal view; (878) Genitalia in lateral view.