Episyron rufotibius Anju, Girish Kumar & Thejass, 2024

Song, Zhiyan, Dong, Lili, Ma, Li & Li, Qiang, 2025, Review and key of the Chinese species of the genus Episyron Schiødte (Hymenoptera, Pompilidae), including descriptions of two new species, Deutsche Entomologische Zeitschrift 72 (2), pp. 133-154 : 133-154

Episyron rufotibius Anju, Girish Kumar & Thejass, 2024

Figs 11 A – F , 12 A – H

Episyron rufotibius Anju, Girish Kumar & Thejass, 2024: 565 .

Material examined.

CHINA • 41 ♀♀ 66 ♂♂; Yunnan, Yuxi City , Yuanjiang County; 23°18'N, 101°39'E; V – VI. 2016 (12 ♀♀ 17 ♂♂), VI – IX. 2016 (18 ♀♀ 11 ♂♂), IV – V. 2016 (11 ♀♀ 38 ♂♂); Malaise trap ( YNAU) ; CHINA • 2 ♀♀ 3 ♂♂; Yunnan, Yuxi City, Yuanjiang Ecological Station ; 23°47'N, 102°17'E; 12. VII. 2022; coll. Zhiyan Song; sweep net ( YNAU) ; CHINA • 1 ♀; Yunnan: Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden , rainforest; 21°54'N, 101°16'E; III – IV. 2019; coll. Yongsheng Pu, Malaise trap ( YNAU) ; CHINA • 1 ♀; Yunnan, Jinghong City, Menghai County, Guanggang Village ; 21°49'N, 100°29'E; 24. VII – 23. IX. 2019; coll. Malaise trap ( YNAU) ; CHINA • 2 ♀♀; Yunnan, Yuanmou County, Xinhua Town ; 25°71'N, 101°88'E; 4. X. 2011; coll. Malaise trap ( YNAU) ; CHINA • 1 ♀; Yunnan, Hekou County, Nanxi Town ; 22°41'N, 103°27'E; VII – IX. 2016; coll. Malaise trap ( YNAU) ; CHINA • 2 ♀♀; Guangdong, Jieyang City ; 23°55'N, 116°35'E; 1–10. VIII. 2008; coll. Shihong Wang, sweep net ( SCAU) .

Diagnosis.

Female. Length: body 9.2–14.5 mm; fore wing 8.4–11.3 mm. Body black, yellow marks as follows: broad yellow band along lower margin of clypeus, band narrow medially with “ U ” depression, and broad band on inner and outer orbits; posterior margin of pronotum creamy yellow, square mark near hind margin of mesonotum, spot on tegulae, paired basolateral roundish spots on T 1, T 2 and T 3 (usually hidden), paired basal transverse large spots on T 5 (sometimes connected) (Fig. 11 A – D ). Hind tibia reddish (apical black) (Fig. 11 A ). Wings hyaline, fore wing infuscate with light brown apical band (Fig. 11 E ). Face below with pale short pubescence; vertex, gena, pronotum, propodeum and T 1 with dense, long, erect and white pubescence, apical metasoma with sparse brownish black setae; squamiform pubescence usually with bluish or yellow-green metallic reflection (Fig. 11 D ). Clypeus slightly convex medially, rounded anterior margin, its width 2.19–2.22 times length. MID width nearly 2.23–2.32 times eyes; LID: MID: UID = 60: 62: 37 (Fig. 11 B ). POD: OOD = 1.50–1.75. Flagellum filiform, F 1 length 7.13–7.43 times its maximum width; SL: PL: F 1: F 2: F 3: F 4: F 5 = 30: 10: 57: 33: 30: 25: 23. SMC 2 receiving crossvein 1 m-cu at basal 0.65, SMC 3 receiving crossvein 2 m-cu at basal 0.64. Hind wing crossvein cu-a arc-like, M + CuA vein fork before intersection of cu-a and M + CuA (Fig. 11 E ). Fore tarsus with cylindrical tapering spines, tarsomere 1 outside with three outer spines, tarsomeres 2, 3 with two outer spines, tarsomere 4 with one outer spine, tarsomere 5 without spine (Fig. 11 F ). Metasoma without petiole, apex of T 6 slightly compressed ( Anju et al. 2024).

Description of male.

Body length 8.1–10.5 mm, fore wing 7.1–7.5 mm. Similar to female, yellow marks as follows: clypeus apically with broad band, band narrow medially with “ U ” depression or with one large yellow spot on each side; paired large spots on T 3 basolaterally, paired small spots on T 4 and T 5 basolaterally (Fig. 12 A – D ). Hind tibia reddish (apically black), spines and spurs pale (Fig. 12 A ). Wings hyaline, fore wing infuscate with light brown apical band, pterostigma entirely brown (Fig. 12 E ). Face below with short pale pubescence; vertex, gena, pronotum, propodeum and T 1 with dense long erect white pubescence, apical metasoma with sparse brownish black setae; pronotum, scutellum, metanotum, metapleura, metapostnotum, propodeum, dorsal surface of hind coxa and T 1 with unevenly distributed large squamiform pubescence, and T 2 –3 also with few squamiform pubescence, usually with bluish or yellow-green metallic reflection (Fig. 12 A – D ).

Head. In frontal view, head width 1.18–1.19 times height. Mandible slender, with one apical tooth. Clypeus slightly convex medially, rounded anteriorly, its width 1.64–2.11 times length (Fig. 12 B ). Malar space short. Area between antennal sockets convex. Frons flat, with inconspicuous median line. Inner orbits nearly parallel below and slightly convergent above; MID width nearly 2.48–2.68 times eyes; LID: MID: UID = 42: 47: 38 (Fig. 12 B ). In dorsal view, ocelli approximately in obtuse triangle, ocellar area slightly raised; POD: OOD = 1.1–1.3 (Fig. 12 C ). In lateral view, gena 0.32–0.37 times eye width. Flagellum filiform, F 1 nearly 1.43–1.70 times as long as wide, SL: PL: F 1: F 2: F 3: F 4: F 5 = 15: 5: 12: 14: 14: 13: 12.

Mesosoma. Pronotum length in dorsal view 0.25–0.29 times maximum width, slightly converging toward base, posterior margin arcuate and slightly angulate medially. Mesoscutum with evident parapsidal line, from apical to 3 / 4 metanotum. Mesoscutellum and metanotum conspicuously convex medially. Metapostnotum narrow medially, posterior margin arcuately expanded, its length nearly 0.37–0.43 times metanotum (Fig. 12 D ). Propodeum slightly convex in profile, with uniform arcuate transition, length 0.77–0.83 of its maximum width (Fig. 12 D ).

Wings. Marginal cell of fore wing nearly as long as its length from the wing tip (Fig. 12 E ). Pterostigma slender, its posterior margin parallel to anterior one. SMC 2 long, and SMC 3 narrows in upper part. SMC 2 receiving crossvein 1 m-cu at basal 0.63–0.80, SMC 3 receiving crossvein 2 m-cu at basal 0.61–0.63 (Fig. 12 E ). Hind wing crossvein cu-a arc-like, M + CuA vein fork before intersection of cu-a and M + CuA (Fig. 12 E ).

Legs. Fore tarsus without comb spines, long spur of hind tibia 0.79–0.90 times of metatarsus. Tarsal claws symmetrical and bifid, inner tooth broad and obliquely truncated.

Metasoma. Basal segment of metasoma much narrow, so that metasoma more fusiform than the others (Fig. 12 A ).

Sex association.

All female and male specimens were collected from the same location, on the same dates, and in the same Malaise trap. They exhibit identical patterns and share the following diagnostic characteristics: a broad yellow band along the lower margin of the clypeus; reddish hind tibia (apically black); and squamiform pubescence usually displaying a bluish or yellow-green metallic reflection.

Distribution.

China (Yunnan, Guangdong), India (Kerala) ( Anju et al. 2024).

Figures

Figure 11. A – F. Episyron rufotibius Anju, Girish Kumar & Thejass, 2024, ♀. A. Female, lateral view; B. Head, frontal view; C. Head, dorsal view; D. Postnotum, propodeum, dorsal view; E. Fore wing and hind wing; F. Fore tarsus. Scale bar: 1.0 mm.

Figure 12. A – H. Episyron rufotibius Anju, Girish Kumar & Thejass, 2024, ♂. A. Male, lateral view; B. Head, frontal view; C. Head, dorsal view; D. Postnotum, propodeum, dorsal view; E. Fore wing and hind wing; F. Genitalia, ventral view; G. Genitalia, dorsal view; H. Hypopygium, ventral view. Scale bar: 1.0 mm.