A review of the genus Epsilon de Saussure (Hymenoptera: Vespidae: Eumeninae) from India

 

P. Girish Kumar 1, J.M. Carpenter2 & Lambert Kishore 3

 

1 Zoological Survey of India, M-Block, New Alipore, Kolkata, West Bengal 700053, India

2 Division of Invertebrate Zoology, American Museum of Natural History, Central Park West at 79th Street, New York, NY 10024, USA

3 P.G. & Research Department of Zoology, Malabar Christian College, Kozhikode, Kerala 673001, India

1 kpgiris@gmail.com (corresponding author), 2 carpente@amnh.org,3 lambert3698@gmail.com

 

 

 

Abstract: The potter wasp genus Epsilon de Saussure is reviewed from India.  Epsilonmanasicum Girish Kumar & Carpenter sp. nov. and Epsilon chikmagalurensis (Lambert, 2008) comb. nov. are established. A key to species of India and a world checklist are also given.

 

Keywords: Epsilon, Eumeninae, Indian subcontinent, review, Vespidae.

 

Abbreviations: BMNH - British Museum (Natural History), London, England; DEI - Deutsche Entomologische Institut, Müncheberg, Germany; NZC - ‘National Zoological Collections’ of Zoological Survey of India, Kolkata, India; F1-F2 - Flagellar segments 1 to 2; H - Head; M = Mesosoma; OOL - Ocelloculardistance; POL - Post ocellar distance; S1-S2 - Metasomal sterna 1 & 2; T1-T2 - Metasomal terga 1 & 2.

 

 

doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.11609/JoTT.o3626.5380-5  | ZooBank: urn:lsid:zoobank.org:pub:D3C3BA0E-ABBE-48E4-A6C9-4AA223F09913

 

Editor: Late Dr. T.C. Narendran (passed away on 31 December 2013).      Date of publication: 26 January 2014 (online & print)

 

Manuscript details: Ms # o3626 | Received 09 May 2013 | Final received 11 September 2013 | Finally accepted 04 December 2013

 

Citation: P. Girish Kumar, J. M. Carpenter & Lambert Kishore (2014). A review of the genus Epsilonde Saussure (Hymenoptera: Vespidae: Eumeninae) from India. Journal of Threatened Taxa 6(1): 5380–5385; http://dx.doi.org/10.11609/JoTT.o3626.5380-5

 

Copyright: © Kumar et al. 2014. Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported License. JoTT allows unrestricted use of this article in any medium, reproduction and distribution by providing adequate credit to the authors and the source of publication.

 

Funding: This work was partially supported by DST, New Delhi to Lambert Kishore.

 

Competing Interest: The authors declare no competing interests.

 

Acknowledgements: The authors are grateful to Dr. K. Venkataraman, Director, Zoological Survey of India, Kolkata, for providing facilities and encouragement. PGK is also grateful to Dr. Kailash Chandra, Additional Director & Officer-in-Charge of Entomology Division (A), Zoological Survey of India, Kolkata and Dr. GauravSharma, Officer-in-Charge, Hymenoptera Section, Zoological Survey of India, Kolkata for providing facilities and encouragement. LK is grateful to the Department of Science and Technology, New Delhi for providing financial assistance for the project and also grateful to the Principal, Malabar Christian College, Kozhikode for providing research facilities and encouragement.

 

 

 

For images -- click here

 

De Saussure (1855) provided the name Epsilonfor division III of the subgenus Leionotus de Saussure of the genus Odynerus Latreille (subfamily Eumeninae of the family Vespidae).  This genus is distributed in the Australian and oriental regions. Fourteen species are recorded under this genus from the world, of which two species, namely, Epsilon burmanicum (Bingham, 1897) and E. tinctipenne (Walker, 1860) are recorded from the Indian subcontinent.  Lambert et al. (2008) described a new species as Antepipona chikmagalurensis Lambert from Chikmagalur, Karnataka, India.  During our studies we found that this species belongs to Epsilon and not Antepipona. Therefore, we establish a new combination for this species here.  In addition to this a new species, Epsilon manasicum GirishKumar & Carpenter is described here from Assam and West Bengal.  A key to species of India and a world checklist of Epsilon de Saussure are provided.

 

Material and Methods

The specimens were studied and photographed by using a Leica Stereo microscope with LAS software version 3.6.0. The types of the new species described are deposited in the ‘National Zoological Collections’ of the Zoological Survey of India, Kolkata (NZC).

 

GenusEpsilon de Saussure

Epsilon de Saussure, 1855, Ét. Fam. Vesp., 3: 229, 252. Type species: Odynerus dyscherus  de Saussure, 1852, by subsequent designation of van der Vecht, 1967, Bull. Zool. Nomencl., 24: 31.

Diagnosis: Anterior face of pronotum with a group of transverse striations medially, without foveae; tegulanot evenly rounded posteriorly, emarginate adjoining parategula and equalling parategulaposteriorly; axillary fossa narrower than long; metanotumwithout tubercles, angled; propodeum with submarginal carina projecting as rounded lobe above valvula, without dorsolateral projections; without superiorcarinae, not raised shelf-like to the same level as metanotum; second submarginalcell not petiolate, with second recurrent vein nearly or completely interstitial with third submarginalcell; midtibia with 1 spur; T1 sessile, in dorsal view about as wide as T2, not carinate; T2 with apical lamellae. Female with cephalic fovea, not in raised area. Male midfemur not toothed.

Distribution: Australian and oriental regions.

 

Epsilon burmanicum (Bingham, 1897)

Odynerus burmanicus  Bingham, 1897, Fauna Brit. India, Hym., 1: 362 (key), 371, Female, “Rangoon; Toungoo;Pegu” (BMNH, no. 18.282, Rangoon).

Rhynchium taprobanae Cameron, 1901, Proc. Zool. Soc., London, 1901: 31, Female, “Ceylon” (BMNH).

Odynerus kanthaleyensis Giordani Soika, 1935, Arb. Morph. Tax. Ent. Berlin-Dahmel, 2: 245, lectotype Female (DEI). Lectotype designated by Giordani Soika (1973) and Borsato& Ratti (1999) synonymised it under Epsilon burmanicum (Bingham).

Epsilon burmanicum  Bingham: Giordani Soika, 1994, Annali del Mus. Civ. St. Nat. “G. Doria”. 90: 272 (key), 274, 275, 276.  Additional citation: Gusenleitner, 2006, Linzer biol. Beitr., 38(1): 692 (Karnataka: Shimoga).

Diagnosis: Body black with brown and pale yellow markings. Brown maculations are as follows: mandibles, scape, ventral side of flagellar segments, legs, posterior and lateral sides of T1; last tergiteand sternite. Pale yellow colour as follows: a triangular spot at the base of mandibles, clypeus with a broad band basal and apical specks on the teeth, the lower edge of ocular sinus, a speck on the temples, a narrow band on the dorsal surface of pronotum, two spots on metanotum, the tegulae, except for a dark central spot, the parategula, the apex of fore femora, almost all of the external face of all tibiae, a transverse band of medium width on T1, a little wider apical band on T2, narrow apical bands on T2 and S2.  Wings almost hyaline. Punctation of T2 large and dense, with the distance between the punctures, in average, equal to or even less than the diameter of punctures; T3 & T4 with punctation coarse and dense; clypeus more deeply emarginated at apex, with apical teeth thin and sharp; posterior lobe of the tegulae very short.

Distribution: India (Gujarat, Karnataka, Odisha, Pondicherry, Tamil Nadu); Myanmar; Sri Lanka; Thailand (Bingham 1897; Soika 1994; Gusenleitner 1988, 2006).

Remarks: No material was available for our studies; hence the diagnostic characters were taken from Soika (1994).

 

Epsilon chikmagalurensis (Lambert, 2008) comb. nov.

(Images 1–4)

Antepipona chikmagalurensis Lambert, 2008, Uttar Pradesh J. Zool., 28 (1): 121, HolotypeFemale, Chikmagalur (NZC). Type examined.

Material examined: Holotype: NZC Regd. No. 13860/H3, 25.iv.2005, female, Chikmagalur, Karnataka, India, coll. Lambert Kishore.

Lambert et al. (2008) described this as a species belonging to the genus Antepipona de Saussure.  But the study of the holotype of this species reveals that all the characters match the characters of the genus Epsilon de Saussure.  Therefore, we herewith place this species in the genus Epsilon de Saussure.

Diagnosis: Female (Image 1): Body length (H+M+T1+T2) 7.2mm; Black with yellow markings as follows: two spots at the base of clypeus, a small spot on ocular sinus at lower eye margin, an elongated spot on upper part of temple near to eye margin, a narrow band on pronotum dorsally, spots on anterior and posterior margins of tegula, a spot on parategula, two spots on metanotum, narrow apical band on T1, broadened apical band on T2.  Apex of mandible and apical tarsal segments of legs brownish. Wings hyaline, thickly infumate at stigma, slightly infumateat the apex of median cell and upper half of radial cell.  Clypeus (Image 2) with the extreme apex with two teeth, the area in between them incised, with minute punctures, almostimpunctate; frons closely, strongly and rugosely punctured, margins carinate; cephalic fovea strongly developed with two fused deep pits; anterior face of pronotum smooth with a group of transverse striations at the middle and few punctures on lateral sides; posterior face and lateral sides of pronotum, mesoscutum andscutellum strongly (Images 1 & 4), closely and rugosely punctate; metanotumwithout tubercles, angled; mesopleuron rugosely punctured except large area of epicnemiumand posterior margin smooth (Image 1); epicnemialcarina distinct; propodeum vertical, posterior concave area of propodeum smooth with few (about ten on either side) transverse striations radiating towards outer sides, with strong punctures on outer sides, median carina distinct, two large, oval-shaped pits are present on either side above median carina (size of one pit equal to the combined size of two strong propodeal punctures),submarginal carina projecting as a small rounded lobe above propodeal valvula; posterior lobe of the tegulae well developed (Image 4), and almost equal to parategula at apex; axillary fossa narrowed, slit-like; forewing (Image 3) with both recurrent veins received in submarginal cell II; T2 with a distinct apical lamellae; punctation of T2 large and dense (Image 1), with the distance between the punctures, in average, equal to or even less than the diameter of punctures.

Discussion: Lambert et al. (2008) wrongly described the metanotumwith two minute indistinct teeth.  This species has strong carinate punctures on the metanotumand Lambert et al. (2008) wrongly described these as minute indistinct teeth. This character led them to Antepipona.

Distribution: India (Karnataka).

 

Epsilon manasicum Girish Kumar & Carpenter sp. nov.(Images 5–12)

urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:E414C169-8538-4F34-B4A7-FBFEB2F56401

 

Material examined: Holotype: 13857/H3, 10.iv.1986, female, Doimari, ManasNational Park, Assam, India, coll. S.S. Saha & Party. Paratypes: 13858/H3, 31.iii.1986, 1 female, Kahitama, ManasNational Park, Assam, India, coll. S.S. Saha & Party; 13859/H3, 10.ix.1904, 1 female, Kolkata, West Bengal, India, coll. Brunetti.

Description:Holotype female (Image 5): Body length (H+M+T1+T2) 6.5-7 mm; Forewing length 6.5-7 mm. Body black with the following yellow markings: two spots at the base of clypeus, a small spot on ocular sinus at lower eye margin, an elongated spot on upper part of temple near to eye margin, a median interrupted transverse band on pronotum, two spots on tegula at both apex, a small spot on the apex of forefemur, an elongated mark on hind tibia at inner side and narrow transverse band at the apex of T1 and T2, the band on T2 slightly thicker than T1 (Image 12).  Apex of mandible and apical tarsal segments blackish brown. Wings hyaline, thickly infumated at stigma (Image 11), slightly infumated at the apex of median cell and upper half of radial cell; veins brown. Body with rather sparsely to moderately dense fine silvery white pubescence; in between the small dense silvery white pubescence, moderately large elongate silvery white pubescence (Images 6 & 9) are present on head and dorsal side of body.

Head: 1.15x as wide as long in front view (Image 6); clypeus slightly convex, pyriform, the extreme apex with two teeth, the area in between them incised, maximum width 1.54x length medially, with minute punctures, almost impunctate; mandibles on inner side with four teeth; maxillary palp 6-segmented; labial palp 4-segmented; interantennal space almost smooth; a hump-like transverse carina present at the middle of interantennalspace; a short but distinct longitudinal carina originate from the middle of transverse carina extends to the base of clypeus; frons closely, strongly and rugosely punctured, margins carinate; ocular sinus with weak punctures (Image 6); area between the antennal toruli and inner eye margin smooth; POL 1.5x OOL; diameter of anterior ocellus as long as the distance between anterior ocellus and posterior ocelli; vertex and temple weakly punctured (Image 5); cephalic fovea strongly developed with two pits (Image 7), the outer margins of pits produced in to a hump-like structure; temple 0.48x as wide as eye in profile (measured through its ocular sinus); interocular distance 1.02x greater on vertex than at clypeus; occipital carina strong, complete and narrowed ventrally.  Antenna 2.46x farther from each other than from eyes; antennal scrobe granulatelypunctured; scape 3.17x as long as F1, 4.06x as long as wide; pedicel 0.70x as long as F1, as long as wide; F1 1.28x as long as F2, 1.31x as long as wide; flagellar segments slightly widening towards apex except last antennal segment; apical antennal segment 1.13x as long as wide.

Mesosoma (Image 9): Anterior face of pronotum smooth with a group of transverse striations at the middle and a few punctures on lateral sides (Image 8); pronotalcarina strong and reaching the lateral margin of pronotum; posterior face and lateral sides of pronotum, mesoscutum and scutellumstrongly, closely and rugosely punctate (Image 9); mesoscutum 0.85x as long as wide; metanotumsomewhat compressed medially, without tubercles, angled with depressed broad irregular punctures except at posterior portion smooth; propleuronalmost smooth; mesopleuron rugoselypunctured except large area of epicnemium and posterior margin smooth; epicnemial carina distinct; upper metapleuron weakly transversely striated at lower portion and strongly punctate at upper portion, lower metapleuronalmost impunctate with a few weak incomplete transverse striations at anterior margin. Propodeum (Image 10) vertical, concavo-truncate posteriorly, punctures on dorsolateral area of propodeum as that of punctures of metanotum, posterior concave area of propodeum smooth with a few transverse striations radiating towards outer sides (Image 10), with strong punctures on outer sides, median carina distinct but slightly faint sub posteriorly, two large, oval-shaped pits are present on either side above median carina (Image 10), the segment at the base of propodeumabove these two large pits are semi oval shaped, lateral sides of propodeum with strong and deep punctures towards posterior margins and transverse striations towards metapleuron;submarginal carina projecting as a small rounded lobe above propodeal valvula.  Tegula not evenly rounded posteriorly, emarginated adjoining parategulaand almost equal to parategula at apex; axillary fossa narrowed, slit-like. Midtibia with 1 spur. Forewing (Image 11) length 2.98x its maximum width, prestigma0.46x pterostigma, second submarginalcell not petiolate, first recurrent vein received in submarginal cell II and second recurrent vein received at the interstitial.

Metasoma (Image 12): T1 without transverse carina, 2.93x as wide as long, 0.92x as wide as T2 in dorsal view; T2 with apical lamellae; the narrow basal part of S1 smooth, posterior transverse area of S1 granulately punctured with rather irregular vertical striations; T1, T2 and S2 with distinct but sparse punctures, the diameter of most of the punctures less than interspaces; visible part of remaining tergites and sternites almost impunctate.

Male: Unknown.

Variation: In both paratypes the tegulahas a yellowish mark; in the Paratype from Kahitama there are two yellow spots on metanotum; in both paratypes no yellow marks are on forefemur at apex; in the paratypefrom Kolkata the median portion of posterior face of propodeumis almost completely smooth without transverse striations.

Etymology: The species is named after the locality (ManasNational Park) where the holotype was collected.

 

Discussion

This new species comes close to Epsilontinctipenne (Walker) in having the punctation of T2 fine and sparse, with the distance between the punctures more than the diameter of punctures. But it distinctly differs from E. tinctipenne in having: (i). The clypeus slightly incised at apex (Image 6) (in E.tinctipenne clypeus deeply incised at apex (Soika 1994: fig. 62); (ii). Legs not entirely black, a small yellow spot on the apex of forefemur and an elongated yellow mark on hind tibia at inner side (in E. tinctipenne legs entirely black).

This new species distinctly differs from Epsilon burmanicum (Bingham) and E. chikmagalurensis (Lambert) comb. nov., in having the punctationof T2 fine and sparse, with the distance between the punctures more than the diameter of the punctures (in E. burmanicum andE. chikmagalurensis punctationof T2 large and dense, with the distance between the punctures, on average, equal to or even less than the diameter of punctures).

 

Epsilon tinctipenne (Walker, 1860)

Odynerus tinctipennis Walker, 1860, Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist., (3) 5: 304, male (in subgenus Ancistrocerus), “Ceylon” (BMNH, type no. 18. 311).

Ancistrocerus tinctipennis ; Motschulsky, 1863, Bull. Soc. imp. Nat. Moscou, 36 (2): 23 (cat.).

Epsilon tinctipenne (Walker): Giordani Soika, 1994, Annali del Mus. Civ. St. Nat. “G. Doria”. 90: 272 (key), 282, 283.

Diagnosis: Body black, yellow colour as follows: two spots at the base of the clypeus, a narrow band, very short on the sides, on the pronotum, the front and rear ends of the tegulae, the parategulae, an interrupted band in the middle on metanotum, narrow and regular apical bands onT1 and T2.  Wings moderately browned.  Clypeus more widely emarginated at apex, the distance that separates the apical teeth is equal to about 1/3rdof the maximum width of the clypeus; punctures on clypeus very small, almost indistinct; ocelli of normal size; interocellar area not densely punctured; behind the ocelli there is a slight depression, with a central smaller and less deep pit, flanked by two small teeth; front with punctures more superficial, flat bottom, separated by interspaces subtly cariniform; posterior lobe of tegulae well developed; punctation of T2 fine and sparse, with the distance between the punctures more than the diameter of punctures; T3 & T4 with punctation fine and sparse.

Distribution: India (Maharashtra, southern India); Sri Lanka (Bingham 1897; Soika 1994).

Remarks: No material was available for our studies; hence the diagnostic characters were taken from Soika (1994).

 

Check list of World species of Epsilon de Saussure

1. Epsilon achterbergi Giordani Soika, 1995—Solomon Islands.

2. Epsilon burmanicum (Bingham, 1897)—India, Myanmar, Sri Lanka.

3. Epsilon chartergiforme (Soika, 1962)—Australia.

4. Epsilon chikmagalurensis (Lambert, 2008) comb. nov.—India.

5. Epsilon dyscherum (de Saussure, 1853)—Philippines.

6. Epsilon excavatum (Borsato, 1994)—Australia.

7. Epsilon fujianense Lee, 1981—China.

8. Epsilon grandipunctatum Gusenleitner, 1996—Philippines.

9. Epsilon incola Giordani Soika, 1994—Papua New Guinea.

10. Epsilon laboriosum (Smith, 1864)—Indonesia, Papua New Guinea (Bismarck Island, New Ireland Island).

11. Epsilon manasicum Girish Kumar & Carpenter sp. nov.—India.

12. Epsilon manifestum (Smith, 1858)

a). Epsilon manifestum crassipunctatum Gusenleitner, 1991—Indonesia (Sulawesi).

b). Epsilon manifestum manifestum (Smith, 1858)—Brunei, Indonesia (Java), Malaysia (Sabah, Sarawak), Singapore.

13. Epsilon rubromaculatum Gusenleitner, 2011—Laos.

14. Epsilon subfistulosum (Wickwar, 1908)—Sri Lanka.

15. Epsilon tinctipenne (Walker, 1860)—India, Sri Lanka.

16. Epsilon vechti Soika, 1995—Indonesia (Sulawesi).

 

 

References

 

Bingham, C.T. (1897). The Fauna of British India, including Ceylon and Burma, Hymenoptera, I. Wasps and Bees.Taylor and Francis, London, 579pp+i-xxix.

Borsato, W. & E. Ratti (1999). Antonio Giordani Soika (1913–1997): l’opera scientifica. Memorie della Societa Entomologica Italiana, 77: 43–103.

Cameron, P. (1901). On the Hymenoptera collected during the “Skeat Expedition”to the Malay Peninsula, 1899–1900. Proceedings of the Zoological Society, London 1901(2): 16–44.

de Saussure, H.F. (1852–1858). Etudes sur la famille des vespides.Vols. 1–3. V. Masson & Cherbuliez, Paris & Geneva. [For dates of publication of various parts, see Griffin, 1939].

Griffin, F. J. (1939). On the dates of publication of de Saussure (H. de): Etudes sur la famille des Vespides 1–3. 1852–1858. Journal of the Society for the Bibliography of Natural History 1: 211-212.

Gusenleitner, J. (1988). Uber Eumenidae ausThailand, mit einer Bestimmungstabelle für orientalische Labus- Arten. Linzer Biologische Beitrage 20(1): 173–198.

Gusenleitner, J. (2006). Uber Aufsammlungenvon Faltenwespen in Indien(Hymenoptera, Vespidae). Linzer Biologische Beitrage 38(1): 677–695.

Gusenleitner, J. (2011). Eine Aufsammlungvon Faltenwespen aus Laos im BiologiezentrumLinz (Hymenoptera: Vespidae: Vespinae,Stenogastrinae, Polistinae,Eumeninae). Linzer Biologische Beitrage 43(2): 1351–1368.

Lambert, K., P.G. Kumar & T.C. Narendran(2008). A new species of Antepipona Saussure (Hymenoptera: Vespidae). Uttar Pradesh Journal of Zoology 28(1): 121–123.

Motschulsky, V. de. (1863). Essai d’un Catalogue des Insectesde Ceylon. Bulletin de la Société Impériale des Naturalistesde Moscou 36(2): 23.

Soika, A.G. (1935). Su alcuni Eumeninidel Deutsches entomologishes Institut di Berlin-Dahlem. Arbeiten über Morphologischeund Taxonomische Entomologie, Berlin-Dahmel 2(4): 242–252+3 figs.

Soika, A.G. (1973). Designazione di Lectotipi ed Elenco dei Tipi di Eumenidi,Vespidi e Masaridi Dame Descriti Negli Anni 1934–1960. Bollettinodel Museo Civico di Storia Naturale di Venezia, 24: 7–53.

Soika, A.G. (1994). Ricerche sistematiche su alcuni generidi Eumenidi della Regione Orientale e della Papuasia. Annali del Museo Civicodi Storia Naturale “G. Doria” 90: 1–348.

Walker, F. (1860). Characters of some apparently undescribed Ceylon insects. Annals and Magazines of the Natural History 5(3): 304–311.