A new host record for the cleptoparasite Irenangelus lucidus (Evans, 1969) (Hymenoptera: Pompilidae)

Léo C Da Rocha-Filho,Solange C Augusto

doi:10.37486/2675-1305.ec03016

Abstract

We provide a new host record for the cleptoparasitic wasp Irenangelus lucidus (Evans, 1969) (Pompilidae: Ceropalinae). A single female emerged from a brood cell of the host species Auplopus militaris (Lynch-Arribalzaga, 1873) (Pompilidae: Pepsinae) reared from a bamboo cane trap nest set at the edge of a gallery forest fragment located in Minas Gerais State, Central Brazil. This is the third host record of an Irenangelus species for the Neotropical region.

Highlights

The family Pompilidae (Hymenoptera: Aculeata), commonly known as spider wasps, is a cosmopolitan group of approximately 5,000 species (Pitts et al 2006; Waichert et al 2015)
On February 16, 2021, we collected a nest of Auplopus militaris (Lynch-Arribalzaga, 1873) (Pepsinae) within a bamboo cane set in a wooden frame installed on the edge of a 307 ha remnant of gallery forest and Cerradão surrounded by croplands
Twenty bamboo canes from 1.4 to 2.4 cm diameter and 15 cm length were fixed horizontally in metal screens screwed to a wooden frame (30 cm height, 30 cm width, 20 cm depth) attached to a tree 1.5 m above ground and covered with a plastic blue roof to protect against the rain (Fig. 1A)

Summary

Introduction

The family Pompilidae (Hymenoptera: Aculeata), commonly known as spider wasps, is a cosmopolitan group of approximately 5,000 species (Pitts et al 2006; Waichert et al 2015). The genus Irenangelus is mostly distributed in the Oriental and Neotropical Regions (Shimizu & Wahis 2007), with 12 species recorded in the New World (Kimsey & Wasbauer 2004). Biological data and host records of Irenangelus species are still scarce.

Results

Conclusion