Synopsis of Australian agathidine wasps (Hymenoptera: Braconidae: Agathidinae)

Abstract

Agathidinae is a large subfamily of braconid wasps that are koinobiont endoparasitoids of lepidopteran larvae. Although the group is relatively well studied in the northern hemisphere, the Australian fauna is poorly known, with only 36 species recorded from the continent. This study presents a synopsis of the genera and species that occur in Australia, including a key to genera, information on their distribution and apparent species richness, and a list of species according to the latest generic concepts. Ten genera occur in Australia: Amputostypos Sharkey, Baeognatha Kokujev, BiroiaSzépligeti, Braunsia Kriechbaumer, Coccygidium Saussure, Cremnops Foerster, Disophrys Foerster, EuagathisSzépligeti, Lytopylus Foerster and Therophilus Wesmael, with Lytopylus known only from a single introduced species. Baeognatha stat. rev. is taken out of synonymy with Therophilus and two genera are synonymised: Platyagathis Turner with Disophrys (syn. nov.) and Camptothlipsis with Baeognatha (syn. nov.). The genera Agathis Latreille and BassusFabricius are excluded from the Australian fauna, as the species described under these genera are here transferred to Therophilus, and no other species of either genus have been discovered from the continent. Further, the genera Baeognatha and Coccygidium are recorded from Australia for the first time, although not represented by any described species. The following new combinations are proposed: Amputostypos dilutum (Turner), comb. nov. (from Hypsostypos), A.exornatum (Turner), comb. nov. (from Hypsostypos), Disophrys leaena (Turner), comb. nov. (from Platyagathis), Lytopylus rufipes (Nees von Esenbeck) comb. nov. (from Bassus), Therophilus antipodus (Ashmead) comb. nov. (from Orgiloneura), T. festinatus (Turner), comb. nov. (from Bassus), T. latibalteatus (Cameron) comb. nov. (from Agathis), T. leucogaster (Holmgren) comb. nov. (from Agathis), T. malignus (Turner). comb. nov. (from Bassus), T. martialis(Turner) comb. nov. (from Agathis), T. meridionalis (Turner comb. nov. (from Bassus), T. minimus (Turner) comb. nov. (from Bassus), T. minor (Szépligeti) comb. nov. (from Bassus), T. pedunculatus (Szépligeti) comb. nov. (from Bassus), T. ruficeps (Szépligeti). comb. nov. (from Bassus), T. rufithorax (Turner) comb. nov. (from Agathis), T. rufobrunneus (Turner) comb. nov. (from Agathis), T. rugosus (Turner) comb. nov. (from Bassus), T. tricolor (Szépligeti) comb nov. (from Bassus), and T. xanthopsis (Turner) comb. nov. (from Agathis). In addition, Bassus tenuissimus (Turner) is synonomised with T. ruficeps (Szépligeti) syn. nov., and Agathis dimidiata (Brullé) is designated a nomen dubium.