Browsing by Author "Reynolds Berry, Terry"

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    Revision of the endemic Afrotropical genus Tetractenion (Hymenoptera, Ichneumonidae) with an identification key to genera of Banchinae for the region
    (Pensoft, 2020-12-30) Reynolds Berry, Terry; Van Noort, Simon
    The Afrotropical banchine fauna comprises 12 genera: Apophua Morley, Atropha Kriechbaumer, Cryptopimpla Taschenberg, Exetastes Gravenhorst, Glyptopimpla Morley, Himertosoma Schmiedeknecht, Lissonota Gravenhorst, Sjostedtiella Szépligeti, Spilopimpla Cameron, Syzeuctus Förster, Tetractenion Seyrig, and Tossinola Viktorov. A well-illustrated revised key to the genera using high definition images is provided, and the endemic Afrotropical genus Tetractenion is revised, previously represented by two described species. Four new species are described: T. ibayaensis sp. nov., T. pascali sp. nov., T. pseudolutea sp. nov., and T. rosei sp. nov. The first species-level identification key is provided for this rare genus. Based on morphological attributes the hypothesis is presented that the species in this genus are probably nocturnal. All images and online interactive Lucid keys are available at: www.waspweb.org and the associated underlying data is made available as Suppl. materials 1, 2 LIF3 files to this paper for inter-exchange with other key production software.
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    Systematics of the parasitoid wasp subfamily Banchinae (Hymenoptera; Ichneumonidae) in the Afrotropical region
    (Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2019-12) Reynolds Berry, Terry; Van Noort, Simon; Matthee, Conrad A.; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Science. Dept. of Botany and Zoology.
    ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Parasitoid wasps play an important ecological role as natural controllers of insect populations and, as a result, are increasingly used in agricultural biological control of insect pests. They are an economically important group as they render an ecosystem service to society. The parasitoid wasp family Ichneumonidae (Hymenoptera) is arguably the largest animal family on earth. However, relatively little is known about the diversity of this group within the Afrotropical region. The present study contributes to the growing body of systematic studies of ichneumonids by providing a comprehensive systematic revision of the subfamily Banchinae occurring in the region. This study includes an investigation of evolutionary relationships, historical biogeography of Afrotropical species, description of new species, and the development of updated generic and species identification keys. A key to Banchinae genera within the Afrotropical region was last created over 40 years ago. Since then, recent advances have been made through the development of good quality high definition images which accompany dichotomous keys and allow for reliable identification of genera/species by taxonomists. The Afrotropical banchine fauna currently comprises 12 genera: Apophua Morley, Atropha Kriechbaumer, Cryptopimpla Taschenberg, Exetastes Gravenhorst, Glyptopimpla Morley, Himertosoma Schmiedeknecht, Lissonota Gravenhorst, Sjostedtiella Szépligeti, Spilopimpla Cameron, Syzeuctus Förster, Tetractenion Seyrig, and Tossinola Viktorov. One of these, Cryptopimpla is a predominately northern hemisphere genus represented by 47 described species of which only one is known from the Afrotropical region. Another genus, Tetractenion, which is restricted to the Afrotropical region, is only represented by two described species. This study provides the first species-level identification key to these two rare genera, including description of nine and four new species respectively. All Afrotropical species of Cryptopimpla are, to this date, only known from South Africa. Studies (prior and current) suggest that both genera are restricted to temperate areas, with a prediction through morphological investigation that the genus Tetractenion is possibly nocturnal. In addition, the generic key to Banchinae in the Afrotropical region is updated. Online interactive Lucid Phoenix and Lucid matrix keys are available at: http://www.waspweb.org/Ichneumonoidea/Ichneumonidae/Keys/index.htm. To investigate the phylogeny of Banchinae in the Afrotropical region, morphological data were combined with molecular sequence data obtained from two nuclear genes, 18S and 28S, and one mitochondrial gene, COI, for 76 taxa, representing all three tribes and 10 of the 12 currently recognized genera. Divergence dates and historical biogeography were estimated on the inferred phylogeny. The most important results of the study suggest that (1) the Banchus group of the tribe Banchini does not form part of the subfamily Banchinae, (2) the endemic genus Sjostedtiella, along with other “forest-associated” lineages, was found to be the oldest banchine genus within the Afrotropical region, and (3) the dating of the temperate-associated genus Cryptopimpla refutes the hypothesis that banchine lineages found within the Cape region are more derived because of their association with the Cape Floristic Region. There is some inference to suggest that Malagasy taxa show strong affinities to East African taxa, due to the close proximity of the island to the East African coast, and some inference indicating the connectedness between East and tropical West and Central Africa. However, it is important to bear in mind that molecular specimens from West and East Africa available for DNA extraction were limited and likewise suitable samples from India, which was historically connected to Madagascar, were also lacking. While many of the genera were found to be monophyletic, paraphyly was established for Himertosoma and Lissonota. There was an unresolved placement of a clade comprising two Malagasy species, which share both typical and unique morphological characteristics with the genus Himertosoma. However, this clade falls outside of the well-supported clade comprising the remaining Himertosoma species. Although genetically divergent, a lack of a true synapomorphy suggests that these two species are, for now, better placed within the genus Himertosoma. Their inclusion does, however, render Himertosoma a paraphyletic group, but analyses of further taxa is required to achieve a robustly supported decision on the affinities of the species within this genus. Paraphyly for the genus Lissonota was found both within the Afrotropical region and on a global scale, which was not surprising given the uncertainty on the validity and circumscription, as well as the worldwide distribution of species, of this very large genus.