New records and an updated checklist of Helconini (Hymenoptera: Braconidae, Helconinae) from Italy

Turrisi, Giuseppe Fabrizio; Papi, Rossano; Lisa, Tommaso; Altadonna, Giovanni

doi:10.48311/jibs.12.04.831

New records and an updated checklist of Helconini (Hymenoptera: Braconidae, Helconinae) from Italy

Articles in Press

Document Type : Full-length Research Article

Authors

Giuseppe Fabrizio Turrisi ¹

Rossano Papi ¹

Tommaso Lisa ¹

Giovanni Altadonna ²

¹ University of Florence, Museo di Storia Naturale “La Specola”, Via Romana, 17, 50125, Florence, Italy

² University of Florence, Piazza San Marco, 4, 50121, Florence, Italy.

10.48311/jibs.12.04.831

Abstract

New faunistic and host association data on four species of braconid wasps belonging to the tribe Helconini (Hymenoptera: Braconidae, Helconinae) from Italy are provided, focusing on the genera Helcon Nees von Esenbeck, 1812 and Helconidea Viereck, 1914. The record in Italy of the rare Helcon claviventris Wesmael, 1835 is documented for the first time. The presence of Helconidea meridionalis van Achterberg, 1987, previously known from a single Italian record, is confirmed based on new material collected from Emilia-Romagna and Tuscany. Helconidea annulicornis Nees von Esenbeck, 1834 is removed from the checklist of Italian fauna since it is a synonym of Wroughtonia spinator (Lepeletier & Audinet-Serville, 1827). The distribution of Helcon angustator Nees von Esenbeck, 1812, and Helconidea dentator (Fabricius, 1804) in Italy is significantly elucidated and expanded with new records from Trentino-Alto Adige, Emilia-Romagna, Tuscany, Umbria, and Sicily. Furthermore, novel host-parasitoid associations for H. meridionalis are documented as a parasitoid of the larvae of two longhorn beetles (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae): Anastrangalia dubia (Scopoli, 1763) and Hylotrupes bajulus (Linnaeus, 1758). Diagnostic morphological traits and photographic documentation are provided to facilitate species identification. Finally, an updated summary of the current knowledge of the Italian Helconini is compiled, including eight species, serving as a critical amendment and supplement to the checklist of Italian fauna.

Graphical Abstract

New records and an updated checklist of Helconini (Hymenoptera: Braconidae, Helconinae) from Italy

Keywords

Biodiversity

Distribution

New hosts

Wood-boring beetles

parasitoids

Subjects

Faunistics

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