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Species Megarhyssa macrurus - Long-tailed Giant Ichneumonid Wasp

long stinger? wasp - Megarhyssa macrurus - female Endromopoda - Megarhyssa macrurus - female Megarhyssa macrurus? - Megarhyssa macrurus - male Giant Ichneumon - Megarhyssa macrurus - female Giant Ichneumon Wasp - Megarhyssa macrurus - male Megarhyssa macrurus - for confirmation. - Megarhyssa macrurus - female Long tailed wasp  - Megarhyssa macrurus - female Megarhyssa - Megarhyssa macrurus - male
Classification
Kingdom Animalia (Animals)
Phylum Arthropoda (Arthropods)
Subphylum Hexapoda (Hexapods)
Class Insecta (Insects)
Order Hymenoptera (Ants, Bees, Wasps and Sawflies)
No Taxon ("Parasitica" - Parasitoid Wasps)
Superfamily Ichneumonoidea (Braconid and Ichneumonid Wasps)
Family Ichneumonidae (Ichneumonid Wasps)
Subfamily Rhyssinae
Genus Megarhyssa (Giant Ichneumonid Wasps)
Species macrurus (Long-tailed Giant Ichneumonid Wasp)
Synonyms and other taxonomic changes
Megarhyssa macrurus (Linnaeus, 1771)
Megarhyssa macrurus icterosticta Michener, 1939
Megarhyssa macrurus lunator (Fabricius, 1781)(1)
Megarhyssa lunator icterosticta Michener, 1939
Megarhyssa lunator phaeoptila Michener, 1939
Megarhyssa lunatrix Schulz, 1906
Megarhyssa lunator (Fabricius, 1781)
Ichneumon lunator Fabricius, 1781
Orig. Comb.: Ichneumon macrurus Linnaeus, 1771
Explanation of Names
Megarhyssa macrurus (Linnaeus, 1771)
macrurus = from the Ancient Greek μᾰκρός (makrós)- "long" + οὐρᾶς (ourás)- "tail" (referring to the ovipositor)
Identification
Females of M. macrurus are distinguished from those of M. greenei by having the forewing pigmented along the basal vein (such that 2-3 distinct regions of pigmentation are present) and by the longer ovipositor length of about 2.2-2.3x the body length (3.0x forewing length). They also have dark vertical stripes on the face.(2)


Males are distinguished from all other species in the genus by the presence of pigmentation on the forewing (at the base of cell 2R1). They are also the only members of the species to have vertical lines on the face.(2)
Range
e NA to Rocky Mtns. / n. Mex. (BG data)
Food
Larvae parasitize Pigeon horntail (Tremex columba, Siricidae)
- Range: e. NA to Calif.
Remarks
"Townes, who was knowledgeable of Latin and Greek, interpreted the name macrurus as a noun, which is implied by his his use of the new combination Megarhyssa macrurus in his 1944/45 catalog as well as in his 1960 treatment of the North American species of Megarhyssa. This is consistent with the above explanation of the name. Unfortunately, some recent papers have unjustifiably begun citing the combination as Megarhyssa macrura, apparently following the unjustified use of that combination in the Taxapad database. I see no reasonable argument for treating the name as anything other than a noun, but even if it could be argued that Linnaeus might have intended the name as adjectival (which I doubt), it seems to me that Townes treatment of the name as a noun has first revisor status." - Bob Carlson (RWC)
See Also
Megarhyssa greenei - Range: e. NA to Great Plains
Internet References
Works Cited
1.Carlson R.W. () Ichneumonidae catalog
2.Key to the species of Megarhyssa (Hymenoptera, Ichneumonidae, Rhyssinae) in America, north of Mexico
Victoria Pook, Michael Sharkey, David Wahl. 2016. Deutsche Entomologische Zeitschrift 63(1): 137-148.