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Home » Guide » Arthropods (Arthropoda) » Hexapods (Hexapoda) » Insects (Insecta) » Ants, Bees, Wasps and Sawflies (Hymenoptera) » "Parasitica" - Parasitoid Wasps » Braconid and Ichneumonid Wasps (Ichneumonoidea) » Ichneumonid Wasps (Ichneumonidae) » Cryptinae » Cryptini » Osprynchotina » Messatoporus

Genus Messatoporus

Classification · Synonyms and other taxonomic changes · Numbers · Identification · Range · Life Cycle · Works Cited
Messatoporus compresscornis - Messatoporus compressicornis - male Spheledon sp.? - Messatoporus discoidalis - male Ichneumon Wasp - Messatoporus discoidalis - female Ichneumon Wasp - Messatoporus compressicornis - female Ichneumonoidea - Messatoporus discoidalis - female white-marked ichneumonid - Messatoporus discoidalis - female Messatoporus rufiventris - female Messatoporus rufiventris - female
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 Cryptinae
Tribe Cryptini
Subtribe Osprynchotina
Genus Messatoporus
Synonyms and other taxonomic changes
Santos & Aguiar (2013) consider M. rufiventris to be a junior synonym of M. discoidalis as merely a color variation.
Numbers
3 spp. in our area(1); 89 spp. worldwide (Santos & Aguiar, 2013)
Identification
Messatoporus is diagnosed by the combination of the following features:(2)(3)
-apicolateral corners of clypeus projected
-mandible long and tapered, ventral tooth much shorter than dorsal one or indistinct
-transverse sulcus at base of propodeum long and shallow
-anterior margin of propodeum concave
-posterior area of propodeum almost always transversely wrinkled
-first metasomal spiracle placed approximately on midlength
-median dorsal carina of first metasomal segment absent
-ovipositor basally cylindrical, apically depressed, with ventral valve enclosing completely dorsal valve as a sheath

Overview of Species
Species may be separated in photos by the following traits.(3) Both dorsal and lateral views are often necessary.
M. compressicornis: middle and hind coxae and trochanters marked in only black and white, lacking orange; flagellomeres laterally compressed
M. discoidalis: middle and hind coxae marked with orange; spot on mesoscutum usually with white lines extending along the notauli; proximal end of tibia with base uniform in color; abdomen with narrower and sharper white-black banding
M. rufiventris: middle and hind coxae marked with orange; spot on mesoscutum subcircular without lines extending; proximal end of tibia with subbasal area lighter than basal 0.08±; abdomen with wider, fulvous-fuscous banding
Range
New World (Wahl 1999, web archive)
Life Cycle
Species of the genus are apparently parasitoids of mud nesting wasps in Crabronidae, Pompilidae, and Eumeninae, but host records are available only for three Nearctic species(2)
Works Cited
1.Carlson R.W. () Ichneumonidae catalog
2.Phylogeny and revision of Messatoporus Cushman (Hymenoptera, Ichneumonidae, Cryptinae), with description of sixty five new speci
Bernardo Santos and Alexandre P. Aguiar. 2013. Zootaxa, 3634(1), 1-284.
3.Ichneumon-Flies of America North of Mexico: 3. Subfamily Gelinae, Tribe Mesostenini
Henry Townes, Marjorie Townes. 1962. United States National Museum Bulletin, 216(3): 1-602.
Contributed by Bob Carlson on 3 October, 2009 - 7:52am
Additional contributions by v belov, PaleoJon, behmrachel
Last updated 9 November, 2023 - 9:39pm

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