Home > Phylum selection > Arthropoda > Hymenoptera > Pteromalidae
Home How to cite this site Terms & conditions Disclaimer Contact Site tutorial / Help Links	Dinotiscus avrupanensis Subspecies No subspecies are recognized. Original description Doganlar, 2007 (p. 51-52) Doganlar M (2007). A taxonomic revision of European species of Dinotiscus Ghesquiere (Hymenoptera: Pteromalidae). Australian Journal of Basic and Applied Sciences 1, 45-55. The holotype is a female specimen deposited with the Zoologische Staatssammlung München. The type locality is given as "Italy, Pistoia, Abetone Puß [sic!]". The paratypes are several male and female specimens, also in the ZSM, from Germany, Switzerland, Italy. Synonyms Dinotiscus avrupanensis Doganlar, 2007 Note: this is a badly defined species and the publication containing the original description contains numerous errors and lapsus. It is highly likely that this name is only a synonym of Dinotiscus eupterus. I provisionally accept this species until the types are revised by a specialist. Identification Body length: 1.9 to 2.2 mm. This species is probably identical to D. eupterus (see also Synonyms). The original publication by Doganlar (2007) is a very inaccurate piece of work, and if the numerous typographical errors and other lapsus are also an indication of the accuracy of the science behind the work, the species must be regarded as a species dubia. The differences given by Doganlar (2007) between the widely distributed and common D. eupterus and the present species are mainly concerning the size of the antennal segments and the mouth groove, and the number of minute hairs on the propodeum and the forewing. These characters are to a certain extent variable in D. eupterus, but the degree of intraspecific variation has not yet been studied. However, it is known that smaller specimens of D. eupterus often show exceptional or untypical expression of traits like venation or hairs (Grissell (1983)). Thus, it is possible that D. avrupanensis falls within the range of variability of D. eupterus, especially so, because the known specimens of D. avrupanensis are very small. I therefore think it is likely that they are in fact small aberrant specimens of D. eupterus. At present, D. avrupanensis cannot be distinguished from D. eupterus on the basis of the pterostigma. Distribution So far only a handful of specimens are known (all of which are holo- or paratypes from the original description). Based on these data the species occurs in Germany, Italy and Switzerland. The German records are two females from Schongau (Bayern). Biology The known specimens were obtained from conifers (different species) that all were infested with Cryphalus or other Scolytidae species. Thus, it is likely that like other species of this genus, D. avrupanensis is a parasite of scolytid beetles. This page has been updated on May 18, 2011 This site is online since May 31, 2005 Copyright © by Nikola-Michael Prpic. All rights reserved.	Related information: Subspecies Original description Synonyms Identification Distribution Biology References