Data and analyses of "Local diversity of Afrotropical and Neotropical Brachycyrtinae (Hymenoptera: Ichneumonidae), with two new species from western Amazonia and keys to species"

This dataset contains the data and analyses of our paper (link to come) on the Brachycyrtinae wasps collected in Uganda (Uganda 2014–2015), Peru (Amazon 1998, 2000, 2008, 2011) and at other Neotropical sites. We describe two new Neotropical species, compare the species richness of our Ugandan and main Peruvian site, and describe the ecology of some of the more common species.

The script `Brachycyrtinae analyses.R` or the wasp data `20251219 Brachycyrtinae.csv` will usually be what you're after as a reader. The former contains the R code used to analyse the data and create the figures in the paper.

To run the analyses, you will also need to load the R package `turkuwasps`. That is where we have packaged all the general R code we use to analyse wasp habitat use, phenology and species richness. For best results, install the version that was used for this paper (v0.0.8): the package may change significantly in the future!

There are two new species in the data, referred to with temporary names. Their actual names are (to be updated once the names are formally published):

• Brachycyrtus sp. n. 1 = XXX
• Brachycyrtus sp. n. 2 = XXX

The dataset contains:

• `Brachycyrtinae analyses.R`  The R code used to analyse the data and create the figures.
• `data`  Folder with the data.
  • `20251219 Brachycyrtinae.csv`  The data of all the wasps. In "Kotka" format as stored in the Finnish Biodiversity Information Facility: two headers, followed by each wasp on its own row.
  • `20251219 Brachycyrtinae simplified.csv`  The basic data of all the wasps. In more readable format with one header and without irrelevant columns. This is included as a convenience to the reader, and isn't used by the script.
  • `202505 damaged or missing Pimplinae samples.csv`  The basic data of the samples that did not collect a typical sample of Brachycyrtinae.
  • `20260113 known African Brachycyrtinae.csv`  The data of all 75 currently known Afrotropical Brachycyrtinae specimens. Includes the 51 specimens in our material, and 24 other specimens. The data of the other specimens is mainly from Giovanni & Varga (2021), except for two specimens from Madagascar. Dates are in ISO 8601 format. Some latitudes and longitudes are approximate, inferred from the location data, and are in a different column. Repositories: ZMUT – Zoological Museum University of Turku (our material), ICIPE – International Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology, MNHN – Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle, NHM – Natural History Museum London, SIZK – Schmalhausen Institute of Zoology Kyiv, TUZ – University of Tartu Natural History Museum
  • `Brachycyrtinae character matrix.csv`  Character matrix with the minimal diagnostic characters of all 14 Neotropical and 5 Afrotropical species. This is the basis for our brief keys and diagnoses. What the different characters and their states mean is described in `Brachycyrtinae character states.csv`. Blank cells are for data which we did not have, or was ill-defined or irrelevant.
  • `Brachycyrtinae character states.csv`  Description of what the different diagnostic characters and their possible states in `Brachycyrtinae character matrix.csv` mean. The terminology for the propodeum follows that of Nascimento and Fernandes (2024), and is illustrated in `Brachycyrtinae propodeum.png`.
• `figures`  Folder with the figures of the article. Saved here by the script.
• `Brachycyrtinae propodeum.png`  Illustration of the propodeum of brachycyrtine wasps, with the carinae and areas named. Useful as a reference when using the key, diagnoses or character matrix. Modified from figure 3C of Nascimento and Fernandes (2024).
• `ReadMe.md`  ReadMe file with the same information as here.