Megaphragma mymaripenne Timberlake

Megaphragma mymaripenne Timberlake

Megaphragma mymaripenne Timberlake 1924: 414. Holotype: female on slide; Hawaii, Mountain View, January, 1920; coll. C. E. Pemberton; deposited in the collection of the U. S. National Museum, Washington. Megaphragma mymaripenne; Viggiani 1997: 118.

Notes on the type of M. mymaripenne and characters additional to those given in the key for its discrimination were given by Viggiani (1997) and Viggiani & Bernardo (1997). The species was first reported from Argentina by De Santis (1970) on the basis of two females mounted on slides in the collection of A. A. Ogloblin (MLPA). These specimens, although not in good condition, clearly show the main characters for the discrimination of the species as reported by Viggiani (1997).

Megaphragma mymaripenne is rather widely distributed (Argentina, Chile, Guadeloupe, Italy, USA: California, Louisiana, Hawaii). The populations recorded in USA (Hessein & McMurtry 1988) and Italy are represented mainly by females; males are very rare and reproduction is normally thelytokous (Bernardo & Viggiani 2003). The material reared by one of us is here preliminarily identified as M. mymaripenne, but in contrast to the known populations of the species, the reared specimens from corn appear to be normally bisexual. To clarify the taxonomic meaning of this, biological and molecular investigations are needed.

Aquino & Molinari (2007) reported M. mymaripenne as a parasitoid of Caliothrips phaseoli, but this is erroneous because of misidentification (see under M. amalphitanum). Megaphragma mymaripenne is an egg parasitoid of several species of Panchaetothripinae (Thripidae). The most common host is the widespread Heliothrips haemorrhoidalis (Bouché).

Material examined (all material slide mounted). ARGENTINA. Buenos Aires, 2.v.1961, J.C. Paz (Megaphragma sp., A.A. Ogloblin det.) [1 Ƥ, MLPA]. Misiones, Loreto, 12.iii.1934, A.A. Ogloblin (“ Microgramma minutissima A O ”, Megaphragma mymaripenne Timberlake L. De Santis det.) [1 Ƥ, MLPA]. Salta Prov., Orán, to San Andres along Rio Blanco; 535 m, 23.11 °S, 64.52 °W, 23.iii-2003; swp scrub & ginger; J. Munro coll. [2 Ƥ, UCR]. San Miguel de Tucumán, x −xi.2006, E. Luft Albarracin (ex Caleothrips sp. eggs on corn) [5 Ƥ & 2 33, MLPA]; San Miguel de Tucumán, ix.2006, E. Luft (ex Caliothrips sp. eggs on corn) [3 33 MLPA]. VENEZUELA. Aragua, Cuyagua, 1.xi.1999, J. L. Garcia [1 Ƥ, URGV].