Kaszab Zoltán (szerk.): A Magyar Természettudományi Múzeum évkönyve 68. (Budapest 1976)
Huddleston, T.: A revision of Elasmosoma Ruthe (Hymenoptera, Braconidae) with two new species from Mongolia
noted the contact of the parasite with the worker ant to be at the tip of the gaster of the latter, where the anus is sited. It is perhaps, no surprise that these parasites should be so uncommon. Formicine ants kill sickly members of their nest and spray them copiously with formic acid so that parasitised individuals would thereby be eliminated and with them the parasite. Depositories: BMNH —British Museum (Natural History), London. HNHM — Hungarian Natural History Museum, Budapest. NHM —-Naturhistorisches Museum, Maastricht. USNM — United States National Museum, Washington DC. Acknowledgements —I wish to thank Mr. R. D. EADY for guidance during the course of this project. I wish also to thank DR. J. PAPP for his kindness in allowing me full use of the KASZAB collection even though he had begun work on the collection himself, DR. P. M. MARSH for arranging loans of material from the USNM collection and the following for their ready help in response to my requests for material or information: DR. C. VAN ACHTERBERG; Mr. B. BOLTON;, DR. F. N. DINGEMANSBAKELS; DR. M. FISCHER; Mr. G. E. J. NIXON; Air. C. VARDY. Key to genera of Neoneurinae 1 (2) Radial cell complete, the radius distinct to the wing margin (Fig. 1) ; antennae 16-segmented, distinctly longer than head and thorax together; first tergite of gaster longer than broad, the tergite contracted behind the spiracles Neoneurus HAL 2 (1) Radial cell incomplete, the radius largely obsolete (Fig. 2) ; antennae Çj 13segmented, rf 14—15-segmented, shorter than head and thorax together; first tergite of gaster at most as long as broad and expanded behind the spiracles Elasmosoma RUTHE Elasmosoma RUTHE Elasmosoma RUTHE, 1858: 7. Type species Elasmosoma berolinense RUTHE, by monotypy. Paramirax ASHMEAD, 1895: 281. Name first published as a synonym (unavailable). 9. Head large, transverse. Eyes large, protuberant, the ventral facets larger than the dorsal facets. Malar space short. Clypeus short, its distal margin concave; labrum exposed, mandible narrow, curved, bidentate; maxillary palpi 2-segmented, labial palpi 1segmented, very short. Antenna 13-segmented short, stout. Wing venation largely obsolete except for the strong thick costa only the proximal parts of the radius (2s + proximal part of Bs) and Rs + M remain at all distinct. Pterostigma broad with a pouch-like fold at the anterior edge. Tarsi slender, tapering towards apex, claws minute. One hind tibial spur elongate. Gaster sessile, flattened dorsally, margined laterally and with a prominent ventral keel. Tergites with coriaceous microsculpture which is strongest on tergites 1-3. First tergite never longer than broad the remaining tergites almost always strongly transverse. Hypopygium usually bifurcate. rf. As female except that eyes smaller and less protuberant, malar space correspondingly longer. Antenna longer 14-15-segmented, spurs of hind tibia never longer than basal segment of tarsus. The following key to species is based upon females and little account is taken of the males because the material available is not sufficient reliably to associate the sexes in most of the species. As is usual in the Hymenoptera the females exhibit the more useful characters.
