Matskási István (szerk.): A Magyar Természettudományi Múzeum évkönyve 101. (Budapest 2009)

Papp, J.: A study of Szépligeti’s types of Mesobracon species deposited in the Hungarian Natural History Museum (Hymenoptera, Braconidae: Braconinae)

ANNALES HISTORICO-NATURALES MUSEI NATIONALIS HUNGARICI Volume 101 Budapest, 200

9 pp. 81-130 A study of Szépligeti's types of Mesobracon species deposited in the Hungarian Natural History Museum (Hymenoptera, Braconidae: Braconinae) J. PAPP Department of Zoology, Hungarian Natural History Museum, H1088 Budapest, Baross utca 13, Hungary Abstract - Five Mesobracon SzÉPLlGETl, 1902 species are revised, three described by SzÉPLIGETI (M. concolor, M. pulchripennis, M. similis

) and two by BRULLÉ (M. litura, M. rugosus). A key is given for the Mesobracon genus-group and for the five species. New synonymy: Mesobracon litura (BRULLÉ

, 1846) = M. guineensis SzÉPLIGETI, 1914, syn. n. A checklist is presented for the 27 Mesobracon species considered as valid and distributed in the Afrotropical Region. With 65 figures. Key words - Mesobracon, redescription, synonymy, key to genera and species, checklist. INTRODUCTION The genus Mesobracon was described by SZÉPLIGETI in 1902 on the basis of the species M. pulchripennis also described in 1902 (SZÉPLIGETI 1902). Later he added two further species, M. concolor and M. similis, also described by him (SZÉPLIGETI 1906). The holotypes of these three species are housed in the Hungarian Natural History Museum (HNHM), Budapest. Their descriptions are quite short, restricting mainly to colour features and differences. At present 27 Mesobracon species have been recorded from the Afrotropical Region (YU et al. 2005). The first (and so far the last) reviser of the Mesobracon species was FAHRINGER (1928). He merely quoted word by word the original descriptions of the species by BRULLÉ, BRUES, CAMERON and SZÉPLIGETI, adding five new species described by him. Annls hist.-nat. Mus. natn. bung. 101, 2009