Otitesellinae

Undescribed species of Lipothymus, photographed by Jean-Yves Rasplus.

Belongs within: Chalcidoidea.

The Otitesellinae are a group of wasps that oviposit on figs, either by entering the ostiole or through the fig wall. The larvae feed on the ovarium tissue, which swells to a gall (Bouček 1988).

Characters (from Bouček 1988): Females with whole body black, mostly with some metallic gloss, thorax often finely densely reticulate; forewing with stigmal vein diagonal; gaster tapering posteriorly, apex mostly compressed from side to side and curving downward. Males with reduced wings; antennae inserted behind anterior third of head, their sockets usually wide apart.

<==Otitesellinae B88
    |--Aepocerus B88
    |--Philosycus B88
    |--Eujacobsonia Grandi 1923 B88
    |    `--*E. mirabilis B88
    |--Guadalia Wiebes 1867 B88
    |    `--*G. vissali Wiebes 1967 B88
    |--Micrognathophora Grandi 1921 B88
    |    `--*M. leptoptera B88
    |--Lipothymus Grandi 1921 B88
    |    `--*L. sumatranus B88
    |--Grandiana Wiebes 1961 B88
    |    |--*G. wassae Wiebes 1867 B88
    |    `--G. armadillo Bouček 1988 B88
    |--Micranisa Walker 1875 [incl. Epicolystichus Girault 1915, Sycobiella Westwood 1883] B88
    |    |--*M. pteromaloides [=Idarnes pteromaloides] B88
    |    |--M. aereicorpus (Girault 1915) [=*Epicolystichus aereicorpus] B88
    |    `--‘*Sycobiella’ saundersii B88
    |--Otitesella Westwood 1883 MH11, B88 [incl. Paracolystichus Girault 1915 B88]
    |    |--*O. digitata B88
    |    |--O. amplipennis (Girault 1915) [=Paracolystichus amplipennis] B88
    |    |--O. clarae B88
    |    `--O. compressiventris (Girault 1915) [=*Paracolystichus compressiventris] B88
    `--Heterandrium MH11

*Type species of generic name indicated

REFERENCES

[B88] Bouček, Z. 1988. Australasian Chalcidoidea (Hymenoptera): A biosystematic revision of genera of fourteen families, with a reclassification of species. CAB International: Wallingford (UK).

[MH11] Munro, J. B., J. M. Heraty, R. A. Burks, D. Hawks, J. Mottern, A. Cruaud, J.-Y. Rasplus & P. Jansta. 2011. A molecular phylogeny of the Chalcidoidea (Hymenoptera). PLoS One 6 (11): e27023.