Chalybion

Chalybion japonicum, copyright Christophe Barthélémy.

Belongs within: Sphecidae.

Chalybion is a subcosmopolitan genus (absent in South America and most of Australia) of metallic blue or black-and-yellow wasps that nest in pre-existing cavities such as holes in wood or crevices in walls (Bohart & Menke 1976).

Characters (from Bohart & Menke 1976): Lower three-fifths of inner orbit usually straight, curving in towards midline of face above, orbits converging above or parallel except converging below in many males; vertex not or only slightly elevated above eyes; postocular area not elongate; head with much erect hair; frons above sockets elevated as a flat or sometimes concave plate of which lower angles overhang sockets; flagellomere I about equal to length of II, male flagellomeres with placoids which may be irregular or weakly defined (exceptionally absent); sockets narrowly separated from or contiguous with frontodypeal suture; clypeus long, width 1.0–1.33 times length, disk weakly to strongly convex, often with a median ridge, free margin usually with teeth or lobes; mandible simple or with inner subapical tooth; mouthparts short, third maxillary palpal segment slightly to broadly expanded on one side; hypostomal carina ending near mandible socket; occipital carina usually a complete ring or nearly so, contiguous with or narrowly separated from hypostomal carina; collar usually about half as long as broad but occasionally shorter or longer, disk nearly always strongly indented mesally; propodeum long, without dorsal enclosure, posterior face often a gradual slope; propodeal side without spiracular groove; episternal sulcus extending to anteroventral margin of pleuron, scrobal sulcus usually present; marginal cell usually acuminate apically, submarginal cell II usually strongly narrowed anteriorly, rarely petiolate, receiving both recurrent veins; third anal vein of hindwing well separated from wing margin, long; midcoxae nearly contiguous; tibiae not spinose; female without a foretarsal rake; tarsi usually without plantulae; apicoventral blade-like setae of hindtarsomere V narrow, separated by four or more times a setal width; claw of hind leg often simple; petiole shorter or longer than hindcoxa or hindbasitarsus; male tergum VIII usually with cerci; female sternum IV (and rarely III) sometimes with hair mat which may be in a depression, sterna IV–V of male with velvety micropubescence (rarely II–VI with fimbriae); male sternum VIII triangular or with a slender to broad finger-like apical process; head of digitus variable, penis valve head with teeth on ventral margin.

<==Chalybion Dahlbom 1843 C85 [=Chalybium Agassiz 1847 BM76]
    |  i. s.: C. mortuum Cockerell 1907 BM76
    |--C. (Chalybion) BM76
    |    |--C. (C.) californicum (Saussure 1867) BM76 (see below for synonymy)
    |    |--C. (C.) accline (Kohl 1918) BM76 [=Sceliphron (C.) accline K18]
    |    |--C. (C.) bengalense (Dahlbom 1845) BM76 (see below for synonymy)
    |    |--C. (C.) benoiti Leclercq 1955 BM76
    |    |--C. (C.) bocandei (Spinola 1851) [=Ammophila bocandei] BM76
    |    |--C. (C.) bonneti Leclercq 1966 BM76
    |    |--C. (C.) convexum (Smith 1876) BM76 [=Pelopoeus convexus BM76, Sceliphron (C.) convexum K18]
    |    |--C. (C.) dolichothorax (Kohl 1918) BM76 [=Sceliphron (C.) dolichothorax K18]
    |    |--C. (C.) fabricator (Smith 1860) BM76 (see below for synonymy)
    |    |--C. (C.) frontale (Kohl 1906) BM76 [=Sceliphron (C.) frontale K18]
    |    |--C. (C.) fuscipenne (Smith 1856) BM76 [=Pelopoeus fuscipennis BM76, Sceliphron (C.) fuscipenne K18]
    |    |--C. (C.) gredleri (Kohl 1918) BM76 [=Sceliphron (C.) gredleri K18]
    |    |--C. (C.) heinii (Kohl 1906) BM76 [=Sceliphron (C.) heinii K18; incl. S. planatum Arnold 1951 BM76]
    |    |--C. (C.) japonicum (Gribodo 1883) BM76 (see below for synonymy)
    |    |    |--C. j. japonicum BM76
    |    |    `--C. j. punctatum (Kohl 1888) BM76 (see below for synonymy)
    |    |--C. (C.) klapperichi (Balthasar 1957) [=Sceliphron klapperichi] BM76
    |    |--C. (C.) laevigatum (Kohl 1888) BM76 (see below for synonymy)
    |    |    |--C. l. laevigatum BM76
    |    |    `--C. l. sommereni (Turner 1920) (see below for synonymy) BM76
    |    |--C. (C.) madecassum (Gribodo 1883) BM76 (see below for synonymy)
    |    |--C. (C.) malignum (Kohl 1906) BM76 [=Sceliphron (C.) malignum K18; incl. S. (C.) horni Strand 1915 K18]
    |    |--C. (C.) minos (Beaumont 1965) [=Sceliphron minos] BM76
    |    |--C. (C.) ommissum (Kohl 1889) BM76 [=Pelopoeus (C.) ommissus K18, Sceliphron (C.) ommissum K18]
    |    |--C. (C.) schulthessirechbergi (Kohl 1918) BM76 [=Sceliphron (C.) schulthessirechbergi K18]
    |    |--C. (C.) targionii (Caruccio 1872) BM76 (see below for synonymy)
    |    |--C. (C.) tibiale (Fabricius 1781) BM76 (see below for synonymy)
    |    |--C. (C.) turanicum (Gussakovskij 1935) [=Sceliphron turanicum] BM76
    |    |--C. (C.) walteri (Kohl 1889) BM76 [=Pelopoeus (C.) walteri K18, Sceliphron (C.) walteri K18]
    |    `--C. (C.) zimmermanni Dahlbom 1843 BM76 (see below for synonymy)
    |         |--C. z. zimmermanni BM76
    |         |--C. z. aztecum (Saussure 1867) BM76 (see below for synonymy)
    |         `--C. z. peninsularum Bohart & Menke 1963 BM76
    `--C. (Hemichalybion Kohl 1918) BM76
         |--C. (H.) spinolae (Lepeletier 1845) BM76 (see below for synonymy)
         |    |--C. s. spinolae BM76
         |    |--C. s. ‘rufopictum’ (Magretti 1884) BM76 (see below for synonymy)
         |    `--C. s. saussurei (Kohl 1918) BM76 [=Sceliphron (Hemichalybion) saussurei K18]
         |--C. (H.) clypeatum (Fairmaire 1858) BM76 (see below for synonymy)
         |    |--C. c. clypeatum BM76
         |    |--C. c. kiloense (Leclercq 1955) [=Sceliphron kiloense] BM76
         |    `--C. c. lusingi (Leclercq 1955) [=Sceliphron lusingi] BM76
         |--C. (H.) femoratum (Fabricius 1781) BM76 (see below for synonymy)
         |--C. (H.) fuscum (Lepeletier 1845) BM76 (see below for synonymy)
         `--C. (H.) sumatranum (Kohl 1884) BM76 [=Pelopoeus sumatranus BM76, Sceliphron (H.) sumatranum K18]

Chalybion (Chalybion) bengalense (Dahlbom 1845) BM76 [=Pelopoeus (Cha.) bengalensis K18, Cha. bengalensis K18, Sceliphron (Cha.) bengalense K18; incl. Chlorion ferox Westwood 1837 BM76, Sphex (Chlorion) ferox BM76, Sp. ferus Drury 1782 BM76, Sp. chrysis nitidula Christ 1791 K18, Sp. smaragdinus Christ 1791 BM76, Sp. violacea Fabricius 1775 non Scopoli 1763 C85, Chalybion violaceum K18, Pelopoeus (Chalybion) violaceus K18, Sceliphron violaceum BM76]

Chalybion (Chalybion) californicum (Saussure 1867) BM76 [=Pelopeus (C.) californicus K18; incl. Sphex caeruleus Linnaeus 1767 non Linnaeus 1758 C85, *Chalybion caeruleum C85, Sceliphron (Chalybion) coeruleum K18, Pelopaeus coeruleus K18, Pelopoeus (C.) coeruleus K18, Sphex caeruleana K18, Sp. cyaneus Fabricius 1775 non Linnaeus 1758 BM76, Chalybion cyaneum BM76, Pelopoeus (Chalybion) cyaneum K18, Pel. cyaneus K18, Pepsis cyanea K18, Sceliphron cyaneum K18]

Chalybion (Chalybion) fabricator (Smith 1860) BM76 [=Pelopaeus fabricator BM76, Sceliphron (C.) fabricator K18; incl. S. (C.) gnavum Kohl 1918 K18, BM76]

Chalybion (Chalybion) japonicum (Gribodo 1883) BM76 [=Pelopoeus japonicus BM76; incl. C. curvatum Ritsema 1880 non Pelopoeus curvatus Smith 1870 BM76, Sceliphron (Chalybion) curvatum K18, C. japonicum Pérez 1905 non Pelopoeus japonicus Gribodo 1883 BM76, Sceliphron ritsemae Dalla Torre 1897 BM76]

Chalybion (Chalybion) japonicum punctatum (Kohl 1888) BM76 [=Pelopoeus (C.) punctatus K18, Sceliphron (C.) punctatum K18; incl. S. (C.) degenerans Kohl 1918 K18, BM76, S. (C.) inflexum Sickmann 1894 K18, BM76]

Chalybion (Chalybion) laevigatum (Kohl 1888) BM76 [=Pelopoeus (C.) laevigatus K18, Sceliphron (C.) laevigatum K18; incl. Pelopoeus chalybeus Smith 1856 non Vander Linden 1827 BM76, Sceliphron cubitaloide Strand 1910 BM76, Sc. levigatum Dalla Torre 1897 BM76, Sphex nigrithorax Benoit 1951 BM76]

Chalybion (Chalybion) laevigatum sommereni (Turner 1920) [=Sceliphron sommereni; incl. Ammophila cyanea Cameron 1908 non Fabricius 1775, Sceliphron perpulchrum Arnold 1934] BM76

Chalybion (Chalybion) madecassum (Gribodo 1883) BM76 [=Pelopoeus madecassus BM76, Sceliphron (C.) madecassum K18; incl. Pelopoeus purpurescens Pérez 1885 K18, S. purpurescens BM76, S. violaceum Saussure 1892 non Sphex violaceus Fabricius 1775 K18]

Chalybion (Chalybion) targionii (Caruccio 1872) BM76 [=Pelopoeus targionii BM76, Sceliphron (C.) targionii K18; incl. P. flebilis Lepeletier 1845 BM76]

Chalybion (Chalybion) tibiale (Fabricius 1781) BM76 [=Sphex tibialis BM76, Pelopoeus (C.) tibialis K18, Pepsis tibialis K18, Sceliphron (C.) tibiale K18]

Chalybion (Chalybion) zimmermanni Dahlbom 1843 BM76 [=Sceliphron (C.) zimmermanni K18, Pelopoeus (C.) zimmermanni K18; incl. P. texanus Cresson 1872 BM76, Chalybion texanum K18]

Chalybion (Chalybion) zimmermanni aztecum (Saussure 1867) BM76 [=Pelopoeus (C.) aztecus K18; incl. S. (C.) monstrosum Kohl 1918 K18, BM76]

Chalybion (Hemichalybion) clypeatum (Fairmaire 1858) BM76 [=Pelopoeus clypeatus BM76; incl. P. brachystylus Kohl 1888 BM76, Sceliphron (Hemichalybion) brachystylus K18]

Chalybion (Hemichalybion) femoratum (Fabricius 1781) BM76 [=Sphex femorata K18, C. femorata K18, Pepsis femorata K18, Pelopoeus (Chalybion) femoratus K18, Sceliphron (Chalybion) femoratum K18; incl. Pelopaeus chalybeus Vander Linden 1827 BM76]

Chalybion (Hemichalybion) fuscum (Lepeletier 1845) BM76 [=Pelopoeus fuscus BM76, Sceliphron (Pelopoeus) fuscum non S. fuscum Klug 1801 K18; incl. Sceliphron taprobanense Strand 1915 BM76, S. (Hemichalybion) taprobanense K18]

Chalybion (Hemichalybion) spinolae (Lepeletier 1845) BM76 [=Pelopaeus spinolae BM76; incl. Pelopoeus eckloni Dahlbom 1845 BM76, Sceliphron (*Hemichlaybion) eckloni K18, BM76]

Chalybion (Hemichalybion) spinolae ‘rufopictum’ (Magretti 1884) BM76 [=Pelopaeus spinolae var. rufopictus non Pelopoeus rufopictus Smith 1856 BM76, K18, Sceliphron (H.) eckloni var. rufopicta K18]

*Type species of generic name indicated

REFERENCES

[BM76] Bohart, R. M., & A. S. Menke. 1976. Sphecid Wasps of the World. University of California Press: Berkeley.

[C85] Cardale, J. C. 1985. Vespoidea and Sphecoidea. In: Walton, D. W. (ed.) Zoological Catalogue of Australia vol. 2. Hymenoptera: Formicoidea, Vespoidea and Sphecoidea pp. 150–303. Australian Government Publishing Service: Canberra.

[K18] Kohl, F. F. 1918. Die Hautflügergruppe "Sphecinae". IV. Teil. Die natürliche Gattung Sceliphron Klug (Pelopoeus Latr.). Annalen des Naturhistorischen Museum in Wien 32: 1–171.