REVISION OF LEUCOSPIDAE 101 



Gaster strongly clavate (Text-fig. 114). First tergite hardly 0-45 as broad as gaster posteriorly, 

 about 1 -3 times as long as broad, parallel-sided, with very short basal fovea, dorsally convex 

 and rather densely punctured. Second tergite transverse, laterally ridged, with narrow 

 epipleurum below the ridge; second and third tergite coarsely punctured whilst the following 

 tergites are only moderately so, with hairs rather long, semidecumbent, mostly directed caudad, 

 but combed towards median line on posterior half of sixth tergite; apical margin of sixth tergite 

 low, without auricles at sides. Epipygium slightly depressed transversely, laterally with fine 

 supracercal carinae, apex smooth, rounded, margin slightly raised. Basal sternites very 

 coarsely punctured, transverse, convex; the fourth and fifth slightly convex, about twice as 

 broad as long each, the sixth medially moderately deeply depressed, the seventh (last) slightly 

 broader than long, apically rounded, depressed subbasally, rather densely and finely punctured 

 and hairy. 



§. Unknown. 



Biology, Unknown. 



Holotype $, Peru: Monson Valley, Tingo Maria, 29.x]. 1954 (E. I. Schlinger & 

 E. S. Ross) (MCZ, Cambridge). 



At first glance this male looks similar to L. ignota Walker, but has more converging 

 genae, more clavate and basally more attenuate antennal flagellum, different pattern 

 of pale markings, the propodeum not densely hairy, the gaster much more narrowly 

 petiolate, with the first tergite longer than broad, the posterior tergites more coarsely 

 punctured, the last two sternites distinctly depressed, etc. The form of the 

 mandibles puts this species definitely into the cayennensis-group. 



The African, Madagascan and Mediterranean species 



The key below includes all species known from the African continent, together 

 with Madagascar and the adjacent islands. As most North African species are 

 distributed also in southern Europe, it was felt convenient to include them in the 

 key but also discuss them in a separate chapter as West Palaearctic (or widely 

 Mediterranean) species, the more so because they belong mostly to different species- 

 groups. There are, however, a few exceptions. Thus the north Sudanese L. 

 obsoleta Klug, belonging to the dorsigera-group, is treated with the other 

 Mediterranean species of the group. On the other hand the North African L. 

 miniata Klug is treated with its kin, the South African L. incarnata Westwood. 

 L. elegans Klug, the distribution area of which covers fringes of the Palaearctic, 

 Ethiopian and Oriental regions, is discussed with the African species of the elegans- 

 group. 



Altogether 26 species are keyed out here. They belong to the elegans-group, 

 tricolor-group, gigas-group, fuelleborniana-gi oup, dorsigera-gvoup and, as 'species 

 solae', i.e. single species not attributable to any group, L. holubi sp. n. and L. 

 namibica sp. n. 



Key to the African, Madagascan and West Palaearctic species of LEUCOSPIS 



1 Pronotum with three distinct cross-carinae : discal (anterior) one, premarginal 



carina and carinate hind margin (Text-figs 121, 140, 143) .... 2 



- Pronotum at most with two carinae, discal carina absent or indistinct; sometimes 



hind margin not carinate, rarely even premarginal carina absent or vague . . 14 



