1 Mesopleura completely shagreened ……………………………………………………… sp. 1
1’ Mesopleura completely or partially shiny …………………………………………….……. 2
2(1) Mesopleura shiny anteriorly, shagreened posteriorly; notum relatively flattened with
shallow punctures …..…………….………………………………………………..…… sp. 3
2’ Mesopleura completely shiny; notum slightly rounded, with deep punctures ….…..………. 3
3 (2) Marginal vein absent, stigmal vein & postmarginal vein forming a “c”; scutellum with punctures abruptly stopping at posterior third, replaced by aciculate longitudinal lines; (unlike original description, F1 slightly shorter than pedicle) …….…….…… B. nigripes
3’ Marginal vein present, stigmal vein straight; scutellum with some punctures in posterior third, aciculate lines not quite as distinct …………………….…………….…..………………… 4
4 (3) Marginal vein longer than wide, stigmal vein forming 45° angle from wing edge ..…. sp. 2
4’ Marginal vein punctiform, stigmal vein forming angle about 60° from wing edge …………. 5
5 (4) Tip of scutellum with transverse “groove” ……………………..…….. B. californicus/faridi
5’ Tip of scutellum rounded, no groove present ………………………………… B. rotundiformis
Sp. 1: Alameda, Marin, San Mateo, Santa Clara, Sonoma (CAS, EMEC, LACM, RLZC).
Sp. 2: Alameda, San Mateo, Santa Cruz (CAS, RLZC).
Sp. 3: Nevada (RLZC). Near B. aralius? or between Bothriothorax & Ecthroplexis.
Described Nearctic species and distribution
californicus (Howard, 1895): USA (CA)
faridi Kamal, 1926: USA (CA)
flaviscapus Girault, 1915: USA
macroglenes Ashmead, 1888: USA (KS)
nigripes Howard, 1895: USA (CA, NM)
noveboracensis Howard, 1895: CAN (NB), USA (NH, NJ, NY)
peculiaris Howard, 1885: USA (IL, NH, NJ, NM, VA, WI)
rotundiformis Howard, 1895: USA (CA, CO, WA)
virginiensis Howard, 1885: USA (VA)
Remarks
Bothriothorax faridi is very close to B. californicus, and the only difference I could discern between the types of the two species is a pair of medial longitudinal carina on the propodeum of B. faridi (missing in B. californicus). However, this is not a reliable defining characteristic, as an examination of a series of specimens from Merced County show it is present in some specimens and absent from others, so I suspect B. faridi will prove to be a junior synonym of B. californicus. Likewise, B. rotundiformis is quite similar to B. californicus, and I suspect they will also prove to be synonyms. Matching the types of the east coast species (noveboracensis, peculiaris and virginiensis) with their descriptions was very difficult for me, and more research is needed to determine their specific limits as well.
References
Ashmead, W.H. 1888. Descriptions of some unknown parasitic Hymenoptera in the collection of the Kansas State Agricultural College, received from Prof. E.A. Popenoe. Bulletin of Kansas Agricultural Experiment Station, Manhattan 3: i – viii.
Girault, A.A. 1915. Some new chalcidoid Hymenoptera from North and South America. Annals of the Entomological Society of America 8: 272 – 278.
Howard, L.O. 1885. Descriptions of North American Chalcididae from the collection of the U.S. Department of Agriculture and of Dr. C.V. Riley, with biological notes. [First paper]. Bulletin of United States Department of Agriculture, Bureau of Entomology 5: 1 – 47.
Howard, L.O. 1895. On the bothriothoracine insects of the United States. Proceedings of the United States National Museum 17: 605 – 613.
Kamal, M. 1926 Four new species of parasites from aphidophagous Syrphidae (Hymenoptera). The Canadian Entomologist 58: 283 – 286.