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Volume 81, 1953
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Tribe Ophionini

The following combination of characters may serve to distinguish members of this tribe:—

Mandibles when closed and in cephalic view, with lower tooth not directly posterior to upper tooth, but at a lower level and visible; eyes parallel or divergent below, never distinctly convergent (i.e., face not narrower than frons) always at least shallowly emarginate opposite the antennal foramina; occipital carina medially far below level of posterior ocelli, fading out below or joining hypostomal carina at a considerable distance from the lower articulation of mandibles, rarely entirely absent; epomia entirely lacking; propodeal spiracles lateral in position, very long and slit-like; front tibiae without a minute tooth at apex opposite calcarium; middle tibiae with two tibial spurs; claws usually long, each with many strong teeth; 2nd recurrent vein basad of intercubitus by a distance nearly or quite as great as the length of the intercubitus; intercubitus strongly oblique and nearly continuous with the basal abscissa of radius; nervellus sharply broken, discoidella distinct, rarely nervellus not broken, but interstitial at its upper end with discoidella; hind tarsus with apical two segments not especially small; ovipositor rarely longer than depth of abdomen at apex.

Three genera are at present represented in the New Zealand fauna. It is doubtful whether Australophion Morley, should be retained as it grades somewhat gradually into the genus Ophion, in which representatives are found with the scutellum, sub-alar tubercles and the metapleurae somewhat inflated but not to the remarkable degree found in Australophion. Cushman (1947:440) expressed the opinion that Australophion is hardly more than subgenerically distinct from Ophion. Although I agree with Cushman, it is convenient, in the meantime, to retain Morley's genus.

The following species of Ophionini have been described or recorded from New Zealand:—

(1)

Ophion peregrinus Smith, 1876.
(2)

Ophion inutilis Smith, 1876.
(3)

Ophion inutilis Smith, 1878.
(4)

Ophion ferrugineous (Fabr.) Smith, 1878.
(5)

Ophion insularis Kirby, 1881.
(6)

Ophion skeltoni Kirby, 1881.
(7)

Ophion luteus (Linnaeus) Hutton, 1882.
(8)

Ophion punctatus Cameron, 1898.
(9)

Ophion insulicola Dalla Torre, 1901.
(10)

Australophion inflatus Cushman, 1947.

There has been considerable confusion in the past concerning the specific determination of the species listed above. This has mainly been due to their uniformity of structure, the absence of types, the majority of which are deposited in overseas museums, and are therefore not readily available to workers in this country, and to the undue importance that has been placed on colour, which varies considerably within a species, and finally, to the inadequate descriptions of the older authors. Colour varies from light-brown to dark-brown in individuals

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of the same species, and the black markings which occur in some species show variations in the extent and density of these markings. Colour may be used to differentiate species in a very general manner.

Morley (1912: 30) established the genus Australophion to accommodate Smith's species Ophion peregrinus in which the metapleurae in particular, were inflated to a most extraordinary degree. Cushman (1947:440) added another species, A. inflatus, collected at Mt. Egmont, Taranaki, North Island. Smith's Ophion ferrugineous was considered by Morley, who examined the type in the British Museum, to be synonymous with A peregrinus (Smith).

Both Kirby's species O. insularis and O. skeltoni belong to the genus Enicospilus. Smith described O. inutilis in 1876, and again two years later, in 1878. Morley (1912) considered Smith's O. inutilis 1876, and O. inutilis 1878 to be distinct species, and that O. inutilis described in 1878 is the same as Cameron's species O. punctatus described in 1898. Dalla Torre (1901) also considered the two descriptions referred to different species, and renamed Smith's O. inutilis 1878 as O. insulicola.

Based on the above synonymy both Smith's name O. inutilis 1878, and Dalla Torre's name O. insulicola, must fall as synonymous to Cameron's O. punctatus, as Dalla Torre's name post-dates Cameron's name by three years. The European species Ophion luteus Linnaeus has not been identified from New Zealand since Hutton's record in 1882, and it will not be considered further, as Kirby (1884) has stated “he probably mistook one of the indigenous New Zealand species for it,” and as the only apparent reason for its retention in the New Zealand list is that Fabricius mentioned New Zealand among the localities for this common European form. To summarise what has been said above, we have to consider six species of Ophionini referable to three genera, as follows:—

(1)

Australophion inflatus Cushman.
(2)

Australophion peregrinus (Smith)
(3)

Enicospilus insularis (Kirby)
(4)

Enicospilus skeltoni (Kirby)
(5)

Ophion inutilis Smith.
(6)

Ophion punctatus Cameron.

As the results of the present study, Australophion inflatus Cushman is considered to be synonymous with Australophion peregrinus (Smith) and Ophion punctatus Cameron (= O. inutilis Sm. 1878) as a sub-species of O. inutilis Sm. 1876.

The following is a check-list of N.Z. species and sub-species of Ophionini, with corrections and additions:—

(1)

Enicospilus insularis (Smith).
(2)

Enicospilus skeltoni (Smith).
(3)

Australophion peregrinus (Smith).
(4)

Ophion inutilis inutilis Smith.
(5)

Ophion inutilis punctatus Cameron.
(6)

Ophion inutilis vittatus N. Sub. sp.
(7)

Ophion inutilis intermedius N. Sub. sp.
(8)

Ophion inutilis nigravarium N. Sub. sp.
(9)

Ophion inutilis distinctus N. Sub. sp.
(10)

Ophion oculatus oculatus N. Sub. sp.
(11)

Ophion oculatus rugosa N. Sub. sp.
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In the present paper five species are recognised and six sub-species. Although generally, I do not consider it a useful taxonomic procedure to name subspecific categories on the present state of our knowledge of these insects, but a few sub-specific names seem necessary to call attention to the relations existing within some extremely variable species. What these sub-specific divisions should be called is a matter of opinion. They may or may not be generally characteristic of geographical areas, but may occur in small numbers in widely separated regions. Perhaps the non-committal word “Form” may be considered best to designate these groups of individuals, until more is known of the reasons for their apparently sporadic occurrences. Such forms in the past have been vaguely described as species, sub-species, biotypes, races, forms, and varieties.

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