Identity and distribution of Celonites hermon Gusenleitner, 2002 (Hymenoptera, Vespidae, Masarinae) from the Middle East with a description of the hitherto unknown male

Abstract

Based on the morphological examination of the exoskeleton and the male genitalia of newly discovered specimens from Syria the status and taxonomic position of Celonites hermon Gusenleitner, 2002 is reinvestigated. The hitherto unknown male is formally described. Celonites hermon is a member of the C. abbreviatus-complex. It shares several probably derived characters with C. andreasmuelleri, from which it is considered to be reproductively isolated by differences in the male genitalia, the form of sternum VIII and tergum VII as well as the colour pattern of the male antennae. Therefore C. hermon is hypothesized to represent a separate biospecies. It has been recorded only from a small area in the mountain ranges along the Lebanese section of the Dead Sea Transform in Syria and Israel.