Leptofoenus

Leptofoenus
Leptofoenus rufus (female)
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Hymenoptera
Family:	Pteromalidae
Subfamily:	Leptofoeninae
Genus:	Leptofoenus Smith, 1862
Species
L. howardi L. peleciniformis †L. pittfieldae L. rufus L. stephanoides L. westwoodi

Leptofoenus is a genus of wasp in the family Pteromalidae, the type genus subfamily Leptofoeninae found in South, Central, and southern North America.^[1][2] The genus contains five living species and one extinct species known from early Miocene Burdigalian stage Dominican amber deposits on the island of Hispaniola.^[1] With body sizes ranging from 11–27 millimetres (0.43–1.06 in) Leptofoenus species are larger than nearly all other species in Pteromalidae.^[1] The genus bears a notable resemblance to the wasp families Pelecinidae, Gasteruptiidae, and Stephanidae.^[1]

Species

All six known species are restricted to the western Hemisphere, most being found in South America and only one reaching North America.

• Leptofoenus howardi (Ashmead) Paraguay, Brazil, Surinam
• Leptofoenus peleciniformis Smith Brazil, Peru, Venezuela, Costa Rica
• †Leptofoenus pittfieldae Engel Dominican Republic (Early Miocene)
• Leptofoenus rufus LaSalle & Stage Mexico, southwestern USA
• Leptofoenus stephanoides (Roman) Argentina, Paraguay, Brazil, French Guiana, Venezuela, Colombia, Panama, Costa Rica, southern Mexico
• Leptofoenus westwoodi (Ashmead) Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Peru, Venezuela, Guyana, Trinidad, Panama

References

1. Engel, M.S. (2005). "The first fossil leptofoenine wasp (Hymenoptera, Pteromalidae): A new species of Leptofoenus in Miocene amber from the Dominican Republic". ZooKeys 13: 57–66. doi:10.3897/zookeys.13.159.
2. Iturralde-Vinent, M.A.; MacPhee, R.D.E. (1996). "Age and Paleogeographical Origin of Dominican Amber". Science 273 (5283): 1850–1852. doi:10.1126/science.273.5283.1850.