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Elasmus Westwood, 1833 comparative info return to: prev home
Funicle 3-segmented in females, in males 4-segmented and with three branches. Notauli incomplete or ending in axillae far anteriad of scutellar margin; scutellum with triangular, laminate posterior projection, without dorsal grooves. Metacoxa grossly swollen and laterally flattened, tightly aligned with body throughout its length. Metatibiae with short, stout setae arranged brush-like in either diamond-shaped patterns or parallel rows. Forewing elongate and narrow, with marginal vein approaching submarginal vein length, many times longer than the very short stigmal vein. Body wedge-shaped. Compare with: Eriaporinae: Euryischia (extralimital).

1a-b: Elasmus polistis B.D. Burks habitus (left), and dorsal view of mesosoma (right), with laminar scutellar projection indicated

Biology: Most species are gregarious primary or secondary larval or pupal ectoparasitoids of Lepidoptera. Elasmus polistis B. Burks is an ectoparasitoid of Polistes Latreille.

Comments: Large genus. Very distinctive member of Eulophinae, and its placement there was confirmed only recently by molecular data (Gauthier, et al. 2000).

Comparative information:

Eriaporinae: Euryischia [extralimital]: Protibial spur stout and curved. Tarsal formula 5-5-5. Marginal vein shorter in relation to stigmal and postmarginal veins. Base of forewing bare except for stout setae. Flagellum never branched.

References

Burks, B.D. 1965. The North American species of Elasmus Westwood (Hymenoptera, Eulophidae). Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington. 78: 201-208.

Burks, B.D. 1971. A North American Elasmus parasitic on Polistes (Hymenoptera: Eulophidae). Journal of the Washington Academy of Science. 61(3): 194-196.

Compere, H. 1947. A new genus and species, Eurymyiocnema aphelinoides (Hymenoptera, Aphelinidae), and a history of the genera Euryischia Riley and Myiocnema Ashmead. Bulletin of Entomological Research. 38: 381-388.

Coote, L.D. 1997. Chapter 7. Elasmidae. in "Annotated Keys to the Genera of Nearctic Chalcidoidea (Hymenoptera)". G.A.P. Gibson & J.T. Huber, eds. NRC Research Press, Ottawa.

Gauthier, N., J. La Salle, D.L.J. Quicke & H.C.J. Godfray. 2000. Phylogeny of Eulophidae (Hymenoptera: Chalcidoidea), with a reclassification of Eulophinae and the recognition that Elasmidae are derived eulophids. Systematic Entomology. 25(4): 521-539.