Austroscolia soror is a species of scoliid wasp and a common insect found in eastern Australia.[1] This is one of several Australian species collectively referred to as a blue flower wasp, black flower wasp, or blue hairy flower wasp.
| Austroscolia soror | |
|---|---|
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| A. soror female | |
Scientific classification 
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| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Hymenoptera |
| Family: | Scoliidae |
| Genus: | Austroscolia |
| Species: | A. soror
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| Binomial name | |
| Austroscolia soror (Smith, 1855)
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| Synonyms[1] | |
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Distribution
editA. soror occurs in coastal areas from Queensland south to Victoria.[1]
Description and identification
editA. soror is a very large scoliid wasp reaching up to 3 cm long. The body is black, and the wings are smoky with a blue iridescence.[2] This colour scheme is shared by several other Australian scoliids. The setae of A. soror are entirely black, and the second sternite is non-tuberculate.[3] As a member of Austroscolia, the wings have a single recurrent vein and three submarginal cells.[4]
Distinguishing this species requires close and thorough inspection of specimens. The allied and mostly sympatric A. nitida varifrons has denser punctures on the pronotum, mesothorax, and gaster.[5] A. commixta of the Northern Territory, known only from the male, has a tuberculate second sternite and has shorter antennae. Another common species, Australelis anthracina, has two recurrent veins and white setae.[6] While most females and southwestern males of that species are entirely black, males in the east have a single pair of yellow to orange spots on the third segment of the gaster.[3]
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A. soror wing venation -
Male A. soror in Victoria -
Female of the similar Australelis anthracina in Western Australia
Biology
editAdults feed on nectar. The female lays her eggs on beetle larvae.
References
edit- ^ a b c Elliott, Michael G.; Stringer, Danielle; Jennings, John; Austin, Andrew D. (2012). "Checklist of Australian scoliid wasps". Australian Biological Resources Study. Retrieved 21 January 2020.
- ^ Child, John (1976). Australian Insects. Sydney: Periwinkle Books. p. 79. ISBN 0701806311.
- ^ a b Turner, Rowland E. (1909). "Revision of the Australian Species of the Genus Scolia". The Annals and Magazine of Natural History. 4 (21): 165–176. doi:10.1080/00222930908692655.
- ^ Liu, Zhen; Van Achterberg, Cornelis; He, Jun-Hua; Chen, Xue-Xin; Chen, Hua-Yan (2021). "Illustrated keys to Scoliidae (Insecta, Hymenoptera, Scolioidea) from China". ZooKeys (1025): 139–175. Bibcode:2021ZooK.1025..139L. doi:10.3897/zookeys.1025.61385. PMC 8007554. PMID 33814948.
- ^ Cameron, Peter (1906). "On the Malay fossorial Hymenoptera and Vespidae of the Museum of the R. Zool. Soc. Natura artis magistra at Amsterdam". Tijdschrift voor Entomologie. 48: 54–55. Retrieved 2024-02-19.
- ^ Betrem, Johan George (1928). "Monographie der indo-australischen scoliiden mit zoogeographischen betrachtungen". Treubia. 9 Supplemental: 1-388. Retrieved 2024-02-19.