The Wharton Lab

Asthenara Foerster, 1869: 208.
Type species: Asthenarus crassifemur Thomson, 1889 [placed by Roman (1910) as a junior subjective synonym of Asthenara socia (Holmgren, 1857)]. Monobasic, included in Asthenarus by Thomson (1889).

Asthenarus Thomson, 1889: 1437. Unjustified emendation.

The following valid species were included by Yu et al. (2012):

Asthenara atrator Kasparyan, 2006
Asthenara chiapas Kasparyan, 2006
Asthenara coahuila Kasparyan, 2006
Asthenara donlonae Gauld, 1997
Asthenara guerrero Kasparyan, 2006
Asthenara michoacan Kasparyan, 2006
Asthenara scabricula (Thomson, 1893)
Asthenara socia (Holmgren, 1857)

Asthenara differs from nearly all other pionines in the absence of the deep grooves between the propodeum and metapleuron laterally and the propodeum and metanotum mid-dorsally (see figures in Glyptorhaestus page). The narrow base of T1 and lack of glymma are similar to those found in Pion and Syntactus. The species of Asthenara are relatively long and slender compared to species in genera such as Phaestus, Rhaestus, Glyptorhaestus, and Trematopygus.

Clypeus (Figs 4, 5) with surface more or less uniformly sparsely setose and punctate; ventral margin convex, rarely slightly protruding medially, the margin broadly to thinly blunt (varying somewhat among species and between sexes in at least one species); epistomal sulcus deeply impressed laterally, usually weaker medially; clypeus in profile protruding, sometimes strongly so. Face setose, punctate to punctate and shagreened, faintly punctate, nearly smooth on frons and vertex; inner eye margins weakly to distinctly converging. Malar space varying from short and indistinct to about half basal width of mandible in female of type species; malar sulcus absent. Mandible (Figs 6, 7) nearly parallel-sided; dorsal tooth narrower and a little shorter than ventral tooth; basal, transverse impression well developed in all species; ventral margin rounded. Maxillary palp about equal in length to height of head; antenna (Figs 1, 2) about equal in length to body, basal flagellomeres long and slender. Hypostomal carina meeting occipital carina at base of mandible in at least one species but meeting far above base of mandible in another; occipital carina complete. Epicnemial carina extending high onto anterior margin of mesopleuron. Notaulus distinct, varying from moderately (as in type species) to deeply and sharply impressed (as in Mexican species); extending posteriorly to level of tegula or nearly so. Groove between propodeum and metapleuron absent; groove mid-dorsally between propodeum and metanotum weaker than in most other pionines, v-shaped in lateral view; pleural carina well-developed, complete; propodeum (Fig. 10) with median and lateral longitudinal carinae nearly always well developed though effaced posteriorly in one species, median longitudinal carinae usually narrowly separated from one another; transverse carinae usually absent or with apparent posterior transverse carina sometimes present laterally, areola absent. Apical margin of mid tibia expanded into a distinct tooth similar to that of fore leg; apical comb on posterior side of hind tibia absent; posterior hind tibial spur about 7x longer than maximum width at base; tarsal claws not pectinate. Fore wing (Fig. 8) areolet absent; stigma relatively narrow, Rs+2r arising near basal 0.4 of stigma. Hind wing (Fig. 9) with first abscissa of CU1 varying from slightly to distinctly longer than 1cu-a. T1 (Figs 10-12) long, slender, parallel-sided from base to distinctly posteriorad spiracles, then abruptly expanding; straight to weakly decurved in profile; dorsal carinae varying from nearly absent in some species to well-developed and distinctly elevated along full length of parallel-sided portion (to posterior end of S1), fading into and largely absent from expanded posterior portion; basal depression at dorsal tendon attachment broad and shallow; dorsal-lateral carina variable: absent or nearly so in some species, complete between spiracle and apex of T1 in others; glymma absent. S1 (Figs 10, 11) extending full length of parallel-sided portion, barely posteriorad spiracles in males of some species, but extending well beyond spiracles in both sexes of other species. T2 thyridium absent; laterotergites of T2 and T3 separated by creases from median tergite. Ovipositor and sheath (Figs 13, 14) straight or nearly so; ovipositor abruptly becoming needle-like apically from swollen but dorsally flattened base; without dorsal, subapical notch.

There are two valid Palaearctic species, one from Costa Rica, and five from Mexico. Townes (1970) also mentioned an undescribed species from Japan. Kasparyan (2006) revised the Mexican species.

The following hosts and references for those hosts records are listed in Yu et al. (2005):

Lithosoria quadra (Hedwig 1944, 1950)
Rhyacionia resinella (Hedwig 1951; Fulmek 1968)
Strongylogaster macula (Bauer 1958)

This page was assembled by Bob Wharton as part of a larger collaborative effort on the genera of Ctenopelmatinae.

This work would not have been possible without the groundwork provided by Ian Gauld’s study of the Australian and Costa Rican faunas, and we are particularly grateful for his assistance in many aspects of this study. We also thank David Wahl of the American Entomological Institute and Andy Bennett of the Canadian National Collection for extended loans of the material used for this study and particularly Dave Karlsson for sending valuable material from the Swedish Malaise Trap Survey (trap 37, collection event 831) and Dmitry Kasparyan for discussion of this and related genera. Matt Yoder provided considerable assistance with databasing issues, and our use of PURLs (http://purl.oclc.org) in this regard follows the example of their use in publications by Norm Johnson. Heather Cummins, Andrea Walker, Patricia Turner, Caitlin Nessner, Amanda Ladigo, and Cheryl Hyde graciously assisted with image processing, formatting, and literature retrieval. This study was supported by the National Science Foundation’s PEET program under Grant No. DEB 0328922 and associated REU supplement #s DEB 0723663, 0923134, and 1026618. Page last updated Jan, 2015.

This material is based upon work at Texas A&M University supported by the National Science Foundation under Grant Number DEB 0328922 with REU supplements DEB 0723663, 0923134, and 1026618. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation.