Twenty seven new species of Orthocentrus (Hymenoptera: Ichneumonidae; Orthocentrinae) with a key to the Neotropical species of the genus.

We describe 27 new species of parasitoid wasps of the genus Orthocentrus (Ichneumonidae: Orthocentrinae) from the Neotropical region, where previously only one species of the genus (O. insularis Ashmead) was known, and provide a key to all described Orthocentrus species of the region. Based on previous studies and additional material that we have seen from the region, describing these species is only an initial attempt to document the Neotropical orthocentrine fauna.

Unprecedented ichneumonid parasitoid wasp diversity in tropical forests.

The megadiverse parasitoid wasp family Ichneumonidae (Hymenoptera) is classically considered an exception to the extensively studied latitudinal diversity gradient: the majority of ichneumonid species are described from temperate regions. The gradient has been hypothesized to be dependent on the biology of the wasps, but recently questions of sampling and description biases have been raised. Here, we show with primary data that the species richness of Ichneumonidae is markedly underestimated in tropical areas and that latitudinal diversity patterns in the family remain uncharacterized. We discovered a startling 177 likely undescribed orthocentrine species with relatively low sampling effort in the forests of Central America and Amazonian Ecuador, over three times the previously known orthocentrine diversity in the world's tropics. Species accumulation curves reveal that we are just beginning to unveil the true extent of tropical orthocentrine diversity. We also found evidence for cryptic species; our DNA analysis revealed additional species not easily distinguishable using morphological characteristics. The difficulty in establishing species richness patterns of Ichneumonidae probably follows from the relative lack of taxonomic expertise and the low density of ichneumonid species throughout the landscape.

A new species of Lathrolestes (Hymenoptera, Ichneumonidae) from Ecuadorian Amazonia, with a key to the Neotropical species of the genus.

Here we describe and illustrate a new parasitoid wasp species, Lathrolestes gauldisp. n. from the lowland rainforest of eastern Ecuador and provide a key to the Neotropical species of the genus. This is the first record of the subfamily Ctenopelmatinae from Ecuador.

DNA barcoding and morphology reveal two common species in one: Pimpla molesta stat. rev. separated from P. croceipes (Hymenoptera, Ichneumonidae).

Correct species identification is the basis of ecological studies. Nevertheless, morphological examination alone may not be enough to tell species apart. Here, our integrated molecular and morphological studies demonstrate that the relatively widespread and common neotropical parasitoid wasp Pimpla croceipes Cresson, 1874 (Hymenoptera: Ichneumonidae: Pimplinae) actually consists of two distinct species. The name Pimpla molesta (Smith, 1879), stat. rev. is available for the second species. The two species were identified by DNA barcoding and minor differences in morphology and colouration. Our results support the previous notions that DNA barcoding can complement morphological identification and aid the discovery of cryptic species complexes.