A remarkable new genus of Braconini (Hymenoptera: Braconidae: Braconinae) from Papua New Guinea, reared from fallen fruit

Abstract

During an investigation of the insect food web in Papua New Guinea several specimens of a new genus and species of large, black and orange braconine braconid wasp were reared from fruits of Rubiaceae. These are described here as Karposibracon papuensis Quicke & Butcher gen. et sp. nov. Karposibracon gen. nov. appears to belong to the tribe Braconini and is the largest known species in this group, with body length up to 12 mm. The new genus is illustrated photographically, distinguished from other genera, and comments are on its likely biology provided