New species of flightless doryctine parasitoid wasps ( Hymenoptera: Braconidae: Doryctinae) from Australia and New Zealand.

The Australasian braconid wasp fauna has an apparent high proportion of reduced-winged and wingless species compared with other regions, although the reasons for this are not particularly clear. In this study, five such new species of Doryctinae, Dendrosotinus ( Gildoria) chathamicus sp. nov. ( Chatham Is, New Zealand), Neorhaconotus julieae sp. nov. ( Australia), Ontsira naumanni sp. nov. ( Australia), Spathiomorpha jenningsi sp. nov. ( Australia), and Spathius thorpei sp. nov. ( New Zealand), are described and illustrated from the region. The first four of these represent the first records of flightless species in their respective genera. Spathius pedestris Wesmael is recorded from the region ( New Zealand) for the first time and has undoubtedly been introduced there, having been reared from the common furniture beetle ( Anobiidae), Anobium punctatum De Geer. The makeup of the Australasian doryctine fauna and possible reasons for the evolution of flightless species are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]