''Amblyteles armatorius'' is a species of parasitic wasp in the

family Family (from la, familia) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its ...

Ichneumonidae first described by Johann Reinhold Forster in 1771.

Description

''Amblyteles armatorius'' can reach a length of 12–16 mm, excluding antennae, which reach about . The head and thorax of this large wasp are black, except the yellow scutellum. The abdomen is yellow and more oval in the females, with broad black bands. Legs are yellow, except the hind legs, that are black and yellow. This species lacks a sting, so the characteristic markings of many aculeate wasps represent a protective mimicry. The female has a very short ovipositor that doesn't protrude from the abdomen. Adults can be usually found in summer on flowers, especially Apiaceae species, feeding on nectar and pollen. The adults overwinter. The females of this parasitic wasp lay their eggs into the caterpillars of moths. When they hatch larvae feed on their hosts, mainly

Noctuidae The Noctuidae, commonly known as owlet moths, cutworms or armyworms, are a family of moths. They are considered the most controversial family in the superfamily Noctuoidea because many of the clades are constantly changing, along with the other f ...

and

Notodontidae Notodontidae is a family of moths with approximately 3,800 known species. The family was described by James Francis Stephens in 1829. Moths of this family are found in all parts of the world, but they are most concentrated in tropical areas, espe ...

, but also some Geometridae,

Erebidae The Erebidae are a family of moths in the superfamily Noctuoidea. The family is among the largest families of moths by species count and contains a wide variety of well-known macromoth groups. The family includes the underwings ('' Catocala'') ...

, Saturniidae and

Lasiocampidae The Lasiocampidae are a family of moths also known as eggars, tent caterpillars, snout moths (although this also refers to the Pyralidae), or lappet moths. Over 2,000 species occur worldwide, and probably not all have been named or studied. It i ...

(''

Calliteara pudibunda ''Calliteara pudibunda'', the pale tussock, is a moth of the family Erebidae. The Dutch common name for the moth (''Meriansborstel'') comes from the butterfly and insect painter Maria Sibylla Merian. The species was first described by Carl Linna ...

'', ''

Odontopera bidentata The scalloped hazel (''Odontopera bidentata'') is a moth of the family Geometridae. The species was first described by Carl Alexander Clerck in 1759. Distribution It is a common species of northern and central Europe including the British Is ...

'', ''

Macrothylacia rubi ''Macrothylacia rubi'', the fox moth, is a lepidopteran belonging to the family Lasiocampidae. It was Species description, first described by Carl Linnaeus in his 1758 10th edition of Systema Naturae, 10th edition of ''Systema Naturae''. Distr ...

'' and ''

Saturnia pavonia ''Saturnia pavonia'', the small emperor moth, is a moth of the family Saturniidae. It was first described by Carl Linnaeus in his 1758 10th edition of ''Systema Naturae''. Sometimes, the incorrect genus name ''Pavonia'' is still used for this ...

'').

Distribution and habitat

This species is a

Palearctic The Palearctic or Palaearctic is the largest of the eight biogeographic realms of the Earth. It stretches across all of Eurasia north of the foothills of the Himalayas, and North Africa. The realm consists of several bioregions: the Euro-Sibe ...

species that is present in most of Europe, in the

Near East The ''Near East''; he, המזרח הקרוב; arc, ܕܢܚܐ ܩܪܒ; fa, خاور نزدیک, Xāvar-e nazdik; tr, Yakın Doğu is a geographical term which roughly encompasses a transcontinental region in Western Asia, that was once the hist ...

, and in the

Oriental realm The Indomalayan realm is one of the eight biogeographic realms. It extends across most of South and Southeast Asia and into the southern parts of East Asia. Also called the Oriental realm by biogeographers, Indomalaya spreads all over the Ind ...

.''Fauna Europaea''
/ref> These wasps usually occur in hedgerows, meadows and spruce forest edges.

References

Fabricius, J.C. (1775) Systema Entomologiae, sistens Insectorum classes, ordines, genera, species., Flensburgi et Lipsae. 832 pp. Gmelin, J.F. (1790) Caroli a Linne Systema Naturae (Ed. XIII). Tom I., G.E. Beer. Lipsiae. 2225-3020. (Ichneumon: 2674-2722). Olivier, M. (1792) Ichneumon., Encyclopedie methodique, Histoire naturelle. Insectes. 7:133-224. Stephens, J.F. (1835) Illustrations of British Entomology. Mandibulata. Vol. VII., Baldwin & Cradock, London. 306 pp. ndex, list of plates and errata published in 1845./ref> Villers, C. de (1789) Caroli Linnaei entomologia, Faunae Suecicae descriptionibus. Tomus tertius., Lugduni. 657 pp. (Ichneumon on pp. 134-218) Tischbein, P.F.L. (1868) Hymenopterologische Beitrage., Stettiner Entomologische Zeitung. 29:248-258. Ichneumonidae Insects described in 1771 Taxa named by Johann Reinhold Forster {{Ichneumonidae-stub