R. V. HENSEN Utrecht, The Netherlands REVIEW OF MALESIAN SPHECINA (HYMENOPTERA, SPHECIDAE, SPHECINAE) Hensen, R. V., 1991. Review of Malesian Sphecina (Hymenoptera, Sphecidae, Sphecinae). -Tijdschrift voor Entomologie 134: 9-30, figs. 1-65. [issn 0040-7496]. Published 1 July 1991. The species of Sphex and hodontia (subtribe Sphecina) in the Malesian region are reviewed. Twenty species are recognized in hodontia, which are segregated into five species-groups, while 21 species are recognized in Sphex, divided among three species-groups. Keys are provided to the genera, species-groups and species. Synonymy and distribution of the species is discussed. Twelve new species are described, viz. I. pilipes (Burma to Sumatra, Borneo), /. cestra, l. eiset (both Sulawesi), /. nidulans (Philippines), I. immaculata, I. capillata, l. delicata, I. papua, S. wilsoni, S. rex (all New Guinea), S. solomon (Solomon Islands), and S. walshae (NE India to Sumatra, Borneo). The following new synonymies are established: Sphex morosus Smith, 1861, S. volatilis Smith, 1861, S. triodon Kohl, 1890, S. abditus Kohl, 1895 and S. abditus nugenti Turner, 1910 are synonymized with hodontia aurifrons (Smith, 1859); /• diodon alemon Van der Vecht, 1957 with I. severini (Kohl, 1898); S. ustulatus Kohl, 1890, S. simplex Kohl, 1898 and S. insularis Cameron, 1901 with /. praslinia (Guérin-Méneville, 1831); S. albohirtus (Turner, 1908) with I. sepicola (Smith, 1859) and S. fulvohirtus Bingham, 1890 with S. diabolicus Smith, 1858. Raymond V. Hensen, W.A. Vultostraat 147, 3523 TW Utrecht, The Netherlands. Key words. -Malesia, Oriental region, Australian region, Sphecidae, Sphex, hodontia, taxonomy. In this paper the species of the subtribe Sphecina comprising the genera Sphex Linnaeus and hodon-tia Patton are briefly treated as far as they occur in the Malesian area. The Malesian area is used here in a broad sense, i. e. comprising Southern Thai-land, Malaysia, Indonesia, the Philippines, New Guinea and the Solomon Islands. Sphex and hodontia are large, active insects, and some of the species treated here are among the most commonly encountered digger wasps in the area. The last comprehensive publication dealing with the Malesian species was that by Kohl (1890), but the taxonomy of the group was updated in many smaller papers (eg. Kohl 1895, 1898, Van der Vecht 1957, 1973). Therefore, it is surprising that so many new species remained undetected. Furth-ermore, a considerable number of new synonyms were discovered in the course of this study. Comprehensive diagnoses of the morphology and biology of the two genera were given by Bohart & Menke (1976), and need not be repeated here. One of the aims of this study is to define and diagnose a number of species-groups. Most of these groups are considered monophyletic, being based on inferred synapomorphies. Others, in particular the Sphex subtruncatus-group are possibly para-phyletic. It seems premature to pay more attention to the phylogeny of the subtribe here, as a thorough treatment of this subject will require study of all species in these genera. This paper deals strictly with species: it does not present a classification below the species-level. Al-though past workers (eg. Van der Vecht & Krom-bein 1955) have recognized subspecies in the Male-sian hodontia, especially for colour differences from island to island, I have not recognized them in this paper. Subspecific names recognized in the past are simply treated here as synonyms of the nominate form. On the other hand, several taxa regarded as subspecies in the past are elevated to species rank. This study was initiated by dr. J. van der Vecht, and in many instances I have relied on his notes concerning literature, type material and specimens. As far as type specimens are concerned, I have indicated examination by Van der Vecht with a single exclamation mark, by myself with a double exclamation mark after the type depository (e.g. bmnh!!). A question mark behind an abbreviation of a museum means that a type was looked for but not found in that particular museum.
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