James Michael Carpenter

• PhD
• Peter J. Solomon Family Curator at American Museum of Natural History

A revision of the African species of the social wasp genus Ropalidia Guérin-Méneville is given (excluding Madagascar). It is based on 5,717 examined specimens and 528 documented field observations. A taxonomic revision, mitochondrial COI and 28S rDNA are provided, alongside a hypothesis-free morphometric analysis of female head shape based on 42 pr...

Five new species of Metapolybia are described, Metapolybia carpenteriana, Andena & Noll, sp. nov. (Ecuador, Peru), Metapolybia pseudodocilis Cortes, sp. nov. (Bolivia), Metapolybia richardsi Andena, sp. nov. (Ecuador), Metapolybia sulamerica Carpenter, sp. nov. (Colombia), Metapolybia zucchiana Andena & Carpenter, sp. nov. (Panama), in addition to...

Polistes Latreille, 1802 is a genus with cosmopolitan distribution, with 238 species in the world, 94 in the New World. Brazil has 43 species but there is not a complete understanding of the distribution of these species in the country, making it difficult to estimate the diversity of the genus for each region. Species descriptions in Polistes are...

A taxonomic study on the Afrotropical genera Afrepipona Giordani Soika, 1965 and Afrepsilon gen. nov. is presented. Twenty new species are described, of which 15 are in Afrepipona (Afrepipona anomala sp. nov., Afrepipona cellularis sp. nov., Afrepipona clonata sp. nov., Afrepipona cuprea sp. nov., Afrepipona lamellata sp. nov., Afrepipona lamptula...

Polybia is a genus of neotropical swarming wasps, and the largest within the Epiponini (Vespidae). The genus is dominant in the Neotropics, with more than 59 described species and eleven recognized subgenera. Myrapetra is the largest subgenus, currently with twenty-four valid species and fourteen subspecies, most of them allocated in the “P. occide...

Tetraopes longhorn beetles are known for their resistance to milkweed plant toxins and their coevolutionary dynamics with milkweed plants (Asclepias). This association is considered a textbook example of coevolution, in which each species of Tetraopes is specialized to feed on one or a few species of Asclepias. A major challenge to investigating co...

The Neotropical social wasp genus Chartergus is reviewed and comparative diagnoses, images of type material, and an updated identification key for species are presented. To investigate the phylogenetic relationships within the genus, we used a combined dataset of morphological characters, nest architecture traits, and molecular data. The results re...

A cladistic analysis of the species of the Neotropical social wasp genus Agelaia Lepeletier, 1836, was performed employing female morphology and nest architecture data. Analysis resulted in a single cladogram with length 339, consistency index 0.22, and retention index 0.60, supporting Agelaia as monophyletic. Agelaia bequaerti and A. anceps are ra...

Leipomeles Möbius, 1856, is a neotropical genus of swarm-founding wasps extending from Costa Rica to the middle of Brazil, with four species described. A combined phylogenetic analysis using female and male morphology, and nest architecture was performed with the program TNT. Leipomeles is supported as monophyletic with the following relationships...

Ancistrocerus capra was described by de Saussure in 1857 from North America and then was synonymized with the Palaearctic A. antilope (Panzer, 1798) by Bequaert in 1944. Although these species share a combination of two characters (impunctate and shining metapleuron and lateral surface of the propodeum and a bifurcate apex of the aedeagus) not know...

Charterginus Fox, 1898 is a neotropical genus of swarm-founding social wasps consisting of six species. Despite its ecological significance, there are limited studies on various aspects of these wasps. To address this, this study aims to provide a comprehensive comparative diagnosis for all Charterginus species, accompanied by high-quality images o...

The genus Protopolybia Ducke was analyzed using a multilocus phylogenetic approach, which confirmed its monophyly. In contrast with the arrangements derived solely from morphological data, however, this analysis divides the genus into only two major clades. The study also presents divergence times for the origin and diversification of Protopolybia,...

A catalogue of Eumeninae occurring in Oceania is presented, the first in more than a century.

A key to the genera of the Eumeninae occurring in Oceania is presented. Hitherto there has been no published key to these genera, making routine identification difficult. New combinations are Pararrhynchium atrum emifasciatum (Giordani Soika), Pararrhynchium simillimum (Giordani Soika), Parodynerus mariannensis (Bequaert and Yasumatsu), and Phimene...

The genus Polistes Latreille 1802 is the only cosmopolitan genus in the social Vespidae. In this paper, a new species of the genus is described, Polistes (Epicnemius) orlandoi Somavilla & Carpenter sp. n., collected in Amazonas State, Brazil. The male genitalia are described and comparative remarks are given.

taxonomic study on the Afrotropical species in the genus Anterhynchium de Saussure, 1863 is presented. Some subspecies are elevated to specific rank (Anterhynchium argenteopilosellum (Giordani Soika, 1937) stat. nov., A. bugandanum Giordani Soika, 1987 stat. nov., A. cariosum Giordani Soika, 1987 stat. nov., A. denticulatum (Mocsáry, 1903) stat. no...

A catalogue of the social wasps occurring in Australia is presented. New synonymies include Vespa cohabitatrix Curtiss, 1938 (= Polistes olivaceus (DeGeer, 1773)) and Vespula vulgaris vetus Eck, 1999 (= Vespula vulgaris (Linnaeus, 1758)).

A new species, Subancistrocerus pakistanensis Qasim, Carpenter et Rafique sp. nov. is described and illustrated from Pakistan, based on several specimens collected in the Multan Region. Genus Subancistrocerus is recorded for the first time from Pakistan.

A cladistic analysis of the genus Synagris is performed to assess the taxonomic status and limits of its subgenera, examining external morphology and male genitalia. The subgenera S. (Rhynchagris) and S. (Pseudagris) are raised to generic rank (Rhynchagris stat. nov. and Pseudagris stat. nov.), with the former as senior synonym of Pteromenes Giorda...

Simple Summary The subfamily Eumeninae comprises more than 3900 described species and eumenine mitochondrial analyses are almost absent. In order to provide further evidence toward understanding the relationships within the subfamily, the characteristics of 54 eumenine mitogenomes were comparatively analyzed, among which 52 mitogenomes are newly an...

An account of the Antonio Giordani Soika Eumeninae collection housed at the Natural History Museum of Venice Giancarlo Ligabue is presented, following its recent reorganization. A list of identified species, with the count of specimens, is provided, as well as details on type specimens. With over 21,000 identified specimens and 2,756 type specimens...

An account of the Antonio Giordani Soika Eumeninae collection housed at the Natural History Museum of Venice Giancarlo Ligabue is presented, following its recent reorganization. A list of identified species, with the count of specimens, is provided, as well as details on type specimens. With over 21,000 identified specimens and 2,756 type specimens...

In this paper, a total of five species of the genus Paraleptomenes Giordani Soika, 1970 is reported from China, including two new species and two newly recorded species. The two new species P. setaceus sp. nov. and P. transfoveolus sp. nov. are described and illustrated in detail. P. darugiriensis Kumar, Carpenter & Sharma, 2014 and P. nurseanus mo...

Celonites ivanovi sp. nov. is described as a new species from Dagestan where it has been recorded from dry habitats in a small area on the northern side of the Greater Caucasus. Celonites cagrii sp. nov. is described from Erzurum Province in east Turkey. As in other members of the C. cyprius-group, the females of both species were observed to visit...

A total 14 species from 10 genera belonging to three subfamilies: Eumeninae, Polistinae and Vespinae are listed from the Multan region of Pakistan. The subfamily Eumeninae is represented by 11 species in eight genera, while there are two species of genus Polistes belonging to the subfamily Polistinae and one species of the genus Vespa belonging to...

An illustrated identification key to the genera of potter wasps occurring in Australia is presented. Hitherto there has been no published key to these genera, making routine identification impossible, and allowing taxonomic study of these wasps to be carried out only by specialists. This has greatly inhibited biological study of these wasps, which...

The genus Polistes is one of the most species-rich and widely distributed groups of social wasps and a model taxon for studies of social behavior. Almost half the Polistes world fauna occurs in the New World, but their classification has been unstable due in part to the scarcity of phylogenetic studies. We investigated the phylogeny of the New Worl...

North American Hornet Screening Tool ITP collaborators: University of California – Davis, American Museum of Natural History USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service’s Identification Technology Program (ITP) is pleased to announce the release of North American Hornet Screening Tool. This tool is designed to help users differentiate between...

Zethus is the largest genus in Vespidae with over 270 species. It is currently divided into four subgenera: Z. (Zethus), Z. (Zethoides), Z. (Zethusculus) and Z. (Madecazethus). While the last three are restricted to certain biogeographic areas, the first is spread through western and eastern hemispheres. Studies have shown possible phylogenetic inc...

A catalogue of Eumeninae occurring in Australia is presented. The genus Lissodynerus Giordani Soika is synonymized with Pararrhynchium de Saussure. Species placed in the genus Pseudepipona de Saussure, by Giordani Soika and Borsato are transferred to Euodynerus Dalla Torre, and species placed in the genus Syneuodynerus Blüthgen, by Giordani Soika a...

Lectotypes are designated for two species of Vespinae: Dolichovespula arctica (Rohwer) and Vespula intermedia (du Buysson). Dolichovespula albida (Sladen) is diagnostically distinct from D. norwegica (Fabricius), therefore it is a distinct phylogenetic species. This is also the case for Vespula intermedia versus V. rufa (Linnaeus).

Polistinae are 25 genera and more than 1,000 described species, and in Brazil 21 genera and nearly 380 species have been recorded. Here, we propose an identification key to the genera of social wasps (Polistinae) occurring in the Neotropics.

Social wasps in Brazil are common elements being important components of interactions with other organisms, acting as predators as well pollinators. In this chapter, we review the study of this group since the discovery of Brazil, in 1500. In the first two centuries (1500–1700), references to this group are rare, being most of the references to Hym...

Social wasps are common elements of the Neotropical fauna, known to most people living in this region because of their large nests and the aggressive defensive behavior of many species. Polistinae is a widely distributed taxon in the Neotropics, with more than 300 species described within 21 genera, with 20 of these genera endemic. In this chapter,...

Neotropical swarm‐founding wasps are divided into 19 genera in the tribe Epiponini (Vespidae, Polistinae). They display extensive variation in several colony‐level traits that make them an attractive model system for reconstructing the evolution of social phenotypes, including caste dimorphism and nest architecture. Epiponini has been upheld as a s...

A taxonomic revision of the Protopolybia chartergoides species-group was undertaken. Protopolybia isthmensis (Richards) stat. nov. is elevated to the level of species. The male genitalia of P. chartergoides (Gribodo), P. fuscata (Fox), and P. pallidibalteatus (Cameron) are illustrated and described. New collection records and new identification key...

Taxonomy of the potter wasps of the genus Labus from Vietnam is reviewed, with six species recorded. Of them, one species previously identified as L. clypeatus van der Vecht, 1935 is described as new, namely L. angulus , sp. nov. Another new species, Labus obtusussp. nov. , is also described. In addition, a key to all species of the genus occurring...

The genus Wroughtonia Cameron (Hymenoptera, Braconidae, Helconinae) is reviewed. Twelve new species of the genus Wroughtonia are described and illustrated: Wroughtonia angularis, sp. nov.; W. aspera, sp. nov.; W. coffeana, sp. nov.; W. elongata, sp. nov.; W. laevis, sp. nov.; W. plana, sp. nov.; W. similis, sp. nov.; W. simulata, sp. nov.; W. sonla...

This study presents a checklist of the vespid wasps (Hymenoptera: Vespidae) of India. A total of 288 species belonging to 60 genera and 5 subfamilies of Vespidae are known to occur within the political boundaries of India. A complete list of species, comprising valid scientific names, synonyms, geographical distribution within and outside India, al...

Hornets in the genus Vespa (Vespidae, Vespinae) are social wasps. They are primarily predators of other insects, and some species are known to attack and feed on honeybees (Apis mellifera L.), which makes them a serious threat to apiculture. Hornet species identification can be sometimes difficult because of the amount of intraspecific color and si...

Although the Neotropical territorially dominant arboreal ant Azteca chartifex Forel is very aggressive towards any intruder, its populous colonies tolerate the close presence of the fierce polistine wasp Polybia rejecta (F.). In French Guiana, 83.33% of the 48 P. rejecta nests recorded were found side by side with those of A. chartifex. This nestin...

An updated checklist of the Arabian species of Vespidae is provided here. The list includes 163 identified species in 49 genera and four subfamilies: Eumeninae (41 genera, 130 species), Masarinae (4 genera, 14 species), Polistinae (3 genera, 17 species) and Vespinae (1 genus, 2 species). Distributions, both on the Peninsula and extra-limital, are p...

231 species of the family Vespidae (Hymenoptera, Vespoidea) of Iran, in 55 genera belonging to 4 subfamilies Eumeninae (45 genera, 184 species), Masarinae (5 genera, 24 species), Polistinae (2 genera, 17 species) and Vespinae (3 genera, 6 species) are listed. An overall assessment of the distribution pattern of the vespid species in Iran indicates...

A taxonomic revision of the Protopolybia picteti-emortualis species-group now demonstrates that this group is possibly the largest in Protopolybia, comprising 15 species: P. eldinaris sp. nov.; P. djaneteae sp. nov.; P. cameranii (Zavattari 1906) = P. bella (Von Ihering 1903) syn. nov.; P. fulvotincta stat. rev.; P. biguttata, P. nitida, P. alvaren...

Taxonomy of the paper wasps of the subgenus Gyrostoma of the polistine genus Polistes from Vietnam is treated, with a key to all the five species occurring in Vietnam, including one described herein as new to science under the name Polistes longussp. nov. Nests of P. gigas and P. longussp. nov. are also described.

A total of 38 species belonging to 26 genera of Eumeninae are recorded from Hong Kong, among which two new species, namely Allorhynchium radiatumsp. nov. and Orientalicesa nigrasp. nov. are described and illustrated. Symmorphus tsushimanus Yamane, 1990 is newly recorded from China and its female is firstly described. Eighteen species are newly reco...

The genus Gastrodynerus is here revised based on external morphology and male genitalia. Bohart (1984) proposed Gastrodynerus as a new genus with three species: G. vanduzeei (Bohart 1948), G. searsi Bohart, 1984, and G. stangei Bohart, 1984. Later, Rodriguez-Palafox (1996) added G. tacubayae (de Saussure, 1857). Herein, we describe four new species...

Two new species of eumenine wasps were described from Panama and Peru, namely Pirhosigma abregoi Garcete-Barrett & Hermes sp. nov. and P. cambrai Garcete-Barrett & Ferreira sp. nov. Lectotypes are designated for Eumenes deformata barberoi Bertoni and Eumenes superficialis mondaiensis Bertoni. Pirhosigma mearimense putumayense Giordani Soika stat. n...

A new species of Metapolybia, which had been included erroneously among the paratypes of M. acincta by Richards (1978) is described.

Paper wasps (subfamily Polistinae) are one of the four main groups of eusocial insects in the Neotropics. They are medically important for the frequent stings inflicted on humans, but at the same time are valuable predators of pest insects. Nonetheless, there are no updated keys for the identification of the Central American species. Here we provid...

A new species of the social wasp genus Chartergellus is described, Chartergellus trinitatis Carpenter and Andena, NEW SPECIES. Male genitalia are described and comparative remarks are given.

Eight new species, namely Parancistrocerus latitergus sp. nov. (China), P. lamnulus sp. nov. (China), P. laticlypeus sp. nov. (Thailand), P. prominens sp. nov. (Thailand), P. guangxiensis sp. nov. (China), P. discarinatus sp. nov. (Thailand), P. abyssicavus sp. nov. (Thailand), and P. similiandrocles sp. nov. (China) are described and illustrated....

Three new species, namely Stenodyneriellusangustussp. n. from Thailand, S.profundussp. n. from Philippines, and S.longitergussp. n. from Indonesia, are described and illustrated in detail. Stenodyneriellusmaculatus Gusenleitner, 2013 is newly recorded from Vietnam. Two keys to some related species are also provided.

The genus Orientalicesa has six species, and all of them have been recorded in the Oriental region (including Indonesia, Malaysia, Phillippines, Laos, China). In this paper, the genus Orientalicesa is newly recorded from Vietnam, represented by one species O. confasciatus Tan and Carpenter. This species was mistakenly redescribed as Stenodyneriellu...

The male genitalia of 58 species of the New World Polistes are described: 29 of Polistes (Aphanilopterus), 12 of Polistes (Epicnemius), 13 of Polistes (Fuscopolistes), one of Polistes (Onerarius) and three of Polistes (Palisotius). Comments and remarks are also provided.

Two species of potter wasps of the genus Symmorphus Wesmael, 1836, namely Symmorphus (Symmorphus) alkimus alkimus Cumming & van der Vecht, 1986 and S. (S.) ambotretus Cumming, 1989, are recorded here for the first time from India. A key to the Indian species of the genus and an updated checklist of the species of Symmorphus of the Indian subcontine...

Three new species, namely Labus edentatus sp. n. from China, L. sparsipunctus sp. n. from Thailand and L. robustus sp. n. from Indonesia are described and illustrated. Both L. amoenus van der Vecht, 1935 and L. pusillus van der Vecht, 1963 are newly recorded from China and Vietnam, and L. angularis van der Vecht, 1935 is also firstly recorded from...

The genus Eumenes Latreille, 1802, from the New World, is revised based on external morphology and male genitalia. New synonymy is proposed as follows: E. aureus Isely, 1917 = E. americanus de Saussure, 1852; E. bollii oregonensis Bequaert, 1838, and E. b. ehrenbergi Zavattari, 1912 = E. bollii Cresson, 1872; E. consobrinus pedalis Fox, 1894 = E. c...

The hypothesis that eusociality originated once in Vespidae has shaped interpretation of social evolution for decades and has driven the supposition that preimaginal morphophysiological differences between castes were absent at the outset of eusociality. Many researchers also consider casteless nest-sharing an antecedent to eusociality. Together, t...

The Oriental species of Allorhynchium van der Vecht, 1963 (Hymenoptera: Vespidae: Eumeninae) are keyed for the first time and their distribution is summarised, with special reference to China and Vietnam. Archancistrocerus Giordani Soika, 1986, is synonymized with Allorhynchium van der Vecht (syn. nov.). Allorhynchium diffinis (Giordani Soika, 1986...

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A taxonomic review of the P. sedula species-group is presented. New diagnostic characters are described and all species redescribed. The male genitalia of P. sedula (de Saussure) and P. weyrauchi Bequaert are described and drawn. New collection records and a new identification key for the species-group are given.

This study provides the first molecular phylogeny of the social wasp subgenus Polistella (Hymenoptera: Vespidae: Polistes) from Vietnam. Fragments of the mitochondrial COI and 16S rRNA genes were used to reconstruct the phylogenetic trees among 38 Polistes species plus two out-group species (Vespa soror du Buysson and Ropalidia fasciata (Fabricius)...

An illustrated key to the currently recognized genera of the subfamily Eumeninae (Vespidae) from China is presented together with a list of 267 species and subspecies, belonging to 51 genera. Nortozumia van der Vecht, 1937 is reported for the first time from China. Two replacement names are proposed for junior primary homonyms: Ancistrocerus rufofr...

The distribution of Zethus Fabicius, 1804, in the Oriental and Palaearctic regions is discussed, with special reference to the northeastern Oriental species. A newly discovered species, Z. velamellatus Tan, sp. n. from China (Zhejiang), is described and illustrated. The first key to species of Zethus Fabricius from China is presented. Zethus nigerr...

In French Guiana, the arboreal nests of the swarm-founding social wasp Protopolybia emortualis (Polistinae) are generally found near those of the arboreal dolichoderine ant Dolichoderus bidens. These wasp nests are typically protected by an envelope, which in turn is covered by an additional carton 'shelter' with structure resembling the D. bidens...

A new species of Eumeninae, Stenodynerus punjabensis Qasim, Carpenter et Rafi, is described from Pakistan. A key to the Stenodynerus species of Pakistan is also included.

The potter wasp genus Pseudepipona de Saussure, 1856 is recorded here for the first time from India with the species Pseudepipona (Pseudepipona) vicina Gusenleitner, 1973. It is also the first report of this species since its original description. The male of the species is described here for the first time.

This study provides the first annotated check list of the Vespidae of Pakistan. It is based on the National Insect Museum collection and various studies in Pakistan. Among 105 identified taxa, 77 species and 28 subspecies are recorded in the four subfamilies Eumeninae, Masarinae, Polistinae and Vespinae. Three new records for the fauna of Pakistan...

A new species of potter wasp from South America, Ancistrocerus sur sp. n., is described. A species key and checklist for all described Ancistrocerus that occur south of the Rio Grande are provided. New synonymy includes Odynerus bolivianus Brèthes = Ancistrocerus pilosus (de Saussure), while the subspecies bustamente discopictus Bequaert, lineative...

The Kinsey collection of gall wasps deposited in the American Museum of Natural History was studied. Some species of the genus Andricus were originally described based on cotypes: A. furnaceus, A. incomptum, A. marmoreus, A. peredurus, and A. tecturnarum. The type series of A. furnaceus and A. peredurus were previously studied and lectotypes were d...

A taxonomic review of the Indian species of the genus Eumenes Latreille with a key to species is provided. The species Eumenes pomiformis (Fabricius, 1781) is recorded here for the first time from India, while E. affinissimus de Saussure, 1852, E. pomiformis (Fabricius, 1781) and E. persimilis Giordani Soika, 1960 are recorded from Pakistan. The re...