Ropalidia kitui Polasek 2025, sp. nov.
Creators: name: Polašek, Ozren
name: Onah, Ikechukwu
name: Kehinde, Tope
name: Rojo, Veronica
name: Noort, Simon Van
name: Carpenter, James M.
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2025
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Hymenoptera
Vespidae
Ropalidia
Ropalidia kitui

description: Ropalidia kitui Polašek sp. nov.
urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act: CE0735DC-CFA0-4DCA-AB34-C44A4EF176C4
Type specimens. Holotype: Mwingi, Kenya, 1♀ (OLM.0273). Paratypes: Nguni, Kenya (OLM); Voi, Kenya (OLM). The total number of examined specimens: 4♀♀.
Diagnosis. Member of capensis -group, easily separated from other species by weakly developed punctures, continuous yellow line across metanotum, pentagonal female clypeus and specific triangular excavation on propodeum just above valvula.
Description. Females. Wing length 6.4–8.2 mm. Colour. Basic colour brown or reddish-brown. Yellow areas include clypeus (except rhomboid or triangular basal brown spot), lines along inner eye margin, interantennal area, mandible (except central lightly brown or brown spot), gena (sometimes extending further and including tempora; Figure 5b). Yellow markings also include a thickened line underneath pronotal carina and variable patches on mesopleuron (Figure 96a, b). Mesonotum dark brown or black, with two reddish lines (Figure 96b). Tegula with postero(-medial) yellow area. Xanthic specimens can have two lateral spots on scutellum, while commonly scutellum is reddish-brown. Broad yellow line on anterior margin of metanotum (Figure 5a) is useful in separation from R. tajiri sp. nov. (yellow line on posterior margin of metanotum). All three coxa pairs with yellow marks, femur I–II (or even I–III) with long yellow line on their infero-lateral edge, sometimes broken down into series of yellow spots that form line (Figure 96a). T1 always with yellow markings, either forming complete posterior line or reduced to two small lateral yellow spots. T2 and 3 (sometimes and 4) with a posterior yellow line, S2 (sometimes also 3) with either complete yellow line or reduced to two lateral yellow spots (Figure 96a). More lightly coloured specimens can have two lateral suffused yellow spots on basal part of T2, common in Asian and Malagasy species, and virtually absent in other African mainland species. Antenna darkly ferruginous, tinted darker towards distal parts, with darkest area on segments 9–11 (Figure 96a). Wings transparent, nervature brown, stigma dark brown and opaque, apical spot absent (Figure 96b).
Head. Clypeus with narrow base and discrete inter-ocular angle, giving it overall pentagonal shape; clypeus about as long as broad or somewhat longer (Figure 5b). Clypeus base nearly impunctate (rarely with a few poorly defined punctures), apex with poorly defined craters. Entire clypeus surface covered by short silvery-golden pubescence, apical third with somewhat longer setae. Inner orbit impunctate, covered by very short silvery pubescence; similar pubescence extends onto frons, which also bears longer golden setae with bent tips. Frons and vertex covered by minute, scarce and shallow punctures, more than a radius apart. Tempora and gena thin; gena no more than 0.6 times as wide as eye); gena with scarce, small and poorly defined punctures (Figure 96a). Occipital carina developed, minimally sinuate or not sinuate at all. Ocellar triangle with substantially wider base. Eyes covered by very short setae or entirely asetose. Scape about as long as pedicel and AF1 together; pedicel 1.5 times as long as wide, AF2 about as long as wide.
Mesosoma. Mesosoma covered by short golden pubescence (Figure 5a). Punctures on mesosoma small, shallow and often obscured by pubescence. Parapsidal furrows developed, punctures sparser. Scutellum flattened, without median carina. Metanotum with very weak punctures, barely discernible under pubescence (Figure 5a). Propodeum with broad and deep excavation, with moderately developed inferior propodeal carina; this species has strongest inferior propodeal carina in entire capensis -group. Triangular excavation at the lowest section of propodeal excavation is specific for this species (Figure 5a). Wings translucent, trichome very short; stigma and nervature brown (Figure 96b).
Metasoma. T1 triangular and rounded (Figure 96b); impunctate, except some shallow distal punctures. T2 long, with long parallel contour and minimal narrowing towards lamella. T2/S2 suture strongly developed, commonly visible along entire segment length (Figure 96a). T2 lamellar notch visible and obtuse. T2 lamella brown or dark brown. T2 covered by shallow regular punctures, which have somewhat sparser pattern on S2. T2 covered by short yellowish setae, which do not protrude beyond lamella.
Male unknown.
Distribution: South-Eastern Kenya.
Etymology. The holotype and two paratypes were collected in the Kitui county of Kenya; the name is to be treated as a noun in apposition.
Similar species: None of the African Ropalidia mainland species has a propodeal triangular excavation, making this an excellent diagnostic feature.
Genetics. Two specimens were successfully genotyped, with a single BIN cluster (BOLD: ADN 6868) and a relatively basal position.
description: Published as part of Polašek, Ozren, Onah, Ikechukwu, Kehinde, Tope, Rojo, Veronica, Noort, Simon Van & Carpenter, James M., 2025, Revision of the mainland African species of the Old World social wasp genus Ropalidia Guérin-Méneville 1831 (Hymenoptera; Vespidae), pp. 1-142 in Zootaxa 5626 (1) on pages 94-96, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.5626.1.1, http://zenodo.org/record/15325272