A review of the Solitary Wasps (Hymenoptera) of Suffolk, Part 1.

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SUFFOLK ACULEATE WASPS

A REVIEW OF THE SOLITARY WASPS (HYMENOPTERA: ACULEATA) OF SUFFOLK, PART 1 ADRIAN KNOWLES This paper is the third in an occasional series reviewing the aculeate Hymenoptera in Suffolk. Readers are referred to Knowles (2013) for a summary of the social wasps (genera Vespa, Vespula and Dolichovespula) and Knowles (2017) for a review of the solitary bees found in the county. This third part comprises a review of those wasp species in the super-families Chrysidoidea and Vespoidea (in part).

The Chrysidoidea comprises four families: the Chrysididae, often referred to as ruby-tailed wasps or cuckoo-wasps; and three families of small, rather obscure insects that, in some respects, have closer affinities with the other Parasitica within the Order Hymenoptera. These are the Dryinidae, Bethylidae and Embolemidae.

The super-family Vespoidea comprises eight families in the British Isles, although one (Scoliidae) is confined to the Channel Islands. The social members of the Vespidae have been reviewed in Knowles (2013). The ants (Formicidae) will be dealt with in a separate paper at a later date, leaving the families Sapygidae, Tiphiidae, Mutillidae, Pompilidae and sub-family Eumeninae (family Vespidae) to be considered here.

Within each family, species are treated alphabetically in order to facilitate easy reference for the beginner. Where Claude Morley referred to the species by any other name in his two main works (1935, 1936), these are explained in a synonymy section.

A few species have had their names changed relatively recently and these are also included here.

I would like to thank Martin Sanford at the Suffolk Biodiversity Information Service for generating the maps used in this review.

SUPER-FAMILY CHRYSIDOIDEA FAMILY CHRYSIDIDAE This group is often referred to as “ruby-tailed wasps”, on account of their frequently bright metallic red abdomens, although not all species are thus coloured. An alternative name is “cuckoo-wasps”, reflecting their biology as cleptoparasites that lay their eggs in the nests of other species, although they are but a few of many wasps that have this life history. Some of the species are better described as parasitoids in that their larvae attack another living invertebrate, feeding directly on the body of its larval host, rather than feeding on the food provision within the host’s nest.

The genus Chrysis is a taxonomically difficult group, with a lack of consensus amongst experts regarding the true number of European (and hence British) species.

This makes it difficult, if not impossible, to interpret historical records.

Chrysis angustula Schenck, 1856 Known from a handful of records scattered across the county, including: Blaxhall Common; Sudbourne; Chantry Park, Ipswich; Ickworth Park; Center Parcs, Elveden; and the King’s Forest.

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Chrysis gracillima (Foerster, 1853) Synonymy: formerly placed within the genus Chrysogona.

First recorded in Suffolk in 1998. It is known from three localities in Breckland (Maidscross Hill, Lakenheath; The King’s Forest; Lackford Lakes) plus Sutton Hoo in the south-east – its original locality in the county.

Chrysis ignita (Linnaeus, 1758) This is a strict species in its own right, but also lends its name to the ‘aggregate’ of difficult Chrysis species (Plate 2). It is likely that many records assigned to this species name refer only to the aggregate. There is a handful of records thinly spread across the county relating to this species in the strict sense.

Chrysis illigeri (Wesmael, 1839) Synonymy: Morley’s use of the name Chrysis succincta Linnaeus is based upon a mis-identification. C. illigeri was, until recently, known as C. helleni.

This wasp is one of the more easily identifiable Chrysis species. It has been widely recorded in Breckland, with a scatter of records in the south-east of the county and up the coast as far as Corton. Morley (1936) gives but one location (Bentley Woods) and notes that it had not been seen there for 20 years, so this may be a species that has become somewhat more common and widespread since his day.

Chrysis impressa Schenck, 1856 This appears to be a scarce species in the county, although it is a difficult member of the C. ignita aggregate and may have merely been recorded under the aggregate name. It is known from a handful of records in Breckland and even fewer records in the north-east. There are no known records from the south of the county.

Chrysis mediata Linsenmaier, 1951 A rare species, with only four known records: Center Parcs, Elveden in the northwest, Ipswich and Sutton Hoo in the south-east and on the coast at Minsmere.

Chrysis ruddii Shuckard, 1837 This species is on the Suffolk list on the basis of a pre-1936 record by Perkins from Brandon. Its current status in the county is unknown but this species has been declining nationally since 1970 and so may be lost to the county.

Chrysis rutiliventris Abeille de Perrin, 1879 A rare species in Suffolk and another species that appears to be declining nationally. It has been recorded at various sites around Minsmere in the east and at Red Lodge in the West.

Chrysis schencki Linsenmaier, 1968 This species is only known in Suffolk from a single record, made in 2005 by Mike Edwards whilst undertaking survey work for the RSPB at Minsmere.

Chrysis viridula Linnaeus, 1761 Until recently, this distinctive member of the genus was only known in Suffolk from a 1927 record from Bentley Woods, noted by Claude Morley. However, in 2015, Paul Lee recorded it from Knettishall Heath in the north-west of the county.

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Chrysura radians (Harris, 1776) This species was not added to the Suffolk list until 2002, when Justin Gant recorded it from Brantham. Since then it has been recorded several times, largely in the last four years, in Ipswich, East Bergholt, Flatford Mill, Reydon, Minsmere and Dunwich Heath. Curiously, it has yet to be recorded in West Suffolk.

Cleptes nitidulus (Fabricius, 1793) Synonymy: Morley (1936) refers to it as C. nitidula.

Both species of Cleptes known in Britain are distinctive insects, with very elongate bodies, making them some of the more easily identifiable chrysid wasps. Hence, the lack of records for this species may be a genuine sign of rarity. Claude Morley noted it around Mildenhall prior to 1936 and also cited records from Ipswich, Little Blakenham and Brantham. The only modern records are an unattributed 1982 record from north of Santon Downham and a 1996 observation by Steven Falk at Center Parcs, Elveden.

Cleptes semiauratus (Linnaeus, 1761) Synonymy: Morley (1936) refers to Cleptes pallidipes Lepeletier, which is a misspelling of pallipes.

Morley cites an observation by one of the Pagets, suggesting it was “common” at sandhills in July and August. He also gives locations at Mildenhall, Pakefield and Ipswich. More recently, this scarce species is only known from two locations in Suffolk: Wangford Warren c. 1984 and Center Parcs, Elveden.

Elampus panzeri (Fabricius, 1804) Synonymy: Notozus panzeri.

This cuckoo-wasp is a parasite within the nests of crabronid wasps in the genus Mimesa. It is quite widely found in Breckland, with several records along the coastal Sandlings.

Hedychridium ardens (Latreille in Coquebert, 1801) This small wasp is a cleptoparasite or parasitoid within nests of crabronid wasps in the genus Tachysphex, primarily in Britain T. pompiliformis. It is widespread in Breckland and the Sandlings. The sole record from central Suffolk comes from Needham Market in 1996.

Hedychridium coriaceum (Dahlbom, 1854) The sole Suffolk record for this species is from 2017, when Jerry Lee recorded it from Dunwich Heath. It is thought to attack the nests of the crabronid wasp Lindenius albilabris, which is quite widespread in the Sandlings and also Breckland.

Hedychridium cupreum (Dahlbom, 1845) Synonymy: Hedychridium integrum.

Aside from a few historical records, this rare wasp is known from modern records at: Lakenheath Airfield and the adjacent Maidscross Hill; Wangford Warren; Center Parcs, Elveden; King’s Forest; and Purdis Heath, Ipswich. It attacks the nests of the crabronid wasp Dryudella pinguis.

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Hedychridium roseum (Rossi, 1790) This wasp is relatively widespread along the coastal Sandlings and within Breckland, where is main host, the crabronid wasp Astata boops nests in sandy soils. In addition, in 2017 Hawk Honey recorded it from the Waveney Valley near Weybread.

Hedychridium roseum

Hedychrum niemelai Linsenmaier, 1959 Synonymy: Morley (1936) was not alone in referring to specimens of this wasp as Hedychrum nobile Scopoli – a mis-identification. In recent years it has become apparent that H. nobile does also occur in Britain.

Some data for H. niemelai might include records that are actually H. nobile. In its broad sense, Hedychrum niemelai is widely found across south-east Suffolk and Breckland, although is there a surprising paucity of records along the coastal zone in general. This species is included within the current UK Red Data Book listing for threatened invertebrates, although this status may no longer be justified. It is a cleptoparasite within the nests of Cerceris species and possibly exclusively C. quinquefasciata, itself also listed in the British Red Data Book.

Hedychrum nobile (Scopoli, 1763) (see Cover photo) The dataset for this species is likely to be incomplete due to previous confusion over the identity of this wasp in Britain, with some specimens having been

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mis-identified as H. niemelai. To add to the confusion, workers in Morley’s day applied the name Hedychrum nobile Scopoli to specimens that were actually H. niemelai. The distribution of H. nobile mirrors that of H. niemelai. On average, specimens of H. nobile are slightly larger than its sibling and this may indicate a preference for nests of other, larger species of Cerceris wasp, although there are exceptions to this size ‘rule’ for distinguishing the two Hedychrum species.

Omalus aeneus (Fabricius, 1787) Synonymy: Elampus aeneus.

There are two old records for this species: Claude Morley cites Bramford and Brandeston some time prior to 1936. There are two modern records. In 2004, Steven Falk took a specimen at the Center Parcs site in Elveden, whilst in 2011, Andy Godfrey recorded it from Thelnetham, near Diss. It attacks the nests of various members of the crabronid sub-family Pemphredoninae. This includes some widely distributed species, so it is not clear why this wasp is so scarce in Suffolk.

Omalus puncticollis (Mocsary, 1887) The sole Suffolk record for this species comes from Center Parcs, Elveden, where it was recorded by Steven Falk in 2004.

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Pseudomalus auratus (Linnaeus, 1758) Synonymy: Elampus auratus.

This is another rare species. In West Suffolk it was recorded by Perkins, at Brandon, in 1899. It then went unrecorded in this vice-county until Hawk Honey took a specimen from the Suffolk Wildlife Trust’s Lackford Lakes nature reserve in August 2018. In East Suffolk there have been a few records, largely in the last 3 years. Stuart Roberts recorded it from Tinker’s Walks, Walberswick in 1996. It has also been recorded in Ipswich (Martin Cooper, Plate 4, and David Basham), Kesgrave (Tim King) and Reydon (Alan Cornish).

Pseudomalus violaceus (Scopoli, 1763) This species is a parasitoid of the larvae of small aerial-nesting crabronid wasps including Pemphredon lugubris and Passaloecus corniger. Although these hosts are quite widely distributed across the county, there are but two records for P. violaceus. There is an unattributed 1982 record from Santon Downham, very close to the Norfolk border. In East Suffolk, M. Howe recorded it from Minsmere in 2003.

Pseudospinolia neglecta (Shuckard, 1836) Synonymy: Chrysis neglecta.

There are but two records for this wasp in Suffolk. In the east, Claude Morley recorded it from a brick pit at Frostenden in 1926, whilst in the vice-county of West Suffolk, Steven Falk recorded it at Center Parcs, Elveden, in 1998. This wasp attacks the nests of the potter wasp Odynerus, which were not recorded by Falk at Center Parcs and are rare species in Suffolk as a whole.

Trichrysis cyanea (Linnaeus, 1758) Synonymy: Chrysis cyanea.

This small, blue-green chrysid is known from numerous sites in Breckland and the coast between Aldeburgh and Walberswick. Elsewhere, it is only known from Lackford, Ipswich, Playford, Flatford Mill and Woodbridge. This distribution (largely within the sandy regions of the county) is likely to reflect recorder bias. It attacks the nests of various crabronid wasps that nest within galleries in standing dead wood and, as such, ought to be found much more widely across the county.

FAMILY DRYINIDAE These very small wasps are not often encountered during normal Hymenopterist forays with a hand net, instead being caught more usually with a sweep net or suction sampler. Nationally, there are 34 species, but the group is severely under-recorded in Suffolk and, indeed, nationally. There has been a great deal of taxonomic uncertainty regarding this family. Early workers (e.g. Kieffer & Chitty) described numerous species, often based on subtly different characters, many of which are now considered to be synonyms of another species. Morley considered these species to be a sub-family (Dryininae) within the family ‘Proctotrypidae’

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Anteon arcuatum Kieffer, 1905 Synonymy: Antaeon arcuatus and Antaeon imberbis.

Morley (1935) claimed that the sole English specimen of this species (as A. arcuatus) was found at Oulton Broad in 1922. It is now known to occur in England, Wales and Scotland. He also referred to A. imberbis having been taken from woods at Brandon and Assington. There are no modern records.

Anteon brachycerum (Dalman, 1823) Synonymy: Morley refers to ‘Antaeon brachycerus, Thoms.’, which is not a generally recognised authority for the naming of this species, although the presumed Mr Thomson may have been responsible for placing the original Dryinus brachcerus Dalman in the genus Anteon. Also now included within this name are Antaeon triareolatus Kieffer and Antaeon nigroclavatus Kieffer (mis-spelled by Morley as nigriclavatus).

Tuddenham Fen is the only location cited by Morley for A. brachcerus. Under the name A. triareolatus he states, “rarely swept in the virgin-bog of Judes Bridge, Mildenhall”, while marshes at Henstead are given for specimens recorded by Morley as A. nigriclavatus (sic). No modern records.

Anteon fulviventre (Haliday, 1828) Synonymy: Morley (1935) uses the name Antaeon parvus Kieffer and also Antaeon xanthostigmus Kieffer (actually xanthostigma at the time).

He boldly claims that this species (as A. parvus) is “very common everywhere in June-July”. A. xanthostigmus (sic) has an equally sweeping statement: “a widely distributed species in Britain: Brandon in June, etc.” leaving the reader to ponder which sites might be covered by that “etc”. There are no modern records.

Anteon gaullei Kieffer, 1905 Cryptically described by Morley as “not at all rare at Bramford, Tattingstone, Tuddenham Fen etc.”. No modern records.

Anteon infectum (Haliday, 1837) Synonymy: Morley refers to ‘Antaeon infectus Wlk.’ Which is actually a reference to what was then called Dryinus infectus Haliday in Walker, 1837. Separately, he also refers to Antaeon fusiformis Kieffer, which has now been synonymised with A. infectum. Also now included under this name is Antaeon ellimani Chitty.

Morley cites its presence (as A. infectus) in the marshes of the river Lark at Barton Mills, whilst A. ellimani was taken by someone by the name of Elliot in the woods at Barton Mills in 1916. With regard to A. fusiformis, his sole record is from hedges at Reydon. No modern records.

Anteon jurineanum Latreille, 1809 Synonymy: Morley refers to it as Antaeon barbatus Chitty, Antaeon vicinus Kieffer and A. rectus.

Morley cites Bentley Woods (as A. barbatus and A. rectus) and Tuddenham (as A. vicinus). No modern records.

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Anteon scapulare (Haliday, 1837) Synonymy: Morley refers to ‘Antaeon unicarinatus Kieffer’ but this is an invalid species name. It is possible that Morley was referring to Antaeon carinatus which is now accepted as a synonym of A. scapulare.

Under the assumed name ‘A. unicarinatus’, Morley says it was beaten from Poplars at Bentley Woods and also at Farnham. No modern records.

Anteon tripartitum Kieffer, 1905 Synonymy: Listed by Morley (1935) under the name Antaeon Kiefferi Chitty, claiming it to be a species new to science, although this was not the case.

The only reference is to its discovery in “Ipswich”, with no date or further detail.

There are no modern records.

Aphelopus melaleucus (Dalman, 1818) Synonymy: Morley (1935) mis-spells this species as melanoleucus.

“Widely distributed from Tuddenham [near Ipswich] to Monks Soham” (Morley (1935). There are no modern records.

Gonatopus albosignatus Kieffer, 1904 The sole Suffolk record comes from 1996, when it was recorded by Mike Edwards from the RSPB Minsmere reserve.

Gonatopus bicolor (Haliday, 1828) Synonymy: Morley (1935) refers to a Labeo excisus Westwood, which is probably referable to this species.

Morley (1935) gives a single location for G. bicolor: on the cliffs at Covehithe in 1926. Under the synonym Labeo excisus he gives Brandon Staunch, 31 May 1929.

No modern records.

Gonatopus clavipes (Thunberg, 1827) Synonymy: Morley (1935) lists specimens of G. pilosus Thoms. and G. sepsoides Westwood that are now known under this name.

There are two records of this species. The first dates from 1970, when the late John Felton recorded it from Southwold. More recently is a record from 1999 at Beck Row, Mildenhall, recorded by Paul Lee. Gonatopus distinctus Kieffer, 1906 A single record from 1996, recorded by Mike Edwards at the RSPB’s Minsmere reserve.

Gonatopus lunatus Klug, 1810 Synonymy: Morley recorded it under the name G. marshalli Kieffer, now included within G. lunatus.

A single modern record: Southwold in August 1970, recorded by the late John Felton. Morley recorded it in Bentley Woods on 25 July 1935.

Gonatopus striatus Kieffer, 1905 Morley (1935) cites a single observation by Chitty, of this species being found “in a sandy place near Brandon”.

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Lonchodryinus ruficornis (Dalman, 1818) Synonymy: Arthur Chitty determined that a specimen caught by Claude Morley in 1902 was new to science and he named it Antaeon morleyi in his honour. It has now been synonymised with this species. Morley (1935) refers to it as Antaeon Morleii. Six other species, A. Pyrenaicus Kieffer, A. vitellinipes Kieffer, A. curvinervis Kieffer, A. beaumnoti Chitty, A. declivis Kieffer and A. forsteri Kieffer, have also now been synonymised with L. ruficornis.

Chitty (1908) notes (of A. morleyi) that, “This species is named in honour of Mr. Claude Morley, F.E.S., &c, the learned author of ‘Ichneumonologia Britannica’, who has done so much towards the elucidation of our indigenous parasitic Hymenoptera, and who captured the only specimen I have seen of the present species by sweeping flowers of meadow-sweet at Foxhall, in Suffolk, on August 10th, 1902.” Under the names A. Pyrenaicus and A. declivis, Morley notes it from Tuddenham Fen, with records for Brandon under the names A. vitellinipes and A. curvinervis. Also found at Monk Soham by Morley, recorded under the names A. forsteri and A. beaumonti.

More recently, this was another species recorded by John Felton from Southwold in 1970. In 1982, Bill Ely recorded it three times: Wangford Warren, Cavenham Heath and Devil’s Ditch, Newmarket Heath.

FAMILY EMBOLEMIDAE There is a single species in north-west Europe. It is thought to be a parasitoid on planthoppers in the family Achilidae (Olmi, 1994).

Embolemus ruddii (Westwood, 1833) Synonymy: Embolimus Ruddii and Myrmecomorphus rufescens Westwood are both used by Morley (1935), who placed them within the sub-family Dryininae, family Proctotrypidae.

Morley speculates that Embolimus ruddii is “probably not uncommon”, although he cites but one specific locality: Tuddenham. At this time, Myrmecomorphus rufescens was considered to be a separate species and a rare one at that, with Morley noting “The sole British female is from a Barking chalk-pit”.

FAMILY BETHYLIDAE These are small, parasitoid wasps, attacking beetle or Lepidoptera larvae. Twenty-one species have been recorded in the British Isles, although some of these are restricted to the Channel Isles and others are vagrant introductions. They are another severely under-recorded group. Morley considered these species to be a sub-family (Bethylinae) within the family Proctotrypidae. He included within the Bethylinae three species in the genus Helorus, which are now considered to form their own family, Heloridae, within the super-family Proctotrupoidea. As such, these latter species fall beyond the reach of this review.

Bethylus cephalotes Foerster, 1860 Morley considered this wasp to be “abundant everywhere from March to October”. The earliest modern record comes from Southwold, where John Felton Trans. Suffolk Nat. Soc. 54 (2018)

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Bethylus fuscicornis (Jurine, 1807) Synonymy: Bethylus fulvicornis Curtis.

Morley considered this species to be “very numerous throughout the entire County”. It is another species recorded by John Felton at Southwold in 1970. This species is also known from two modern records, both in the south-east, where the author collected it from Martlesham Heath and a derelict industrial site near Sproughton.

Bethylus mandibularis (Kieffer, 1904) Morley’s claim of a male taken at Tuddenham Marshes in 1906 must be treated with some scepticism. Today, this species is only known from Spain and Italy. The ‘Fauna Europaea’ project considers its presence in Britain to be “doubtful”.

Cephalonomia formiciformis Westwood, 1833 Synonymy: Cephalonomoea formiciformis.

Morley states its occurrence at Oulton Broad, with no dates. There are no modern records.

Epyris niger Westwood, 1832 Only a single locality is known in Suffolk: Red Lodge, where it was recorded by Jon Webb of Natural England, in 2004. A record by Roger Key at the same location probably refers to the same field trip.

Goniozus claripennis (Foerster, 1851) First recorded in 1982, by Bill Ely, at Wangford Warren Woods. There have been no other records until the 2018 capture of a single specimen by the author whilst using a suction sampler on the shingle beach at Bawdsey.

SUPER-FAMILY VESPOIDEA FAMILY SAPYGIDAE This family comprises only two species in Britain, both found in Suffolk. The larvae are cleptoparasites on solitary bees of the genera Osmia and Chelostoma and hence the wasp might be encountered inspecting dead wood, wooden posts etc. where its hosts nest.

Monosapyga clavicornis (Linnaeus, 1758) Synonymy: Sapyga clavicornis.

Given that this species is known across central and southern England, it is surprising that it has not been recorded in Suffolk since 1924. Claude Morley noted it a few times: Ipswich (1898), Monk Soham (1919 and 1920) and Barton Mills (1924).

Sapyga quinquepunctata (Fabricius, 1781) This is another inexplicably rare species in the county and one that has only been recorded from East Suffolk. Aside from a few old records from Dunwich, Trans. Suffolk Nat. Soc. 54 (2018)

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Felixstowe and Copdock, it has been recorded at Reydon (2003 onwards in the garden of Alan Cornish), Tattingstone (2005, Paul Lee), Purdis Farm and Alexandra Road, Ipswich (2016, David Basham) and Ipswich Golf Club (2017, Neil Sherman).

FAMILY TIPHIIDAE This family is represented in the UK by only three species, all of which occur in Suffolk.

Methocha articulata Latreille, 1792 Synonymy: Methoca ichneumonoides.

Curiously, this wasp has, seemingly, never been recorded from West Suffolk, although it has been recorded from a handful of widely scattered sites in the east, from Purdis Heath to Walberswick. The wingless females have a rather ant-like appearance at first site. They attack the underground larvae of tiger beetles (Cicindela spp.) and the Green Tiger Beetle C. campestris is widely recorded in Breckland, making the absence of this wasp in West Suffolk more surprising.

Methocha articulata

Tiphia femorata Fabricius, 1775 This wasp is a parasitoid on scarabaeid beetle larvae, with the female burrowing down to the subterranean larva, which feeds on grass roots. Tiphia femorata is widespread in Breckland and also present in the Sandlings from Purdis Heath, Ipswich northwards to Corton Cliffs. It has also been recorded from the sandy over -burden at the Great Blakenham chalk pits.

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Tiphia minuta Vander Linden, 1827 This smaller Tiphia is rather scarcer, both in Suffolk and nationally. It is a parasitoid on the larvae of dung beetles (and possibly other species of beetle). Modern records are restricted to a few sites in the north of Breckland, plus Great Cornard, Great Blakenham and Wangford near Blythburgh.

FAMILY MUTILLIDAE Traditionally, this family comprised two species, dubbed ‘velvet-ants’ on account of their wingless and rather ant-like females. Recently, a third species (Myrmosa atra) was transferred to this family from the Tiphiidae.

Mutilla europaea Linnaeus, 1758 This is the largest species within the family and is a parasitoid in the nests of bumblebees, where the larvae attack prepupae or pupae. Its status in Suffolk is uncertain. It has only ever been recorded from two locations, all before 1936. The Rev. William Kirby noted it at Southwold prior to 1802 while, later, the Paget’s recorded it at Lound Heath. In Essex, it is quite widely if thinly spread along the coastal zone, often being found in seawall grasslands so it seems quite inexplicable that it cannot survive in adjacent parts of Suffolk. Being wingless, the females may be poor dispersers.

Myrmosa atra Panzer, 1801 Synonymy: Myrmosa melanocephala.

Females of this wasp appear similar to those of the next species on first inspection, being wingless with an orange-red thorax and dark abdomen. The orange-red segment at the front of M. atra’s abdomen distinguishes the two. It is thought to be a parasitoid on various ground-nesting crabronid wasps and halictine bees.

It is widespread in Breckland and the Sandlings, these being the areas with the most favourable soil conditions for its hosts. Other localities include Monks Eleigh (1998, Arthur Watchman), Weybread (2017, Hawk Honey), Higham (2015, Jerry Lee) and Great Blakenham (2011, Adrian Knowles).

Smicromyrme rufipes (Fabricius, 1787) Synonymy: Mutilla rufipes Latreille.

This is a Nationally Scarce species, largely restricted to south-east England. Its population at Corton is possibly the most northerly and easterly location in Britain.

This restricted distribution may be driven by climate, rather than resource availability, because it is said to attack the nests of a very wide range of Hymenoptera (crabronid wasps, pompilid wasps and halictine bees). Its Suffolk distribution is curious, with a handful of records in the north-east, south-east and north-west.

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Smicromyrme rufipes

FAMILY POMPILIDAE This family includes a large number of species, the majority of which provision for their young by capturing and storing spiders. However, species within the genus Ceropales and Evagetes have adopted a cleptoparasitic lifestyle, laying their eggs on the spider prey of other species.

Agenioideus cinctellus (Spinola, 1808) Synonymy: Pompilus cinctellus.

Recorded from all parts of the county except the far south-west, although Morley (1935) considered it to be a very rare insect, with only one locality cited.

Anoplius caviventris (Aurivillius, 1907) This species is known in the county only from a 2011 record from Hinderclay Fen, Thelnetham (A. Godfrey).

Anoplius concinnus (Dahlbom, 1845) This species only just occurs in Suffolk, with three records from sites right on the borders of Cambridgeshire and Norfolk: Herringswell (1983, G. Dicker), north of Santon Downham (1982, unknown recorder) and Flixton Pit (2017, Hawk Honey).

Anoplius infuscatus (Vander Linden, 1827) Synonymy: Pompilus chalybeatus Schiødte, 1837 This is a relatively common species on light, sandy soils, being widespread in the Brecks and coastal Sandlings. It has also been recorded along the Waveney valley Trans. Suffolk Nat. Soc. 54 (2018)

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(Flixton and Weybread, 2017, Hawk Honey) and around Great Blakenham and Needham Market.

Anoplius nigerrimus (Scopoli, 1763) Synonymy: Pompilus nigerrimus.

Known from a thin scattering of records from across the county.

Anoplius viaticus (Linnaeus, 1758) Synonymy: Pompilus viaticus.

This distinctive species is frequently encountered in sandy habitats. This is a relatively large and distinctive species that ought not to have escaped Morley’s attention. As such, his 1935 comment that it was “curiously rare”, with only one locality named, may be a true indication that this species has increased significantly in abundance since his time. Most of his specimens in the Ipswich Museum collection come from his regular forays to the New Forest in Hampshire.

Anoplius viaticus

Aporus unicolor Spinola, 1808 Synonymy: Pompilus unicolor There is only one modern record for this species: the author took a specimen from the coast at Holbrook in 2007. Claude Morley recorded it prior to 1935 at Pakefield, whilst Charles Nurse found it at Newmarket Heath in 1910. There are no Suffolk specimens in the Ipswich Museum collection.

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Arachnospila anceps (Wesmael, 1851) Synonymy: Pompilus gibbus Fabricius and P. unguicularis Thomson have both been applied to this species and also to A. trivialis, based on mis-identifications.

This is perhaps one of the most commonly encountered pompilids, in sandy habitats.

Arachnospila consobrina (Dahlbom, 1843) Synonymy: Pompilus consobrinus.

This is a rare species in Suffolk, with only three records which are widely spaced, both geographically and temporally: Tostock (1899, J. Tuck), Southwold (1970, John Felton) and Beck Row (1999, Paul Lee).

Arachnospila minutula (Dahlbom, 1842) Synonymy: Pompilus minutulus.

Thinly but widely scattered along the Sandlings, plus numerous records in Breckland.

Arachnospila spissa (Schiødte, 1837) Synonymy: Pompilus spissus.

This species is reasonably common in Breckland but is rather sparsely recorded in the south-east and east, from Higham to Walberswick.

Arachnospila trivialis (Dahlbom, 1843) Synonymy: Pompilus gibbus Fabricius and P. unguicularis Thomson have both been applied to this species and also to A. trivialis, based on mis-identifications.

Well-recorded in Breckland and known from a scatter of records in the Sandlings. A 2017 observation at Flixton (Hawk Honey) in the Waveney valley is an interesting observation away from these core areas.

Arachnospila wesmaeli (Thomson, 1870) This species has only been recorded at the Center Parcs holiday village, Elveden between 1995 and 2004 (Steven Falk). This species is said to favour nesting in loose, wind-blown sand on heaths and dunes, a habitat now lacking at Center Parcs, so its status in the county is possibly in doubt. However, given the former inland sand dunes that occurred around the Brecks, it is possible that this species has long-inhabited these parts and might still be exploiting suitable habitat elsewhere.

Auplopus carbonarius (Scopoli, 1763) This has long been considered a southern species in Britain, but a recent scatter of records across the Midlands and south Wales suggests a range expansion. This is perhaps borne out by the Suffolk data, with the first record of this species being in 2014, when the author discovered one on the inside of a window in his house.

Three days later, the author took another specimen, this time at the Suffolk Wildlife Trust’s Foxburrow Farm site north of Woodbridge. Since then, it has been recorded at Higham, East Bergholt, Flatford Mill, Shotley Gate, Rushmere Heath (Ipswich), Reydon and, in West Suffolk, from Pakenham and Lackford Lakes.

See map overleaf.

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Auplopus carbonarius

Caliadurgus fasciatellus (Spinola, 1808) Synonymy: Calicurgus hyalinatus Fabricius. The genus Calicurgus was, also used for what is now known as Cryptocheilus notatus and some Priocnemis species.

Known from a thin scatter of records in Breckland and the Sandlings, plus an old record for Assington Thicks (1902, C. Morley) and a recent sighting at East Bergholt (2015, Jerry Lee).

Ceropales maculata (Fabricius, 1775) Claude Morley noted several localities for this wasp prior to 1936 (Monk Soham, Hoxne, Farnham, Eye, Barton Mills and Badingham) but there are only three known modern records: north of Santon Downham (1982, unknown recorder), Tunstall Forest (2001, A. Knowles) and close to Henley Road, Ipswich (2018, Hawk Honey).

Cryptocheilus notatus (Rossius, 1792) This is a very restricted species in Britain, known from the far south and southwest, with currently the nearest populations to Suffolk being in the Hampshire/ Surrey border. There are two claimed records for our county: Aldringham Heath and a sandpit at Gisleham, noted by Claude Morley prior to 1936. Looking at the national distribution, these would have been notable records even in Morley’s day and their authenticity has to be questioned. There are no Suffolk specimens in the Ipswich Museum collection.

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Dipogon bifasciatus (Geoffroy in Fourcroy, 1785) Synonymy: Morley (1935) cites the name Agena hircana. The genus is a misspelling of Agenia.

This is a rare British species, with few records north of the Thames. In Suffolk, Morley claims four sightings, all prior to 1936: Bentley, Brandeston, Monk Soham and Clopton. Specimens labelled “hircana� in the Ipswich Museum are all Dipogon subintermedius, so it is doubtful whether this species has a rightful place on the Suffolk list.

Dipogon subintermedius (Magretti, 1886) This is a scarce Suffolk species. The wasp is known from three distinct areas, with a handful of records in Breckland, the south-east (Chantry Park and Bridge Wood, Ipswich, plus East Bergholt) and the north-east (Minsmere, Covehithe and Sotterley Park). A 2001 record from Mellis, near Diss (A. Jarman) is the sole record elsewhere in the county.

Dipogon subintermedius

Dipogon variegatus (Linnaeus, 1758) Thinly scattered records across the northern half of the county.

Episyron rufipes (Linnaeus, 1758) Synonymy: Pompilus rufipes.

This is a common species in Breckland and the Sandlings, with scattered records along the Waveney and Gipping valleys.

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Evagetes crassicornis (Shuckard, 1837) Synonymy: Pompilus pectinipes Lind.

This is a common species in Breckland, with a wide scatter of records across the Sandlings. There are a few records along the Waveney and Ouse valleys.

Evagetes dubius (Vander Linden, 1827) Synonymy: Pompilus bicolor Lepeletier.

This wasp is quite common across Breckland but has seemingly not been recorded anywhere else in the county.

Evagetes pectinipes (Linnaeus, 1758) Until 2007 this species was only known in Britain from the extreme eastern tip of Kent. It was then recorded in north-east Essex (Walton Naze undercliffs) – a considerable leap in terms of range expansion. The first record for Suffolk came on 6 August 2016 when Andy Jukes took a specimen from Wangford, near Blythburgh.

Only 12 days later, Ian Cheeseborough caught one on Westleton Heath. During July and August 2017, Jerry Lee recorded it several times in the Dunwich Heath area. These sandy locations might be deemed typical habitat for this species, but then, in 2018, Hawk Honey took a specimen from a roadside field on the edge of Ipswich, which is far from typical habitat. Hawk also recorded it from Sutton Heath in 2018. It was also recorded in 2018 from Purdis Heath, Ipswich (A. Knowles). This species has undergone a dramatic range expansion, nationally. Given its presumed use of Episyron rufipes nests (a common species in Suffolk) in which to lay its eggs, there should be no shortage of new habitats for it to colonise in the coming years.

Pompilus cinereus (Fabricius, 1775) Synonymy: Pompilus plumbeus.

This species has been widely recorded in the Brecks and Sandlings, with a handful of records from the Gipping and Waveney valleys.

Priocnemis agilis (Shuckard, 1837) Synonymy: Salius obtusiventris Schiødte.

This has seemingly always been a scarce insect in Suffolk. The only verified modern records are from Corton Cliffs (2007, Ivan Wright), a coast path at Holbrook (2007, A. Knowles), Kings Forest (2010, Geoff Nobes) and a meadow at East Bergholt (2015, Jerry Lee). Older records come from Tostock, Monk Soham and Santon Downham.

Priocnemis confusor Wahis, 2006 Synonymy: Until recently, this species was known as Priocnemis gracilis.

This is a rare Suffolk wasp, with records from Center Parcs, Elveden (1996, Steven Falk), Kings Forest (2012, James McGill) and Dunwich Heath (2017, Jerry Lee).

Priocnemis cordivalvata Haupt, 1927 The only record of this species in Suffolk comes from Minsmere in 1995 (Richard Wilson det. confirmed by Peter Harvey). It is a rare insect in central and eastern England, away from its stronghold in the far south-east.

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Priocnemis coriacea Dahlbom, 1843 This is another scarce species, although one that appears widely in Breckland.

Away from the north-west are records from Hadleigh, Swilland and Minsmere.

Priocnemis coriacea

Priocnemis exaltata (Fabricius, 1775) Synonymy: Salius exaltatus.

This species has a curious distribution, being scattered across the county but seemingly nowhere widespread or common.

Priocnemis fennica Haupt, 1927 This is a rare species in Suffolk, with only five known localities: Wangford Woods, Thetford; Horham, Minsmere, Higham and East Bergholt. However, this is a small species and pompilids are notoriously difficult to catch, so this species is perhaps even more prone to under-recording than many other wasps.

Priocnemis hyalinata (Fabricius, 1793) Synonymy: Salius notatulus Saunders.

Known from a handful of records scattered across Breckland, the Sandlings and the higher ground of the Stour valley at Higham and East Bergholt.

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Priocnemis exaltata

Priocnemis parvula Dahlbom, 1845 Synonymy: Salius parvulus.

Morley (1935) decided that this species was “not rare”, a situation that persists to this day. It is a typical component of heathland faunas but also occurs on other sandy sites across Breckland, the Sandlings and in the Gipping valley. A 2017 record from Weybread (Hawk Honey) is a significant outlier along the Waveney .

Priocnemis perturbator (Harris, 1780) Synonymy: Salius fuscus.

Widely recorded in Breckland and with a scatter of records in the south and east.

Priocnemis pusilla Schiødte, 1837 Synonymy: Salius pusillus.

Modern records are rather sparser than Morley’s (1935) summary as “frequent everywhere”. There is a small concentration of records in Breckland and a few further records in the south-east and east of the county.

Priocnemis schioedtei Haupt, 1927 This species has only been recorded in two limited areas: parts of Breckland, where Geoff Nobes recorded it several times during a survey project for the Forestry Commission; the Westleton/Dunwich/Walberswick complex of coastal heaths.

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Priocnemis perturbator

Priocnemis schioedtei

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Priocnemis susterai Haupt, 1927 This species is known from several records in Breckland, plus Ipswich Golf Club (Purdis Farm) and Sutton Common in the south-east.

FAMILY VESPIDAE Sub-family Eumeninae Ancistrocerus antilope (Panzer, 1798) Synonymy: Odynerus antilope.

This is a rare species in Britain. Morley (1935) only offers two locations: Ingham, recorded by Charles Nurse c. 1907 and Ashy, between Great Yarmouth and Lowestoft. The Ashby specimen is in the Morley collection at Ipswich Museum.

Ancistrocerus gazella (Panzer, 1798) Known from a thin scatter of records across the county.

Ancistrocerus nigricornis (Curtis, 1826) Synonymy: Odynerus callosus Thomson.

Morley considered this to be the “commonest of the genus” (N.B. he was working on the basis of their being eleven species in the genus Odynerus in Suffolk, at the time). It is still widely recorded in Breckland and more sparingly so in the south and east, from Tiger Hill, near Assington to Covehithe and Sotterley Park.

Ancistrocerus oviventris (Wesmael, 1836) Synonymy: Odynerus pictus Curtis.

Morley gives Dunwich, Monk Soham and Oulton Broad. The only modern record comes from 1996, at Center Parcs, Elveden (Steven Falk).

Ancistrocerus parietinus (Linnaeus, 1761) Synonymy: Odynerus parietinus.

This is a scarce species in Suffolk, with only a handful of scattered records from Dunwich, Monk Soham, Monks Eleigh, Ipswich, RAF Lakenheath and Center Parcs, Elveden.

Ancistrocerus parietum (Linnaeus, 1758) Synonymy: Odynerus parietum.

Known from a handful of sites scattered across most of the county.

Ancistrocerus scoticus (Curtis, 1826) Synonymy: Morley’s use of Odynerus trimarginatus is assumed to be based on Saunders’ 1896 book Hymenoptera Aculeata, which uses this name for A. scoticus, although A. trimarginatus is also a known synonym for A. trifasciatus.

Found throughout Britain, this is largely a coastal species, and this is certainly the case in Suffolk.

Ancistrocerus trifasciatus (Mueller, 1776) Synonymy: Odynerus trimarginatus Zetterstedt.

Reasonably widely recorded in Breckland, with a thin scatter of records across the south and east of the county. A 1982 record from Lopham Fen (Peter Yeo) is an isolated record in the Little Ouse/Waveney valleys.

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Ancistrocerus scoticus

Microdynerus exilis (Herrich-Schaeffer, 1839) This species was not recorded in Britain until 1937 and was not reliably recorded in Suffolk until 1996, when Mike Edwards took it at Tunstall Common. This remained the only record for East Suffolk until Alan Cornish’s 2018 record for Reydon, Southwold. It has been recorded from at least three locations in Breckland.

Odynerus simillimus Morawitz, F., 1867 This is arguably one of Britain’s rarest wasps, which has only ever been recorded from coastal habitats in Essex, Suffolk and Norfolk. It was feared extinct in Britain, until rediscovered in 1986. In Suffolk it has only been recorded twice: Snape Maltings, at a bank in the car park (1999, Peter Yeo); Minsmere (2001, Mike Edwards).

Odynerus spinipes (Linnaeus, 1758) This wasp is curiously scarce in Suffolk but is known from three widespread localities: Kessingland cliffs (2006, Ivan Wright); Great Blakenham (2011, A. Knowles); Orfordness (2013, Stuart Warrington).

Symmorphus bifasciatus (Linnaeus, 1761) Synonymy: Morley refers to Odynerus bifasciatus, which may be this species, although Symmorphus connexus has also been referred to by the name bifasciatus, based on a mis-identification. A more recent synonym is S. mutinensis.

Known from thinly scattered localities across much of the county.

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Odynerus spinipes

Symmorphus connexus (Curtis, 1826) Synonymy: both this and S. bifasciatus have previously been referred to as Odynerus bifasciatus.

Known from only three scattered sites in the west of the county: Ladygate Wood, Haverhill (2003, Peter Harvey); Lackford Lakes (2018, A. Knowles) and Center Parcs, Elveden (1994 and 1995, Steven Falk).

Symmorphus crassicornis (Panzer, 1798) This is a rare British species, with most records coming from Dorset, Hampshire, Surrey and Sussex. It is extremely rare in East Anglia. There are two Suffolk recorded localities. In 2003, it was recorded by Colin Plant and others near the Fairy Lake, Ickworth Park, near Bury St Edmunds. In 2014, Tim Strudwick recorded it at the RSPB’s Lakenheath Fen nature reserve.

Symmorphus gracilis (Brulle, 1832) Synonymy: Odynerus gracilis.

This species is known from a handful of thinly scattered records across the county, with the exception of the north-east.

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References Chitty, A. J. (1908). On the Proctotrypid genus Antaeon, with descriptions of new species and a table of those occurring in Britain. Entomologist’s Monthly Magazine, Vol. 54, pp 141-146 and 209-215.

Knowles, A. P. (2013). The social wasps (Vespa, Vespula and Dolichovespula, Hymenoptera: Vespidae) of Suffolk. Trans. Suffolk Nat. Soc. 49: 13-22.

Knowles, A. P. (2017). A review of the solitary bees (Hymenoptera) of Suffolk. Trans.

Suffolk Nat. Soc. 53: 1-31.

Morley, C. (1935). The Hymenoptera of Suffolk, portio prima. Trans. Suffolk Nat. Soc. 3: 17-52.

Morley, C. (1936). The Hymenoptera of Suffolk, portio secunda. Trans. Suffolk Nat. Soc. 3: 132-162.

Olmi, M. (1994). The Dryinidae and Embolemidae (Hymenoptera: Chrysidoidea) of Fennoscandia and Denmark. Fauna Entomologica Scandinavica. Vol 30. E.J. Brill, Leiden, The Netherlands.

FURTHER NOTES ON THE SOLITARY BEES (HYMENOPTERA) OF SUFFOLK ADRIAN KNOWLES Introduction This paper provides additions and addenda to my paper (Knowles, 2017) in which the solitary bee fauna of Suffolk is reviewed – the first such exercise since the mid-1930s.

Addenda Even as the previous paper was being finalised, I had been made aware of two new additions to the county list. Unfortunately, these were omitted from the 2017 review.

A third species was erroneously added to the Suffolk list, but it can be kept on the basis of a genuine record in 2018.

Colletes cunicularius (Linnaeus, 1761) In recent years, this large mining bee has been turning up in counties of central, south and east England, well away from its traditional haunts on the Welsh and Lancashire coasts. On 15 March 2017, Hawk Honey caught a male of this species, a first for the county, at the Suffolk Wildlife Trust’s nature reserve at Lackford Lakes, north of Bury St Edmunds. This was followed by an observation of a female on 28 April 2017. Numerous individuals were observed during the spring of 2018, indicating that a colony is establishing itself here.

Lasioglossum sexstrigatum (Schenk, 1870) This bee is, seemingly, a recent colonist to Britain with a few known sites in Surrey, Sussex and Kent. On 14 April 2016, David Basham took a female of this species from Lesser Celandine flowers at Purdis Heath, Ipswich. This is a first for Suffolk and for any county north of the Thames. It has been recorded as individual females in 2017 and 2018, indicating that a small colony may have established itself in the area.

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Stelis breviuscula (Nylander, 1848) Knowles (2017) announced this species as new to the Suffolk list, on the basis of an apparent record from Flatford Mill, recorded by Becky Cartwright. It came to my attention only because it had been entered onto the national internet database scheme iRecord. However, a conversation between Hawk Honey and Becky in 2018 threw doubt on this record and it now appears that this was a data input error.

However, this cleptoparasitic species can remain on the Suffolk list because Hawk Honey recorded it at Lackford Lakes nature reserve, in association with its host, the bee Heriades truncorum. A female was taken on 25 June 2018, flying around a largen wooden post where Heriades nests in large numbers.

Addition Nomada conjungens Lepeletier, 1841 This ‘cuckoo bee’ is a cleptoparasite of nests of the solitary bee Andrena proxima.

Although its host is thinly scattered across central Suffolk, its host has never been recorded in East Anglia, with most modern records coming from south of the Thames. Remarkably, in 2018 it was recorded, as new to Suffolk, twice in the space of three days. On 18 May, a male was caught from an arable field margin on an organic farm near Shimpling, West Suffolk. Then, on 21 May, a female was taken at Piper’s Vale, near Ipswich, during a training and survey exercise organised by Ipswich Parks Dept.

A. Thornhill

References Knowles, A.P. (2017). A Review of the Solitary Bees (Hymenoptera) of Suffolk. Trans.

Suffolk. Nat. Soc. 53, 1-31.

Plate 2: Ruby-tailed Wasp Chrysis ignita agg., Cavenham Heath June 2018 (p. 2).

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Plate 4: Ruby-tailed Wasp Pseudomalus auratus (female) found visiting wild flowers on the Spring Road allotments, Ipswich (TM176447) on 16 June 2016 (p. 6 & p. 28).

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