HYMENOPTERA > APOCRITA | Parasitica > Ichneumonidae > Banchinae > Glyptini

Banchinae is a relatively large subfamily represented in Britain by around 140 species in 12 genera that are separated into three tribes Atrophini, Banchini and Glyptini. They're typically black-bodied wasps, or black with an extensively red metasoma, although a few such as Banchus volutatorius have yellow stripes or markings.

Although it was only a few years ago, the individual featured here was one of the very first ichneumon wasps that I'd ever photographed so, naturally, after receiving confirmation from an expert on the British Ichneumonoidea FB group that it was almost certainly Glypta sp., I wanted to know how members of the subfamily could be distinguished. Apparently, it's easy, because all you have to look for is "a propodeum and metapleuron where the submetapleural carina is strongly expanded anteriorly and, on the propodeum, dorsal carinae are mostly missing with the posterior transverse carina prominent and strongly arched".

Fortunately, I've since found an abridged translated description that simply confirms that these species have a non-petiolate abdomen, or to be more precise a non-petiolate first metasomal segment.

A further useful observation, is that females, specifically of the Atrophini and Glyptini tribes, typically have long notched ovipositors, whereas Banchini invariably have short ovipositors.

All banchines that have known host associations are koinobiont endoparasitoids of Lepidoptera larvae with Glyptini species primarily associated with tortricid moths that develop in leaf-rolls, flower-heads, roots or other concealed places where a long ovipositor is needed to reach the larvae.

Glypta is the second largest genus after Lissonota with about 30 recognised species. As far as I'm aware, identification is not possible from photos. The most frequently recorded are Glypta elongata, Glypta ceratites, Glypta bifoveolata and Glypta mensurator - all with around thirty-five to fifty confirmed records at the time of this update, but with only three from Dorset. However, the next species on the NBN Atlas database is Glypta woerzi with thirty records, which are all from Dorset, yet I'm pretty sure the individual pictured below is not that species.  

Updated, March 25 (v.2)