Paramblynotus

Medium-sized to very small cynipoids. Very small species look superficially like cynipids, but careful attention to the relative size of the metasomal terga will help separate Paramblynotus from cynipids. Some superficially resemble figitids, especially Thrasorinae (not found in Africa), but can be separated from the latter by having a deeply foveate pronotum and mesoscutum, as well as by the diagnostic liopterid metasomal tergal arrangement with an enlarged sixth abdominal tergum (Figs 8A, 13A). Within Afrotropical Liopteridae, Paramblynotus can be distinguished by lacking any scutellar armament, by the lack of any sort of lobe at the base of the tarsal claws, and by the presence of an axillula (= auricula) on the side of the scutellum (Fig. 28C). Two apomorphic characters were proposed by Ronquist (1995) to circumscribe the genus: a well-defined and evenly curved ventral margin to the mesopleural triangle, and the female abdominal tergum six expanded to form the largest tergite in dorsal view. The Paramblynotus yangambicolus species-group has a less well-defined mesopleural triangle ventral margin, which is regarded by Liu et al. (2007) as a reversal, since this species-group is deeply nested within the Paramblynotus clade, and because an irregularly defined margin is a basal character state within the Cynipoidea (Liu et al. 2007).

The genus is represented in all biogeographical regions except for the Western Palaearctic and Australia (Liu et al. 2007; Ronquist 1995). Three species-groups are present in the Afrotropical region: the Paramblynotus trisetosus and Paramblynotus yangambicolus species-groups (two of the seven species-groups recognized by Liu et al. 2007), as well as the new species-group Paramblynotus seyrigi erected here, which are all endemic to the Afrotropical region.

Medium-sized to very small cynipoids. Very small species look superficially like cynipids, but careful attention to the relative size of the metasomal terga will help separate Paramblynotus from cynipids. Some superficially resemble figitids, especially Thrasorinae (not found in Africa), but can be separated from the latter by having a deeply foveate pronotum and mesoscutum, as well as by the diagnostic liopterid metasomal tergal arrangement with an enlarged sixth abdominal tergum (Figs 8A, 13A). Within Afrotropical Liopteridae, Paramblynotus can be distinguished by lacking any scutellar armament, by the lack of any sort of lobe at the base of the tarsal claws, and by the presence of an axillula (= auricula) on the side of the scutellum (Fig. 28C). Two apomorphic characters were proposed by Ronquist (1995) to circumscribe the genus: a well-defined and evenly curved ventral margin to the mesopleural triangle, and the female abdominal tergum six expanded to form the largest tergite in dorsal view. The Paramblynotus yangambicolus species-group has a less well-defined mesopleural triangle ventral margin, which is regarded by Liu et al. (2007) as a reversal, since this species-group is deeply nested within the Paramblynotus clade, and because an irregularly defined margin is a basal character state within the Cynipoidea (Liu et al. 2007).

The genus is represented in all biogeographical regions except for the Western Palaearctic and Australia (Liu et al. 2007; Ronquist 1995). Three species-groups are present in the Afrotropical region: the Paramblynotus trisetosus and Paramblynotus yangambicolus species-groups (two of the seven species-groups recognized by Liu et al. 2007), as well as the new species-group Paramblynotus seyrigi erected here, which are all endemic to the Afrotropical region.