Application of geometric morphometric analyses to confirm two new species of Karatavitidae (Hymenoptera: Karatavitoidea) from northeastern China

SHIH, M.J.H., LI, L.F. & REN, D., April 2017. Application of geometric morphometric analyses to confirm two new species of Karatavitidae (Hymenoptera:Karatavitoidea) from northeastern China. Alcheringa 41, 499–508. ISSN 0311-5518

Two new species, Praeratavites rasnitsyni and Karatavites ningchengensis in the wasp family Karatavitidae, are described and illustrated. These specimens were collected from the uppermost Middle Jurassic Jiulongshan Formation at Daohugou Village in Inner Mongolia, China. Key venation characters, as measured by relative positions or length ratios, are summarized for all documented species of Karatavites and Praeratavites to facilitate morphological comparisons and assess whether the studied specimens are referable to new species. In addition, geometric morphometric analyses were conducted to confirm the distinction of the new species, which add to the diversity of these genera in the Middle Jurassic.

Matthew J.H. Shih* mpshih88@gmail.com] Union County Magnet High School, Scotch Plains, NJ 07076, USA; Longfeng Li fenger4499@163.com] and Dong Ren rendong@mail.cnu.edu.cn] College of Life Sciences, Capital Normal University, 105 Xisanhuanbeilu, Haidian District, Beijing 100048, PR China. *Also affiliated with: Department of Paleobiology, National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC 20013, USA.