Leptocybe invasa Fisher & La Salle, 2004 and Ophelimus maskelli Haliday, 1844 - two new records of gall forming Eulophidae from Malta (Hymenoptera, Chalcidoidea)

The Eulophidae (Hymenoptera, Chalcidoidea) currently accommodates more than 4,000 described species worldwide in some 300 genera (noyES, 2003). In Europe, the family is represented by about 1,100 species (GAuld & Bolton, 1988). Eleven species have previously been recorded from Malta in various scattered publications, but of these only two were reported as occurring in Malta in the Fauna Europaea database (mitroiu, 2004). The purpose of the present work is to add a further two new records of the family from Malta bringing the total number of species known from these islands to 13, and to bring together the previously recorded species in the form of a short annotated list with references. Most species of Eulophidae are primarily solitary parasitoids of eggs, larvae or pupae of various phytophagous insects. Other species are known to be gall-formers and are mainly restricted to two groups, Ophelimini and Tetrastichinae (lA SAllE, 2005). The Ophelimini is a small tribe with species native to Australia and currently accommodates two genera: Australsecodes and Ophelimus. The latter genus contains some 50 described species, most of which seem to be associated with plant galls. Species within the subfamily Tetrastichinae exhibit a wide range of biology from parasitoids of a wide range of insects, spider egg sacks, mites and nematodes in galls (lA SAllE, 1994) to phytophagous species including some true gall inducers (lA SAllE, 2005). No species from these two groups were previously reported as occurring in Malta even though the Tetrastichinae are so numerous and widespread that several species are expected to occur.