Accepted by J. Jennings: 3 May 2011; published: 27 May 2011 ZOOTAXA ISSN 1175-5326 (print edition) ISSN 1175-5334 (online edition) Copyright © 2011 · Magnolia Press Zootaxa 2895: 35–46 (2011) www.mapress.com/ zootaxa/ Article 35 Description of two new Asian Pristaulacus Kieffer 1900 (Hymenoptera: Aulacidae) GIUSEPPE FABRIZIO TURRISI 1, 3 & KYOHEI WATANABE 2 1 University of Catania, CUTGANA, Nature Reserves Management, Laboratorio Naturalistico Ambientale “Natura & Scienza via Ter- zora 8, I–95027, San Gregorio di Catania, Catania, Italy 2 Laboratory of Insect Science, Graduate School of Agricultural Science, Kobe University, Rokkodaicho 1-1, Nada, Kobe, Hyogo 657– 8501, Japan 3 Corresponding author. E-mail: turrisifabrizio@yahoo.it Abstract Two Aulacidae from Asia, Pristaulacus japonicus Turrisi & Watanabe, sp.n. (Japan) and Pristaulacus takakuwai Turrisi & Watanabe, sp.n. (Thailand), are described and illustrated. The former species is very similar to the Palearctic Pristaul- acus gibbator (Thunberg 1822) and is recognized by the different sculpturing of the upper part of the meso- and metapleu- ra, slightly longer petiole, longer ovipositor, and several features of the male genital capsule, e.g., the shape of the apex of the paramere, lamina volsellaris and penis valve. The latter species is not obviously allied to any other described Oriental Pristaulacus and is recognized by the combination of the following characters: colour pattern, with setae of the body gold- en, wings yellowish hyaline, fore wing with a moderately wide substigmal brown spot and apex infuscated, hind leg most- ly black to black-brown, shape of the head, with temple well developed, and ovipositor relatively short, 0.9× fore wing length. Images of both treated species are freely available at the web site: http://morphbank.net. Key words: Hymenoptera, Evanioidea, Aulacidae, Pristaulacus, new species, Japan, Thailand Introduction Aulacidae comprises 240 extant species belonging to two genera, Aulacus Jurine 1807, with 76 species, and Pris- taulacus Kieffer 1900 (including the former Panaulix Benoit 1984), with 164 species (Turrisi et al. 2009; Turrisi & Konishi 2011; Turrisi & Smith 2011). Both genera are represented in all zoogeographic regions, except Antarctica, and Aulacus is not known from Afrotropics (Kieffer 1912; Hedicke 1939; Smith 2001; Turrisi et al. 2009). Aulacidae are koinobiont endoparasitoids of wood-boring larvae of Hymenoptera and Coleoptera (Skinner & Thompson 1960; Jennings & Austin 2004). Hosts are larval Xiphydriidae (Hymenoptera), Buprestidae (Coleoptera) and, more frequently, Cerambycidae (Coleoptera) (Smith 2001; Jennings & Austin 2004; Turrisi & Vilhelmsen 2010). In this paper, we describe and illustrate two new species, one from Japan and the other from Thailand, and compare them with allied species. This study is part of an ongoing broader project on Asian Aulacidae, especially the Oriental Region (Turrisi 2005, 2007; Turrisi & Konishi 2011; Turrisi & Smith 2011). Material and methods This study is based on examination of recently collected material, some of which were collected around trees. Depositories of new species are: TUAE Entomological Laboratory, Tokyo University of Agriculture, Faculty of Agriculture, Tokyo, Japan (Prof. Dr Toshiharu Mita).