CHROMOSOMES OF TWO PODAGRION SPECIES (HYMENOPTERA, CHALCIDOIDEA, TORYMIDAE) AND THE EVOLUTION OF HIGH CHROMOSOME NUMBERS IN CHALCIDOIDEA

Karyotypes of two species of Podagrion are studied for the first time. Chromosome numbers with n = 10 found in this species are the highest records for the family Torymidae. This unique karyotypes are supposed to be derived by centric fission from the ancestral karyotype of the family with n = 6. This finding allows the analysis of some aspects of karyotype evolution in Chalcidoidea, a superfamily of Hymenoptera characterized by low chromosome numbers (usually n = 5 - 6).