Bidecoloratilla chiesi (Spinola, 1839) Spinola, 1839

Turrisi, Giuseppe Fabrizio, Palmerini, Maurizio Matteini & Brothers, Denis J., 2015, Systematic revision and phylogeny of the genera Blakeius Ashmead, 1903 and Liomutilla André, 1907, with description of two new genera (Hymenoptera: Mutillidae, Myrmillinae), Zootaxa 4010 (1), pp. 1-78 : 37-43

Bidecoloratilla chiesi (Spinola, 1839) , comb. nov.

( Figs 18–21 )

Mutilla Chiesi Spinola, 1839: 457 (♀); Smith 1855: 11 (♀); Morawitz 1865: 125 (♀); Sichel & Radozskowski 1869 –1870: 156, 217 (♀) (key, redescription).

Mutilla diophthalma A. Costa, 1882: 37 (♀). Junior subjective synonym according to Costa 1887: 158.

Pseudomutilla Chiesi : A. Costa 1887: 108 (♂, ♀).

Mutilla (Myrmilla) Chiesii [sic]: André 1901a: 201, 214 (♂, ♀).

Myrmilla Chiesii [sic]: André 1902: 25 (♀); Mantero 1909: 66 (♂, ♀); Berland 1925: 319 (♂, ♀); Giner Marí 1944: 58 (♂, ♀); Invrea 1955a: 101 (♂, ♀).

Myrmilla (Bisigilla) Chiesii [sic]: Invrea 1955b: 235 (commented).

Bisigilla Chiesii [sic]: Invrea 1964: 77 (♂, ♀).

Bisigilla chiesi: Kusdas 1974: 156 (♀).

Bisigilla chiesii [sic]: Matteini Palmerini 1992: 198 (♂, ♀).

Blakeius chiesi: Lelej 2002: 30 (catalogued); Koçak & Kemal (2008): 11 (listed); Koçak & Kemal (2009): 20 (listed).

Blakeius chiesi chiesi: Lo Cascio & Romano 2004: 229 (♂, ♀); Pagliano & Strumia 2007: 47 (♂, ♀).

Type locality. “ Corse ” ( France).

Type material. According to Spinola (1839), Invrea (1955a) and Casolari & Casolari Moreno (1980) the holotype is a ♀ from Corse, belonging to the collection of Massimiliano Spinola. Recently, Pagliano (2005: 282 and fig. 2) did not recognized the type specimen in this collection, and in the photograph of the box where it should be stored its space appears empty; however, a label clearly indicates that the specimen was on loan at the time of examination by Pagliano (2005). The question has been clarified through a later direct check of the collection by G. Pagliano (2013, pers. comm.), who informed us that the specimen had been returned and is now properly stored in box No. 60 of the Spinola collection, labelled: “ Myrmilla chiesii sp. / Holotype M. chiesi Spinola teste Petersen 1987 / Myrmilla chiesii (Spinola) B. Petersen det. 1987” ( MRSN). This specimen is currently not available and it was not possible to examine it directly.

Additional material examined. FRANCE: 2♂, Corse, Casta, Campu Castingu, 400 m, 30.vii. [19]81, A. Sette [leg.] ( MRSN); 1♀, Corse [without other data], Coll. Ernest André, 1914 ( MNHN); 1♀, Corse, Bonifacio, 4.vi. [18]98, Ferton [leg.], Coll. Ernest André, 1914 ( MNHN); 1♀, same data except 9.vi. [18]95 ( MNHN); 1♀, same locality, Ferton [leg.], Coll. Ernest André, 1914 ( MNHN). ITALY: 1♀, Sardinia, Olbia, 12.vi.1952, L. Ceresa leg. ( MSNG); 1♀, same locality, vi.[19]79, R. Mourglia leg. / Bisigilla c. chiesii ( Spin.) , Pagliano det., [19]80 ( IBSS); 1♀, Sardinia, Isola Asinara, vi.1903 ( MSNG); 1♀, Sardinia, Budduso battage [Buddusò, Olbia-Tempio province], 31.v.1972, Casevitz-Weulerse leg. ( MNHN); 4♂, same data except vii.1903 ( MSNG); 1♀, 3♂, same data except viii.1903, S. Folchini leg. ( MSNG); 1♂, same data except ix.1903 ( MSNG); 1♀, 1♂, Sardinia, Cagliari, S. Antioco, 5–28.vii.1987, R. Mourglia leg. ( UCTC); 4♀, Sardegna, Olbia, Porto Rotondo, 24.iv.1984, M. Matteini Palmerini leg. ( MPCR); 1♀, same data except 26.iv.1984 ( MPCR); 3♀, Sardinia, Olbia-Tempio, Aglientu, Serra Tamburu, 15–31.vii.1986, M. Matteini Palmerini leg. ( MPCR). Material without geographic data: 1♀, R. Du Buysson, Coll. Ernest André, 1914 ( MNHN).

Redescription. ♀ ( Italy: Sardinia, Cagliari). Length: 4.9 mm. Colour. Head dark reddish brown with wide and sharply defined whitish spot of recumbent setae on vertex, moderately dense recumbent blackish setae on frons, otherwise light brownish, and scattered scattered light brownish setae on lateral parts; antennal rim (tubercle) light reddish orange; clypeus light reddish orange with apical lateral tooth-like process darker; mandible light reddish orange with inner margin darker and apex blackish; antenna light reddish orange; mesosoma entirely light reddish orange; legs entirely light reddish orange; metasoma blackish with moderately dense, long, mixed erect and recumbent whitish and blackish setae; T2 with two round wide cuticular light yellow spots, very close to anterior margin, diameter of each spot more than their distance from each other; T3 and T4 with broad whitish pubescent band, entire. Head dull, with coarse, deep and very dense punctures (distance between punctures less than 0.5 × puncture diameter), less dense on frons; head width/length: 1.09; head width/pronotum width: 1.24; genal area (dorsal view) moderately long, with margin square toward occiput; gena (lateral view) with lower half slightly concave, angulate, with weak denticle; gena length/eye length: 1.27; frontal carina not touching inner margin of eye; antennal rim well exposed, recognizable in dorsal view; supra-antennal tooth absent; clypeus triangle shaped, moderately wide (axis of lateral process about at level of antennal insertion), prominent dorsally, with anterior margin weakly concave with developed acute denticle laterally; postgena (behind oral fossa) weakly concave; oral fossa long (width less than length); mandible tridentate, without inner basal tooth, inner apical tooth equal in size to mid apical tooth; ratios A2:A3:A4 = 5:7:4. Mesosoma length/width: 1.4; coarsely punctate dorsally and laterally on propodeum, remaining side polished and shiny; humeral angle square, round, with epomial carina very weak, far from pronotal spiracle; fore coxa slender, apex bearing acute ventral denticle; mid and hind tibia with three dorsal pre-apical spinesarranged in single row. Metasoma ovoidal, slender, weakly shiny, punctate, punctures very dense and mostly fine to very coarse (on cuticular spots); T2 1.18 × as wide as long; S6 flat.

♂ ( Italy: Sardinia, Cagliari). Length: 5.4 mm. Colour. Head blackish to dark reddish brown with dense mixed erect and recumbent setae, blackish on dorsal areas, whitish on clypeus, mandible, antenna and ventral area; antennal rim (tubercle) light reddish orange; clypeus light reddish orange; mandible light reddish orange with inner margin darker and apex blackish; antenna with A1 and A2 light reddish orange, remaining part much darker; mesosoma entirely light reddish orange; legs entirely light reddisg orange; metasoma blackish with moderately dense, long, mixed erect and recumbent whitish and blackish setae; T2 with two round wide cuticular light yellow spots, very close to anterior margin, diameter of each spot more than their distance; T3 and T4 with broad whitish pubescent band, entire. Head dull, with moderately coarse to coarse, deep and very dense punctures (distance between punctures less than 0.5 × puncture diameter); head width/length: 1.17; head width/pronotum width: 1.29; genal area (dorsal view) moderately long, margin slightly convergent and square toward occiput; gena (lateral view) convex, not angulate, without denticle; gena length/eye length: 1.36; longitudinal frontal furrow absent; antennal rim well exposed, recognizable in dorsal view; clypeus triangle shaped, moderately wide (axis of lateral processes about at level of antennal insertion), regularly convex dorsally, anterior margin fairly concave with a weak denticle laterally; ocelli well developed, distance between anterior and posterior ocelli equal than distance between posterior ocelli; OOL:POL = 1.12:1.00; postgena (behind oral fossa) weakly concave; oral fossa long (width less than length); mandible tridentate, with wide and prominent inner basal tooth, slightly larger than inner apical tooth; ratios A2:A3:A4 = 5:9:7. Mesosoma length/width: 1.8; coarsely punctate dorsally, except propodeum, coarsely areolate-rugose, mesopleuron concave, shiny, mostly polished to punctate; humeral angle angulate, square; sutures of mesoscutum reduced but distinct; mesoscutum flat; mesoscutellum weakly defined, flat; propodeum (dorsal view) fairly more than pronotum width; tegula strongly reduced weakly recognizable; fore and hind wings completely absent; fore coxa slender; mid and hind tibia without pre-apical spines. Metasoma ovoidal, slender, dull, punctate, punctures very dense, mostly fine to coarse (on cuticular spots); T2 1.23 × as wide as long; S2 with well raised curved, acute tooth-like process in middle,on ventral surface; S8 elongate with sides strongly convergent toward apex, distal margin emarginated medially, length/width: 1.43, with large and raised tooth-like process on ventral surface; genital capsule: paramere harpe slightly curved apically; cuspis of volsella stout, shieldshaped, slightly pointed, strongly convex, ending below mid length of paramere harpe, without longitudinal carina; digitus of volsella equal in length to cuspis; midventral process of penis valve short and almost straight.

Intraspecific variation. Examined 19♀, 11♂. Female. Length: 3.8–6.7 mm; the colour is almost constant, the cuticular spots on T2 vary very slightly in size, their colour is light yellow in most specimens, but in a few specimens it is paler. Male. Length: 4.2–6.9 mm; as for the female, the colour is almost constant and the cuticular spots on T2 vary very slightly in size, their colour is light yellow in most specimens, but in a few specimens it is paler.

Distribution. Europe: France ( Corsica), Italy (Sardinia, including Sant’Antioco Island) ( Fig. 37 ).

Remarks. The correct spelling of the specific name is “ chiesi ”, as originally given by Spinola (1839: 457) and correctly reported by Lelej (2002), Lo Cascio & Romano (2004) and Pagliano & Strumia (2007), and not “ chiesii ” as sustained by Invrea (1955a, 1964).

Based on our data, the species appears to be restricted to the Sardo-Corsican complex. The species was recorded extensively for North Africa and Asia (including Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Egypt and Arabia) by earlier authors, e.g., Spinola (1838: 457), Sichel & Radozskowski (1869–1870: 217) and André (1902: 25, 1910: 42), and recently by Pagliano & Strumia (2007: 47), as well as for the Iberian Peninsula ( Pagliano & Strumia 2007: 47). Moreover, we have found two females labelled “Jéricho”, one belonging to the R. Du Buysson collection and the other to the Ernest André collection (both at MNHN); that locality should refer to Jericho, near the Jordan river in the West Bank, but we cannot confirm the presence of this species in that territory based on further material examined. In our opinion, all these records require careful confirmation because many other taxa were included within Bid. chiesi , especially by earlier authors (e.g., Bid. iberica , Bid. leopoldina and Bid. negrei ). According to Schembri (1983) and Lo Cascio & Romano (2004), the record from Malta ( Valletta 1971) is also doubtful as a possible misidentification for other taxa.

Biology. Based on the material examined, the species was observed from April to September (female) and July to September (male).

Figures

FIGURE 18. Bidecoloratilla chiesi, habitus in dorsal and lateral views: (A – B) ♀; (C – D) ♂. Scale bars = 1.0 mm.

FIGURE 19. Bidecoloratilla chiesi, ♀ (A – E) and ♂ (F – J): (A, F) head, dorsal view; (B, G) head, lateral view; (C, H) head, frontal view; (D, I) mandible; (E, J) clypeus. Scale bars = 0.5 mm.

FIGURE 37. Distributions of species of Bidecoloratilla and Liomutilla, according to the material examined and selected and checked literature data.