Sphaeropthalma marpesia ( Blake, 1879 )

Wilson, Joseph S., 2017, Nocturnal Velvet Ants (Hymenoptera: Mutillidae) of Joshua Tree National Park, Riverside County, California with the description of three new species, Zootaxa 4319 (2), pp. 329-367 : 355

publication ID	https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.4319.2.4
publication LSID	lsid:zoobank.org:pub:1Ecf4C4A-09Ca-42B4-A105-67Dec7863Fe5
persistent identifier	https://treatment.plazi.org/id/ED726D24-FFB1-FFD0-FF5F-FCBCFE653B86
treatment provided by	Plazi (2017-09-12 06:25:32, last updated 2017-09-15 15:19:52)
scientific name	Sphaeropthalma marpesia ( Blake, 1879 )
status

Treatment

Sphaeropthalma marpesia ( Blake, 1879)

Mutilla Marpesia Blake, 1879 . Amer. Ent. Soc., Trans. 7: 247. ♀. Syntype data: Kansas; Utah (ANSP).

Sphaerophthalma [sic.] luteola Blake, 1886. Amer. Ent. Soc., Trans. 13: 235. ♀. Syntype data: Kansas ; Utah ( ANSP). Synonymized by Krombein (1951).

Sphaeropthalma (Photopsis) imperialiformis Viereck, 1906 . Amer. Ent. Soc., Trans. 32: 189. ♂. Holotype data: Kansas, Morton Co. (SEMC). Synonymized by Pitts (2006).

Sphaeropthalma (Photopsis) imperialiformis imperialiformis (Viereck) in Schuster, 1958 . Ent. Amer. (n. s.) 37: 34. ♂. Synonymized by Pitts (2006).

Sphaeropthalma (Photopsis) imperialiformis maricopae Schuster, 1958 . Ent. Amer. (n. s.) 37: 34. ♂. Holotype data: Arizona, Phoenix (UMSP). Synonymized by Pitts (2006).

Diagnosis of male. This species can be separated from all other nocturnal species by its lack of mesosternal processes and by its coloration; the integument is black throughout except metasomal segments 3–6 are orangish and by the setal coloration of the vertex, pronotum, mesonotum and metasomal segment 2 that varies from silver to orange. The mandible is moderately dilated, distally little or scarcely wider than at tooth, the ventral basal tooth of the mandible is small, and the apex is vertical (see Pitts, 2006: Fig. 6 View FIGURES 5 – 8 ) Also, the head is quadrate posteriorly being long and parallel behind the eyes (see Pitts, 2006: Fig. 2 View FIGURES 1 – 4 ), the clypeus is deeply depressed below the dorsal mandibular margin, the sternal felt line is present, and by characteristic genitalic morphology (see Pitts 2006: Figs 14–16 View FIGURES 13 – 18 ).

Diagnosis of female. This species is easily recognized by its unique color pattern (see Pitts, 2006: Fig. 25). Other useful characters include the petiolate metasomal segment 1, the small ventral angulation located basally on the mandible, the granulate pygidium, and the presence of plumose setae especially on the fringes of the metasomal terga.

Material examined. Mutilla Marpesia Syntype data: Kansas, Type no. 4542 ( ANSP) . Sphaeropthalma (Photopsis) imperialiformis Holotype data: Kansas, Morton Co., 3200’, June 1902, F.H. Snow ( SEMC) . Sphaeropthalma (Photopsis) imperialiformis maricopae Holotype data: Arizona, Phoenix , 25 September 1935, R.H. Crandall ( UMSP) .

Distribution. USA (Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Kansas, Nevada, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Oregon, Texas, Utah, and Washington) and northern Mexico (Sonora).

Activity. This species was not collected during the course of this study.

Remarks. No specimens of this species were seen from JTNP ( Table 2 & 3), but given that it occurs all around the park and throughout the Southwest, it likely occurs at JTNP as well. Pitts (2006) associated the females of this species and discussed the taxonomy of this species, as well as other members of the S. imperialis species-group ( Pitts & Sadler 2015).

References

Blake, C. A. (1879) Catalogue of the Mutillidae of North America, with descriptions of new species. Transactions of the American Entomological Society, 7, 243 - 254.

Blake, C. A. (1886) Monograph of the Mutillidae of North America. Transactions of the American Entomological Society, 13, 179 - 286. https: // doi. org / 10.5962 / bhl. title. 60182

Krombein, K. V. (1951) Mutillidae. In: Muesebeck, C. F. W. & Krombein, K. V. (Eds.), Hymenoptera in America North of Mexico Synoptic Catalog. United States Government Printing Office, Washington, D. C., pp. 749 - 773. https: // doi. org / 10.5962 / bhl. title. 65057

Pitts, J. P. (2006) Review of the Sphaeropthalma imperialis species-group (Hymenoptera: Mutillidae), with descriptions of females and taxonomic notes. Zootaxa, 1248, 1 - 20.

Pitts, J. P. & Sadler, E. A. (2015) Description of a new species and species-group of Sphaeropthalma Blake (Hymenoptera: Mutillidae) with an updated classification of the genus. Zootaxa, 3947 (2), 282 - 288. https: // doi. org / 10.11646 / zootaxa. 3947.2.10

Schuster, R. M. (1958) A revision of the sphaeropthalmine Mutillidae of America north of Mexico. II. Entomologica Americana, 37, 1 - 130.

Viereck, H. L. (1906) Notes and descriptions of Hymenoptera from the Western United States. Transactions of the American Entomological Society, 32, 185 - 189.

Figures

FIGURES 5 – 8. Odontophotopsis odontoloxia, sp. nov., 5. habitus; 6. head, frontal view; 7. mesosternum; and 8. pygidium.

FIGURES 1 – 4. Odontophotopsis dalyi, sp. nov., 1. habitus; 2. head, frontal view; 3. mesosternum; and 4. pygidium.

FIGURES 13 – 18. Odontophotopsis dalyi, sp. nov., genitalia, 13. ventral view, 14. dorsal view; Odontophotopsis odontoloxia, sp. nov., genitalia, 15. ventral view, 16. dorsal view; and Photomorphus schoenwerthi, sp. nov., genitalia, 17. ventral view, 18. dorsal view.