Ceraturgus (Ceraturgus) cruciatus (Say)

Barnes, Jeffrey K., 2008, Review of the genus Ceraturgus Wiedemann (Diptera: Asilidae) in North America north of Mexico, Zootaxa 1766, pp. 1-45 : 16-19

Ceraturgus (Ceraturgus) cruciatus (Say)

( FIGS 1 E, 1F, 2C, 5)

Dasypogon cruciatus Say, 1823: 52 .

Ceraturgus cruciatus: Brauer 1883: 56 .

Type material. In his original description, Say (1823) simply stated, “Inhabits Arkansa.” He did not elaborate on how many specimens he worked with, or what sex he saw. Osten Sacken (1878) indicated that the type was a female. According to Back (1909), the type is lost.

Additional material examined. UNITED STATES. ILLINOIS. Coles County: Charleston, May 1916, ɗ, INHS.

IOWA. Delaware County: Robinson, 15–24 July, ɗ, N. K. Bigelow, CNC; 22 June 1924, Ψ, N. K. Bigelow, CNC. Story County: Ames, 1 July 1923, Ψ, CNC; 26 June 1925, Ψ, P. Spong, KSUC; 14 July 1931, Ψ, H. A. Scullen, CAS.

KANSAS. Ellis County: Fort Hays, 20 June 1871, Ψ, J. A. Allen, MCZ. Norton County: 5 July 1925, 3 ɗ, H. J. Grady, CNC. Scott County: 19 June 1925, Ψ, H. Deay, CAS; 24 June 1925, 2 ɗ, 3 Ψ, H. Deay, SEMC; 25 June 1925, Ψ, R. H. Beamer, CNC; 25 June 1925, 7 ɗ, 2 Ψ, R. H. Beamer, CAS; 25 June 1925, ɗ, H. J. Grady, WSU; 25 June 1925, Ψ, R. H. Beamer, TAMU. Sumner County: 1189 ft., 1916, Ψ, R. H. Beamer, WSU.

MINNESOTA. Clay County: Felton Prairie, 47°03'37"N 96°26'11"W, 17 July 1971, ɗ, T. L. McCabe, NYSM. Goodhue County: E. Frontenac, Lake Pepin, 29 May 1941, ɗ, USNM. Houston County: Winnebago Creek Valley, 3–4 mi. NE of Eitzen, 31 May 1941, Ψ, E. L. Dery, UMSP.

MISSOURI. Laclede County: Mark Twain National, Forest, Gasconade River, Rt. 32, 1 mi. E of Falcon, 25 June 1989, Ψ, B. Kondratieff & M. Harris, CSUC.

NEBRASKA. Douglas County: Omaha, 17 June 1923, 5 Ψ, R. A. Leussler, CAS; 17 June 1923, 2 Ψ, ɗ, R. A. Leussler, EMEC.

OKLAHOMA. Pushmataha County: Tuskahoma, 23 May 1928, ɗ, L. A. Stephenson, CAS.

WISCONSIN. Crawford County: Gays Mills, 23 June 1942, ɗ, IRCW. Dane County: 4 July 1917, Ψ, W. S. Marshall, IRCW; 7 July 1917, Ψ, W. S. Marshall, IRCW; 9 June 1952, Ψ, J. T. Medler, IRCW; 21 June 1981, Ψ, W. Gould, IRCW; Madison, 6 June 1932, ɗ, CAS; June 1934, ɗ, Ψ, IRCW; 13 June 1934, Ψ, C. L. Fluke, CAS; 16 June 1949, ɗ, 2 Ψ, W. J. Hanson, EMUS. Dodge County: Beaver Dam, 30 June 1909, Ψ, W. E. Snyder, ANSP. Iowa County: Rt. 23, 1 mi. from Governor Dodge State Park, 26 June 1971, Ψ [pinned with a pentatomid], L. J. Baker, ESUW. Sauk County: 3 mi. SE of Sauk City, 13 June 1962, Ψ, G. Lachmund, UGCA; Sauk Marsh, 25 June 1962, ɗ, G. Lachmund, UGCA.

Male. Body length: 16.1–20.5 mm (mean ± S.D.: 18.1 ± 1.5; N = 10).

Head. Width 1.5 times eye height. Face white tomentose, with mystax of long sordid white setae confined to lower third; upper face with shorter white setae almost reaching to antennal bases. Frons mostly white pollinose, covered with short, thin, white setae, except along midline. Vertex, including ocellar tubercle, shining dark brown, except for narrow white pollinose band along inner compound eye margins. Postcranium dark brown in ground color, broadly white pollinose. Gena shining brown, with sparse white pollen. Ocellar triangle tuberculate, with about 12–16 long white setae. Postocular setae white, many with proclinate apices. Postgena and stipes with dense vestiture of long, slender, apically crinkled, sordid white hair-like setae. Proboscis brown, laterally compressed, about 4.1 times as long as deep, deepest near base, tapered to rounded apex. Palpal segments about equal in length, dark brown, both with long, sordid white hair-like setae. Antenna 5.1–5.3 mm long; scape shining dark brown, with pale lateral setae along entire length; pedicel dull brown, with pale dorsolateral and ventrolateral setae at apex; flagellomeres dull black; antennomere:scape ratios 1.0:0.9:3.4:0.5:3.3.

Thorax. Cervical sclerites dark brown in ground color, thinly golden pollinose, with dense vestiture of long, slender, apically crinkled, white hair-like setae. Pronotum with white pollen heaviest on antepronotum, with dense pile of long, slender, apically crinkled, white setae covering antepronotum and with lateral patch of shorter, straighter, paler setae on postpronotum; postpronotal lobe yellowish brown or reddish brown in ground color, thickly white pollinose anteriorly, covered with long, slender, erect pale setae. Propleuron white pollinose, with dense vestiture of long, declinate, pale hair-like setae on proepisternum and reclinate hair-like setae on anterior portion of proepimeron. Prosternum sparsely white pollinose, lacking setae. Scutum black in ground color, with broad, white pollinose lateral and posterior band extending from postpronotal lobe to postalar lobe and across prescutellar edge of scutum, narrowed or divided at prescutellar edge; with central dull dark vitta extending from pronotum nearly to scutellum, divided by narrow brown or pale pollinose vitta along midline, flanked by pale pollinose bands extending and tapering from anterior end of scutum to transverse suture and small pale pollinose patches at level of transverse suture; with pair of broad posterolateral dull black bare patches, divided by transverse suture, reaching from behind postpronotal lobes almost to scutellum; dull black areas of scutum mostly devoid of vestiture of short or long setae, except for patch of long hair-like setae between transverse suture and scutellum; pollinose areas of scutum with vestiture of shorter, hair-like setae; lateral margin of scutum, in addition to several weaker setae, with 2–4 strong, pale presutural setae and 6–8 strong, pale postsutural, supra-alar setae. Postalar callus mostly pale pollinose with short, pale hair-like setae laterally and long, strong, pale reclinate setae posteriorly. Scutellum black in ground color, white pollinose posteriorly on disc, devoid of strong, marginal setae, with several pale hair-like setae on disc and margin; some marginal hair-like setae equal in length to length of scutellum. Mediotergite shining dark brown; anatergite heavily white pollinose; katatergite heavily white pollinose, with fan of long, slender, apically crinkled, pale hair-like setae. Most mesopleural sclerites at least partly white pollinose, but pollen sparse or lacking on most of lower anepisternum, most of lower katepisternum, lower anepimeron, and meron, these areas appearing shining dark brown. Posterior half of anepisternum covered with long, fine, pale, apically crinkled hair-like setae; dorsal setae declinate, ventral setae reclinate. Anterior basalare brown; posterior basalare white pollinose. Katepisternum with small dorsal patch of fine, pale hair-like setae. Anepimeron, katepimeron, and meron lacking setae. Basal swelling of pleural wing process white pollinose. Subalar sclerite brown. Metepisternum and metepimeron white pollinose; metepimeron with long, fine, apically crinkled, pale hair-like setae.

Legs. Coxae white pollinose. Prothoracic and mesothoracic coxae densely covered with long, slender, pale hair-like setae on anterior and lateral surfaces. Metathoracic coxa with similar hair-like setae anteroventrally and posterolaterally. All femora shining yellowish brown or reddish brown, often somewhat lighter below, usually slightly darker than tibiae and tarsi, with circlets of stout setae near apex; prothoracic femur lacking stout seta anteriorly on basal half; mesothoracic femur with 1–2 stout, pale setae anteriorly on basal half; metathoracic femur with anterior row of 4–5 pale bristles. Tibiae and tarsomeres mostly yellowish brown; apical tarsomeres and sometime metathoracic tibia brown distally. Prothoracic tibia with anterodorsal and posterodorsal row of short pale setae and posteroventral row of long, pale, hair-like setae; mesothoracic tibia with anterodorsal, anteroventral, and posteroventral rows of long pale setae and posterodorsal row of short, pale setae; metathoracic tibia with dorsal and anterior rows of short pale setae and ventral row of long, pale setae. Length of first tarsomere longer than or equal to length of second and third combined. All claws black with golden brown base. Prothoracic pulvilli brown; mesothoracic and metathoracic pulvilli yellow.

Wing ( FIG. 1 E). 12.7–15.5 mm long (mean ± S.D.: 13.9 ± 1.1; N = 9). Membrane usually hyaline apically; lightly infuscated in cells cu p, and a1, most heavily infuscated in cells c and sc, br, bm, at base of cells r1 and r2+3, and around crossvein r-m. Halter with stem and knob brown or yellowish brown.

Abdomen. Tergites 1–6 shining black in ground color, with broad posterior white pollinose transverse band; each pollinose band mostly uniform in width. Tergite 1 with many long pale setae laterally. Tergites 2–6 with shorter pale hair-like setae. Sternites 2–6 almost completely white pollinose, with some long, slender, apically crinkled, white hair-like setae, especially dense on sternites 5–6. Terminalia shining brown, with fans of long, sordid white hair-like setae; gonocoxite and gonostylus as in FIG. 2 C.

Female. Similar to male.

Body length: 15.3–21.1 mm (mean ± S.D.: 19.6 ± 1.6; N = 11).

Head. Width 1.5–1.6 times eye height. Frons mostly pale yellow pollinose, shining dark brown at midline only. Antenna 6.1 mm long;.antennomere:scape ratios: 1.0:0.8:3.4:0.6:3.3.

Thorax. Scutellum with marginal hair-like setae shorter than length of scutellum.

Wing ( FIG. 1 F). 13.7–17.4 mm long (mean ± S.D.: 16.1 ± 1.0; N = 11). Membrane more extensively infuscated than in male; lightly infuscated apically and posteriorly, most darkly infuscated in cells c, sc, br, bm, bases of r1 and r2+3, and around crossvein r-m.

Legs. Femora usually uniformly yellowish brown to reddish brown, rarely with dorsal side darker. All tibiae, tarsi, and pulvilli yellow.

Abdomen. Tergites 1–6 shining dark brown to black in ground color; tergites 7–8 shining reddish brown in ground color. Tergites 1–7 with posterior pale yellow pollinose transverse band. Sternite 2 completely pale yellow pollinose; sternites 3–7 shining brown or black in ground color with broad posterior pale yellow pollinose band.

Distribution ( FIG. 5 ). Midwest; Illinois to Kansas, and Minnesota to Oklahoma.

Discussion. Unfortunately, the type specimen, like so many of Say’s types, apparently has not survived. The Diptera in Say’s collection were entirely ruined soon after his death in 1834 ( Weiss & Ziegler 1931). Say (1823) described a rather large robber fly, nine-tenths of an inch long, or 22.9 mm, with a yellow face; black thorax broadly margined with yellow; ferruginous wings; and black abdomen with wide, yellow, posterior annulations. Unfortunately, he did not mention the structure of the antennae. The only Ceraturgus species collected in Arkansas since 1823 are C. cornutus and C. elizabethae . C. elizabethae do not have abdomens with wide, yellow, posterior annulations. Since the publication of the description of C. cruciatus , this species has been recognized as one of the larger species in the genus with a long third flagellomere, thus eliminating C. cornutus , with its short third flagellomere, as a possibility. Although C. cruciatus has not been found in Arkansas again, is has been collected near the northern border in Missouri and near the western border in Oklahoma. The very similar Ceraturgus fasciatus has been collected near the eastern border of the state, in Mississippi. In 1820, while on his return from Major Long’s expedition to the Rocky Mountains, Say traveled across Arkansas from Fort Smith in the northwestern part of the state to Cape Girardeau in southeastern Missouri, then down the Mississippi River along the entire eastern border of Arkansas to New Orleans ( Weiss & Zeigler 1931). It is therefore impossible to say with certainty which species Say had before him. In the interest of stability, the traditional definition of C. cruciatus is adopted here, but C. fasciatus , the darker form with a more eastern distribution, is removed from synonymy with it.

Back (1909) illustrated the antenna and female lateral aspect, Hull (1962) published six illustrations of various structures, and Artigas and Papavero (1991b) illustrated the spemathecae. Each of these authors failed to state the provenance of the illustrated specimens. They could have been either Ceraturgus cruciatus or C. fasciatus .

Most specimens have been collected in June and July. One specimen that I have examined is pinned with its presumed prey, a pentatomid bug.

Figures

FIGURE 1. Ceraturgus, right wing, dorsal view: A, B, C. mitchelli, male and female, respectively; C, D, C. elizabethae, male and female, respectively; E, F, C. cruciatus, male and female, respectively; G, H, C. fasciatus, male and female, respectively.

FIGURE 2. Ceraturgus male genitalia, epandrium removed, anterodorsal view: A, C. mitchelli; B, C. elizabethae; C, C. cruciatus; D, C. fasciatus.

FIGURE 5. Distribution of Ceraturgus cruciatus by county.