Kitching, Reinert & Harbach & Kitching, 2006, Reinert & Harbach & Kitching, 2006

Reinert, John F., Harbach, Ralph E. & Kitching, Ian J., 2006, Phylogeny and classification of Finlaya and allied taxa (Diptera: Culicidae: Aedini) based on morphological data from all life stages, Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society 148 (1), pp. 1-101 : 76-78

JARNELLIUS REINERT, HARBACH & KITCHING ,

GEN. NOV.

Type species: Culex varipalpus Coquillett, 1902 .

Females

Head: Vertex with decumbent scales narrow (few broad scales occasionally present laterally in some species); occiput and vertex with erect forked scales; eyes moderately separated above antennal pedicels; antennal pedicel with few to several, often partially overlapping, small, broad scales on mesal surface; clypeus bare; maxillary palpus dark with pale-scaled areas (all dark-scaled in Ja. muelleri ); proboscis without median, pale-scaled band.

Thorax: Scutum with moderately wide to wide, median, pale-scaled stripe or patch extending over anterior acrostichal area laterally to inner dorsocentral area or wider and extending laterally to mesal margin of scutal fossa, pale-scaled, median area normally continuing posteriorly to prescutellar area (except in Ja. varipalpus ); narrow, curved, white scales on scutal fossa (lateral and posterior margins), supraalar area (elongate longitudinal line) and prescutellar space (lateral and anterior margins of median, bare area); acrostichal and dorsocentral areas with both anterior and posterior setae; paratergite with broad, pale scales; postpronotum with narrow, curved scales dorsally and broad scales ventrally (except all narrow scales in Ja. muelleri ); postspiracular, upper proepisternal, lower prealar, mesokatepisternal (large upper patch and moderate lower posterior patch), mesepimeral (upper and lower patches, except 1 large patch in Ja. muelleri ) and metameral (except Ja. deserticola ) areas with broad, pale scales.

Wing: Dark-scaled with small white-scaled patch at base of costa (pale-scaled patch reduced to 2 or 3 scales or occasionally absent in Ja. muelleri ); upper calypter with several setae on margin; alula with row of narrow scales on margin; remigium without setae ventrally and normally absent dorsally (1 or 2 setae distally in Ja. muelleri and Ja. varipalpus ).

Legs: Anteprocoxal membrane bare, postprocoxal membrane normally with broad, pale scales (absent in Ja. deserticola and Ja. sierrensis ); hindtarsomere 1 with broad, basal and apical, white-scaled bands, hindtarsomeres 2 and 3 with broad, apical, whitescaled bands (hindtarsus entirely dark-scaled in Ja. muelleri ), ungues simple.

Abdomen: Tergum I with white-scaled patch on laterotergite; segment VIII dorsoventrally flattened.

Genitalia: Tergum VIII sclerotized, width greater than length, setae on distal 0.70 or more of tergum; sternum VIII sclerotized, width greater than length, seta 2-S inserted posterolateral to 1-S, scales normally present (not seen in only available specimen of Ja. monticola ); tergum IX comprising single sclerite with moderately deep, median, apical emargination, 3–12 setae distally on each side of midline; postgenital lobe moderately long, relatively broad, apex broad with very small, median emargination, 16–25 setae distally; upper and lower vaginal sclerites absent; insula liplike, with setae in lateral patches; cercus moderately long, relatively narrow with apex sharply rounded, without scales (moderately wide with apex broadly rounded and 1–3 scales/cercus in Ja. muelleri ); 3 spermathecal capsules.

Males

Head: Maxillary palpus with 5 palpomeres, longer than proboscis, moderate number of moderately long to long setae ventrolaterally on distal part of palpomere 3 and ventrolaterally on palpomere 4; antennal flagellar whorls with numerous long setae directed dorsally and ventrally.

Legs: Fore- and midtarsi with 2 unequal ungues, each with 1 tooth (smaller ungues simple in Ja. muelleri ); hindungues equal, both simple.

Genitalia: Tergum IX with posterior margin with pair of short, relatively narrow, heavily sclerotized lobes bearing several short, stout setae; gonocoxite moderately long, relatively narrow, mesal margin of dorsal surface without apical lobe but with small basal lobe bearing several long setae, 1 or more of these setae stout and somewhat flattened, ventral surface without specialized scales or setae, mesal surface membranous; gonostylus attached at apex of gonocoxite, moderately long, narrow, distal part slender and slightly curved mesally, with single moderately long, narrow gonostylar claw at apex; aedeagus simple, tubelike, moderately long, apex broadly rounded; proctiger with cercal setae; claspette with single moderately long, slender, columnar stem, claspette filament attached apically, relatively long, relatively narrow, somewhat flattened with distal part narrowing to pointed, slightly recurved apex; sternum IX with setae on posteromedian area.

Pupae

Cephalothorax: Seta 1-CT longer than 3-CT, single or 2-branched; 11-CT single.

Abdomen: Setae 3,6-I single, moderately stout; 2- II shorter and inserted mesal to 1- II; 3- II single, moderately long, stout, inserted mesal to 2- II; 5- II less than 3- II length, inserted mesal to 4- II (lateral to 4- II in Ja. muelleri ); 3- III single, stout, longer than 5- III; 5- V single, less than tergum VI median length (slightly greater than tergum length in Ja. muelleri ); 2,3- VI inserted lateral to 1- VI (? in Ja. laguna ); 6- VII inserted posterior and mesal to 9- VII (at same level in Ja. muelleri ); 9- VII longer and stouter than 6- VII; 9-VIII stout, with 2 or 3 branches.

Paddle: Length greater than width; apex broadly rounded or with minute, broad, median emargination; midrib extending 0.60–0.70 from base; without fringe of hairlike spicules; seta 1-Pa short, single.

Fourth-instar larvae

Head: Seta 1-C single, spiniform; 4-C short (barely moderately long in Ja. muelleri ), multiple-branched, inserted mesal and slightly anterior to 6-C; 5-C moderately long (approaching long), single, inserted mesal and slightly anterior to 7-C and posterior to 4,6-C; 6-C moderately long, with 2 branches (single in Ja. muelleri ); 7-C moderately long, multiple-branched; 12-C branched, inserted mesal to 13-C; 13-C single; 19-C very short; antenna without spicules (with few spicules in Ja. muelleri ), seta 1-A single, 2,3-A inserted apically.

Thorax: Setae 1–3-P inserted on common setal support plate; 4-P branched, longer than 8-P; 5-P branched; 4-M single (rarely 2-branched in Ja. sierrensis ); 5-M longer than 7-M; 2,6- T single.

Abdomen: Setae 3-I– VI and 2,4-VIII single; 6-I– III long, aciculate, branched; 7-I moderately long to long, stout, aciculate, single; 12-I absent (present in Ja. deserticola and Ja. sierrensis ); 7- II moderately long, single, except relatively short and branched in Ja. muelleri ; 1- VII longer than dorsal length of segment X (see method of measurement for character 49 in Character Descriptions); 2- VII inserted near 1- VII; 3- VII moderately long, inserted anterolaterad of 1- VII; segment VIII with comb comprising several scales in 1 or 2 irregular rows; segment X with saddle incomplete ventrally, without acus, seta 1-X single or 2-branched, inserted on saddle in small unsclerotized area (reduced in Ja. muelleri ), 2-X branched, 3-X single, ventral brush attached to grid with only transverse bars ( Ja. muelleri with both transverse and lateral bars), seta 4a-X long, except relatively short in Ja. muelleri , 4 relatively long, broad anal papillae with apices broadly rounded.

Siphon: Acus present; pecten comprising several evenly spaced spines, on proximal 0.50 of siphon; seta 1-S branched, aciculate, inserted distal to pecten; 6-S short, single.

Included species

Jarnellius deserticola (Zavortink) , Ja. laguna (Arnell & Nielsen) , Ja. monticola (Belkin & McDonald), Ja. muelleri (Dyar) , Ja. sierrensis (Ludlow) and Ja. varipalpus (Coquillett) .

Distribution

Canada (British Columbia) , Mexico (Baja California Sur, Distrito Federal, Durango, Hidalgo, Mexico, Sonora, Zacatecas) and United States (Arizona, California, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Texas, Utah, Washington) .

Bionomics

Immature stages are usually found in treeholes. Jarnellius muelleri are found occasionally in artificial containers and were once collected from leaf axils of maguey (Zavortink, 1972). Insight into the ecology of treeholes in which most species of Jarnellius are found is given in Zavortink (1985).

Discussion

The above generic description of Jarnellius is additional to the description (Varipalpus Group) given by Arnell & Nielsen (1972), who should be referred to for the systematic background, descriptions and illustrations of the included species. Zavortink (1972) provided a description and illustrations of Ja. muelleri (as Ae. (Och). muelleri ), the type species of the new subgenus Lewnielsenius . The genus includes two subgenera (see below). Myers (1967) described and illustrated eggs of Ja. sierrensis and Ja. varipalpus .

Etymology

Jarnellius is named in honour of Dr J. Hal Arnell in recognition of his important work on species of this genus and other New World aedines. The generic name is masculine, formed from his first initial ‘J’, surname and the masculine Latin suffix ‘- ius ’. Recommended abbreviation = Ja.