Pilkingtoni species group

Bartholomay, Pedro R., Williams, Kevin A., Luz, David R., Cambra, Roberto A. & Oliveira, Márcio Luiz de, 2019, Traumatomutilla André miscellanea: Revision of the bellica, bifurca, diabolica, and vitelligera species groups, and a new group for the new species T. pilkingtoni Bartholomay and Williams (Hymenoptera: Mutillidae: Sphaeropthalminae: Dasymutillini), Insecta Mundi 709 (709), pp. 1-37 : 32-33

pilkingtoni species group

Diagnosis. Females of this species group can be defined by a unique combination of characters: head unarmed posterolaterally; mesonotum simply divergent anterad, not constricted anterior to propodeal spiracle; scutellar scale and anterolateral carinae distinct; apex of middle and hind femora rounded; T2 with two integumental spots; gena feebly carinate; pygidium ovate.

Included taxon. Traumatomutilla pilkingtoni Bartholomay and Williams , sp. nov.

Distribution. Traumatomutilla pilkingtoni has been recorded solely from southwestern Dry Chacos areas of Argentina.

Remarks. Species groups of Traumatomutilla with small-bodied species tend to have the head posteriorly armed with tubercles, while larger Traumatomutilla lack these tubercles and have mesosomal armature. Interestingly, the small bodied T. pilkingtoni resembles small bodied members of the trochanterata and inermis groups but lacks head tubercles and various other traits. It does not, however, possess the diagnostic traits of any larger bodied groups either. In its lack of diagnostic features, it is somewhat similar to T. diabolica , which lives in similar habitats in Argentina, but these two species differ in other important Traumatomutilla features: head shape, T1 shape, pygidium shape and sculpture, number of spots, tergal fringes, etc. As in T. diabolica , eventual discovery of the male will be necessary to understand its relations to other species groups.

In the key to species groups ( Williams et al. 2017), T. pilkingtoni keys out to the trochanterata group in couplet 16. It can be recognized by its broad pygidium ( Fig. 69 ), while the trochanterata group has a slender pygidium (e.g. figure 16 in Williams et al. 2017).

Figures

Figures 66–69. Traumatomutilla pilkingtoni Bartholomay and Williams, sp. nov., ♀, holotype. 66) Dorsal habitus, line 2mm. 67) Lateral habitus, line 2mm. 68) Head, frontal view. 69) T6 (pygidium), posterior view.