Dasymutilla batui Manley & Pitts, 2007

MANLEY, DONALD G. & PITTS, JAMES P., 2007, Tropical and Subtropical Velvet Ants of the Genus Dasymutilla Ashmead (Hymenoptera: Mutillidae) with Descriptions of 45 New Species, Zootaxa 1487 (1), pp. 1-128 : 29

Dasymutilla batui Manley & Pitts , new species

Holotype female, Mexico, Tejupilco de Hidalgo, Temescaltepec, VI-19-33, H. E. Hinton [ CISC].

Diagnosis of Female ( Plate C1P ). Features useful in distinguishing this species include lack of a scutellar scale and coloration. The integument of this species is entirely ferruginous, while coloration of the setae is predominantly yellow. Also of importance is that the head is somewhat quadrate and almost as broad as the mesosoma, the antennal scrobe is weakly carinate dorsally, the gena is ecarinate, the mesosoma is very slightly longer than broad, the first metasomal segment is conspicuously nodose, and the pygidium is longitudinally striate.

Description. Female: Length, 8–10 mm. Head. Ferruginous, somewhat quadrate, entirely clothed with yellow setae; mandible acute at apex, with inconspicuous inner tooth about 0.3X distance from apex; clypeus broadly triangular, concave, with anterior edge slightly emarginate; scape carinate, clothed with yellow setae; flagellomere I only slightly longer than remaining segments; antennal scrobe weakly carinate; front and vertex with coarse contiguous punctures, sculpture concealed by setae; gena shining, with shallow contiguous punctures; genal carina absent; head 1.8–1.9 mm, relative width to mesosoma about 0.9.

Mesosoma. Ferruginous, slightly longer than broad (1.9–2.1 mm wide X 2.1–2.3 mm long); anterior margin nearly straight, not emarginate medially; scutellar scale absent; mesosoma with large coarse contiguous punctures, except metapleuron smooth and shining; entirely with appressed yellow setae, except propodeum with sparse, erect black setae, scutellar region with somewhat denser black setae.

Legs ferruginous, clothed entirely with yellow setae, except apices of middle and hind femora with black setae.

Metasoma. Ferruginous, first segment conspicuously nodose; metasoma with coarse, contiguous punctures, sculpture of dorsum concealed by setae; pygidium longitudinally striate; sternum I with median longitudinal carina, carina weakly bidentate; setae predominantly yellow, except narrow apical fringes of terga II to IV black, and some specimens with black on tergum II anteriorly.

Male. Unknown.

Paratypes. 3♀, MEXICO, Oaxaca, Mante Albán , VIII-30-65, A. R. Gillogly (1♀, DGMC); Nayarit, Jesus Maria, VI-26-55, B. Malkin (1♀, CISC); Jesus Maria, VII-6-55, B. Malkin (1♀, DGMC) .

Distribution. Mexico (Hidalgo, Nayarit, Oaxaca).

Etymology. Named in honor of Batu, the great military leader who commanded the Golden Horde, an allusion to the dense golden setae present on the dorsum of the head.

Remarks. This species, known only from the female, keys with some difficulty and appears in the key in two locations.

Figures

PLATE 1. Male genitalia of Dasymutilla. A. D. atrata. B. D. baylegi. C. D. bimaculata. D. D. boharti. E. D. brazilia. F. D. chamela. G. D. chillcotti. H. D. fimbriata. I. D. guanacaste.