Photomorphus (Photomorphina) spinci (Bradley)

Brabant, Craig M., Williams, Kevin A. & Pitts, James P., 2010, True females of the subgenus Photomorphina Schuster (Hymenoptera: Mutillidae), Zootaxa 2559, pp. 58-68 : 63

Photomorphus (Photomorphina) spinci (Bradley)

( Fig. 3 )

Photopsis (Odontophotopsis) spinci Bradley, 1916 . Amer. Ent. Soc., Trans. 42: 335. Holotype male: Bainbridge, Decatur County, Georgia, July 15 to 27, 1909, J.C. Bradley coll. [CUIC].

Photopsis (Odontophotopsis) spinci floridensis Schuster, 1944. Brooklyn Ent. Soc., Trans. 39: 155. Holotype male: Englewood, Florida, April 11, 1944, J.G. Needham coll. [CUIC].

Photomorphus (Photomorphina) spinci Schuster, 1958 . Ent. Amer. (n.s.) 37: 44.

Diagnosis of female: Females of P. s p i n c i are recognized by the following combination of characters: mandible with well-defined ventral tooth basally; pygidium glabrous or obscurely granulate; mesosoma, T2 and often T3–5 with appressed dark brown to ferruginous setae ( Fig. 3 ).

Description of female: Length. ~ 3.4–4.5 mm. Coloration and Setal Pattern. Body brown ferruginous. Legs darker than body, ferruginous to castaneous. Flagellum yellow to dark yellow. Short reddish brown to golden reddish brachyplumose setae throughout; longer whitish setae present on propodeum and T1. T1–5 with sparse fringe of dingy white plumose setae; coloration of setae darker on lateral margins of tergites. Disk of T2 with ferruginous setae; setae white along lateral margins. Legs with white brachyplumose setae.

Head. Head rounded posteriorly, not as wide as mesosoma, moderately punctate. Head evenly rounded in lateral view; occipital region straight and gena evenly rounded. Eye ovate, distance from posterior mandibular articulation ~ 4X visible length of pedicel. Clypeus protruding anteriorly, posteromedially produced into low triangular tubercle with fringe of plumose setae projecting ventrally. Malar space parallel in frontal view. Antennal scrobes without dorsal carina. Antennal tubercle glabrous, except with carinate apical margin. Flagellomere 1~1.2X length of pedicel. Flagellomeres 2 and 3 ~1.2X length of pedicel or slightly longer. Flagellomeres 2–10 slightly produced apically on ventral side; appearing crenulate. Mandible bidentate apically, attenuated towards apex. Ventral mandibular margin with distinct round basal tooth. Genal carina absent. Hypostomal carinae lamellate medially.

Mesosoma. Mesosoma only slightly wider anteriorly than posteriorly, longer than broad; rectangular. Mesosoma densely punctate dorsally. Propleuron anterodorsally and mesopleuron medially running vertically punctate. Humeral angle dentate. Epaulet not prominent. No transverse carinae present on dorsum of propodeum, but appearing denticulate to tuberculate posteriorly on dorsum of propodeum. Tubercles randomly situated and more prominent towards posterior; projecting posteriorly. Distinct scutellar scale absent. Mesosternum with low transverse tubercle present medially just anterior to mesocoxa. Metasternum tridentate; lateral teeth weakly developed; central tooth elongate, sulcate medially appearing to have deep groove. Propodeum with distinct dorsal and vertical faces.

Metasoma. Segment 1 distinctly subsessile with segment 2. T1 with small sparse punctures. T2 with dense moderate punctures anteriorly. T2 with felt line; length 0.5X length of tergite. T3–5 shagreened. T6 with distinct pygidial area defined laterally by carinae; surface longitudinally striate-granulate on anterior fifth, remainder glabrous; convex. S2–5 with punctation similar to tergites.

Distribution. Widespread in the southeastern USA.

Material examined: USA, Florida, Leon Co.: Tall Timber Res. Sta., 28.Sept–5.Oct.1970, D. Harris (1 Ψ, FSCA); South Carolina, Pickens Co.: Dovehaven, 7 mi. NE of Pickens: 21.Jun.1983, H.L. Dozier (1 Ψ, FSCA); 24.Jun.1983, H.L. Dozier (1 Ψ, FSCA); 11.May.1983, Annie Dozier (1 Ψ, FSCA).

Remarks. The females of this species would most likely be confused with those of P. archboldi , because it is the only other species of Photomorphina found in Florida. It can be separated from this species by the characters listed in the diagnosis. Also, the tubercles are more prominent on the dorsum of the mesosoma than in P. a rc h b o l d i.

This sex association is based on distributional data. The only two Photomorphina species known from the Atlantic States are P. s p i n c i and P. archboldi . Photomorphus archboldi is restricted to southern Florida. The Photomorphina females found in South Carolina are definitely associated with P. s p i n c i. In Florida, where both species co-occur, the females can easily be separated by coloration because P. archboldi is entirely pale yellow ( Fig. 1 ) and P. spinci is reddish-brown like the male of this species ( Fig. 3 ).

Figures

FIGURES 1 − 6. Habitus, female. 1, Photomorphus archboldi (Florida); 2, P. auriventris (Wisconsin); 3, P. s p i n c i (South Carolina); 4, P. subtenuis (Nebraska); 5, P. impar (South Carolina); 6, P. myrmicoides (Missouri).