Hesperoctenes cartus Jordan , 1922

Autino, Analía Gladys, Idoeta, Fabricio Miguel, Claps, Guillermo Luis & Barquez, Rubén Marcos, 2020, Ectoparasite insects of bats from the fields and weedlands eco-region of Argentina, Papéis Avulsos de Zoologia 60, pp. 1-9 : 5-6

Hesperoctenes cartus Jordan, 1922

Hesperoctenes cartus Jordan, 1922: 211-212 .

Material examined: Misiones: Parque Provincial Cañadón de Profundidad , 27°33′S, 55°42′W, 19.x.2009, 2♀ ( CMLA 740 , 741 ) on Cynomops planirostris ♂ ( CML 8917 ) ; 18.x.2009, 1 ♀ ( CMLA 747 ), 1 ♂ ( CMLA 770 ) on Cynomops abrasus ♀ ( CML 8910 ) ; 18.x.2009, 2 ♀ ( CMLA 737 , 738 ), 3 ♂ ( CMLA 739 , 765 , 769 ) on C. abrasus ♀ ( CML 8911 ) ; 18.x.2009, 1 ♂ ( CMLA 735 ), 1 ♀ ( CMLA 736 ) on C. abrasus ♀ ( CML 8912 ) ; 18.x.2009, 4 ♀ ( CMLA 742 , 743 , 773 , 744 ), 2 ♂ ( CMLA 745 , 746 ) on C. abrasus ♀ ( CML 8915 ) ; 18.x.2009, 2 ♀ ( CMLA 734 , 766 ) on C.abrasus ♀ ( CML 8913 ) ; 19.x.2009, 1 ♂ ( CMLA 772 ) on C.planirostris ♀ ( CML 8916 ) ; 19.x.2009, 1 ♂ ( CMLA 768 ) on C.planirostris ♀ ( CML 8920 ) ; 19.x.2009, 1 ♀ ( CMLA 771 ) on C.planirostris ♂ ( CML 8917 ) ; 18.x.2009, 2 ♀ ( CMLA 777 , 778 ), 2 ♂ ( CMLA 775 , 776 ) on 4 released specimens of C. abrasus ♀ .

Identification: See Figs. 3 and 4 for photographs of this species. The bristles on the upper side of the head and prothorax are remarkably few in number, with the discolateral patch of the head having twelve to fifteen bristles, the patch before the posterior angle represented by two or three, and the central area bearing less than sixty. The bare spaces on the pronotum occupy a much larger portion of the surface than the setiferous spaces; the naked spaces on the antemedian and posthumeral are merged together; and the posterior third of the surface is almost entirely naked from side to side, except for the marginal bristles. The gular comb consists of seventeen to twenty spines. From the middle to the posterior margin of the head there is an irregular double row of eleven to fourteen bristles, which (as in H. vicinus ) are larger than the small bristles that flank the central, longitudinal groove of the gula. The prosternum has a bare area somewhat extended in the middle. Elytra and abdomen are as in H. vicinus .

This species resembles Hesperoctenes vicinus ; however, the lengths of the antennal segments are different than those in H. vicinus because, in H. cartus , segments III and IV are practically equal in length; whereas, in H. vicinus , the IV is distinctly longer than III and II is almost half as long as III. The legs resemble those of H. vicinus ( Jordan, 1922; Ronderos, 1962a, b).

Comments: The specimens listed in Material examined represent the first records of this species for Argentina. They have been found on Cynomops planirostris and C. abrasus . This is a widely distributed species and was recorded in Brazil, Colombia, Paraguay, Panamá and Venezuela ( Ueshima, 1972; Dick & Bindokas, 2007). The host type of H. cartus is Nyctinomops laticaudatus laticaudatus (É. Geoffroy, 1805) (cited as Dysopes gracilis J.A. Wagner, 1845 ) from Santa Catarina, Brasil ( Jordan, 1922). It was also included on Cynomops abrasus (Temmink, 1827) (cited as Molossus cerastes Thomas, 1901 ) from Paraguay (Sapucay) ( Ferris & Usinger, 1939) and Cynomops planirostris (Peters, 1866) (cited as Molossops planirostris [Peters, 1866]) from Venezuela, Panamá and Colombia ( Ueshima, 1972).

Figures

Figure 3. Hesperoctenescartus (CMLA 766 ♀)(dorsal view).

Figure 4. Hesperoctenes cartus (CMLA766 ♀): (A) Ventral view,(B) Antenna and anterior leg,(C) Gular region and Prosternum.