Dasymutilla phaon (Fox)

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 : 81

Dasymutilla phaon (Fox)

Mutilla phaon Fox, 1899 . Trans. Amer. Ent. Soc. 25:243. Holotype male, Arizona (No. 4636) [ANSP] (examined).

Diagnosis of Male (Plate C7M). This species can be diagnosed by the following combination of characters, including coloration. It has the antennal scrobe carinate dorsally. It lacks a pit on sternum II, but possesses an apical fringe of setae on the pygidium. The integument is entirely black. While the head and mesosoma are clothed with black setae, most of tergum II and terga III to VI entirely are clothed with red setae.

Female. Unknown.

Distribution. USA (Arizona, California, New Mexico, Texas, Utah); Mexico (Chihuahua).

Remarks. This species is known only from the male. A relatively long series of specimens from Inyo County, California, has been examined and determined to be D. phaon . This locality is well separated from the normal distribution for this species. This is a moderately common species. Approximately 50 specimens have been examined.