Odontophotopsis serca Viereck

Pitts, James P., Wilson, Joseph S., Williams, Kevin A. & Boehme, Nicole F., 2010, Nocturnal velvet ant males (Hymenoptera: Mutillidae) of Deep Canyon, California including four new species and a fifth new species from Owens Lake Valley, California, Zootaxa 2553, pp. 1-34 : 11-12

Odontophotopsis serca Viereck

Odontophotopsis sercus Viereck, 1904 . Amer. Ent. Soc., Trans 30: 87. Male. Holotype data: Mexico, Lower California, type no. 4979 (ANSP).

Diagnosis of male. This species can be recognized by the lack of a clypeal tubercle, by having deeply excised mandibles with a vertical apex ( Fig. 13 ), by having simple but prominent mesosternal processes, and by lacking a sternal felt line.

Female. Unknown.

Material examined. California, Riverside Co., Deep Canyon: 1 male, 18. May.1969, 30 males, 22– 23. May.2007, 1 male, 24. May.1969, 1 male, 1–4. Jun.1970, 1 male, 5–13. Jun.1973, 1 male, 6–13. Jun.1969, 3 males, 13–18. Jun.1969, 1 male, 20–24. Jun.1969, 3 males, 3–7. Jul.1969, 1 male, 10–12, Jul.1969, 1 male, 16– 17. Aug.1969, 3 males, 5–9. Sep.1969, 1 male, 9–11.Sep.1969, 51 males, 26.Sep–6. Oct.1969, 5 males, 6– 8. Oct.1969, 2 males, 16–17. Oct.1969, 1 male, 17–20.Oct.1969.

Distribution. The Sonoran Desert including Baja California, Mexico and the Mojave Desert.

Remarks. This species unlike O. armata never develops anything that resembles a felt line on the second metasomal sternite. This species, along with O. melicausa , has a tendency to develop a slight secondary mesosternal tubercle posterior to the primary one. Sometimes this can be unilateral ( Ferguson 1967).

Figures

FIGURES 13 – 24. Head, anterior view; except ventral view 17. 13. Odontophotopsis serca; 14. O. setifera; 15. Sphaeropthalma. amphion; 16. S. angulifera; 17. S. angulifera; 18. S. arota; 19. S. becki; 20. S. blakeii; 21. S. difficilis; 22. S. ferruginea; 23. S. ignacio; and 24. S. macswaini.