Hemipenthes morioides (Coquillett)

Ávalos-Hernández, Omar, 2009, A review of the North American species of Hemipenthes Loew, 1869 (Diptera: Bombyliidae), Zootaxa 2074, pp. 1-49 : 31-32

15. Hemipenthes morioides (Coquillett)

(Figs. 17, 61–62)

Anthrax morioides Say, 1823: 58 .

Hemipenthes morioides (Say) : Osten Sacken, 1877: 241. Anthrax catulina Coquillett, 1894a: 100 .

Hemipenthes catulina (Coquillett) : Hull, 1973: 385

Type of Anthrax morioides destroyed in ANSP ( Evenhuis & Greathead, 1999: 447); 4 Syntypes (lost) of Anthrax catulina in USNM ( Evenhuis & Greathead, 1999: 442);

Diagnosis: Aureoles around bases of cells r4, r5, m2 and cup; cell a entirely infuscated except tip; mesopleuron and sides of first abdominal tergite white or pale yellow pilose.

Description: Male. Body length: 5–10 mm; wing length: 6–10 mm. Head: Eyes separated by a little more than width of ocellar triangle. Front black pilose, fulvous tomentose. Face brown, rounded, with black hairs and fulvous tomentum. Scape brown, swollen on inner apical margin, with black hairs, twice as long as pedicel; pedicel brown, twice as wide as long, with short black hairs; flagellomere brown, longer than scape and pedicel combined; base subconical, tapering to styliform apical two-thirds; stylus minute, terminal. Proboscis short, not projecting beyond oral margin. Palpi brown with black hairs. Occiput with short black and yellowish hairs and yellowish scales.

Thorax: Mesonotum anterior margin yellowish pilose with a few long black hairs also present; lateral margin yellow and black pilose; tomentum on disc entirely yellowish, long, hairlike, not dense, with yellow hairs; bristles black. Mesopleuron black pilose with yellowish hairs mixed in on proepisternum, anepisternum, and katatergite; tomentum on katepisternum pale yellow, black pilose. Proepimeron with mixed black and yellowish hairs. Mid coxa with mixed black and yellowish hairs, tomentum on all coxae hairlike, pale yellow. Legs fulvous, femora black pilose and yellow tomentose, some black scales present; fore tibia with a single row of black bristles on postero-ventral surface; bristles black. Halter steam and knob brownish to yellowish. Scutellum brown, black pilose, and yellowish tomentose, paler along posterior margin, a spot of black tomentum in middle at base; bristles black. Black setulae on basicosta. Cells c, sc, br, and bm entirely infuscated (Fig. 17); cell a entirely infuscated except tip; cells r1 and cup with two basal thirds infuscated; cell dm with basal half infuscated; cells r2+3, r5 and cua1 with basal third infuscated; cell m2 infuscated just at base; color in cell a not reaching hind margin of wing; aureoles around bases of cells r4, r5, m2 and cup; cell dm infuscated at or slightly behind r-m crossvein; r-m crossvein at or slightly beyond middle of cell dm; no crossvein between R4 and R2+3; cell r5 slightly narrowed at wing margin; first section of vein CuA1 one and a half the long of r-m crossvein, second section one and a half the long of r-m crossvein, third section one and a half the long of first two sections combined; cell a slightly wider than cell cup; alula slightly developed.

Abdomen: Abdominal dorsum whitish pilose on tergite one, rest black pilose; black tomentum overall, fulvous scales scattered at sides; sides of abdomen with first and basal half of second tergites whitish pilose, mixed abundant black and yellowish hairs on rest. Venter black pilose, whitish tomentose. Genitalia black or brown with black hairs. Epandrium in lateral view, rectangular, lower margin concave in middle, basal corner narrowed; gonocoxite narrow, basal half enlarged; gonostylus small, hooked apically; epiphallus in lateral view narrow ( Fig. 61 ) slightly curved, cap-shaped, apex swollen, rounded; with a ventral extension broad at base with apex acuminate, portion of the epiphallus behind ventral extension longer than aedeagus; epiphallus in ventral view broad ( Fig. 62 ), lateral margins narrowed at both sides before apex, with scattered spines in the middle and dense spines at apex; aedeagus broad at base narrowed at apex, not swollen dorsally; gonopore terminal.

Female. Nearly identical to male. Eyes separated by twice width of ocellar triangle. Setulae on basicosta black and yellow on base of wing.

Distribution: Canada (British Columbia), USA (Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Utah, Washington, Wisconsin, Wyoming).

Specimens examined: USA. Idaho: Moscow Mt., 7-IX-1911 (1 female; USNM); Moscow M. 30-VIII- 1924, A.L. Melander (1 male; USNM). Minnesota: Basswood Lake near Ely, 24-VI-1962, R.W. Dawson (1 male; USNM). Oregon: Stein Mts. Harney Co., 27-VI-1922, W.J. Chamberlin (1 male genitalia; USNM); Hood River, 6-II-1914, Childs (1 male; USNM). Washington: Pullman, 28-VI-1965, Roger D. Akre (1 female; USNM); Fields Spring St. Pk., 17-VI-1961, R.W. Dawson (1 male; USNM); Fields Spring St. Pk., 9-VI-1965, Roger D. Akre (1 female; USNM).

Remarks: Hemipenthes morioides is the valid name for this species in replacement for H. catulina . H. morioides was considered as a synonym of H. morio by Hull (1973: 386) but the original description of H. morioides from Say (1823: 58) distinctly describes the hyaline areas in the bases of cells r4, r5, m2 and cup, a character not present in H. morio and which is the main character to distinguish this species ( Coquillett, 1894a: 100).

Hemipenthes morioides shares almost all external characteristics with H. seminigra , but can be easily distinguished from this species by the aureoles in the bases of cells r4, r5, m2 and cup. The genitalia is also different, having the epiphallus in ventral view narrowed at the sides, but with the base wider ( Fig. 62 ). Hemipenthes morioides has a distribution limited to the USA. Brooks (1952) cited this species as a predator of the tachinid fly Bessa harveyi Townsend , which is a parasite of the sawfly Pristiphora sp. ( Hull, 1973). H. morioides has been collected mainly in the western states of the USA.

Figures

FIGURES 61 – 62. Hemipenthes morioides male terminalia. 61, lateral view; 62, ventral view.