Hemipenthes comanche (Painter)

Ávalos-Hernández, Omar, 2009, A review of the North American species of Hemipenthes Loew, 1869 (Diptera: Bombyliidae), Zootaxa 2074, pp. 1-49 : 19-20

7. Hemipenthes comanche (Painter)

(Figs. 8, 45–46)

Villa (Hemipenthes) comanche Painter in Painter and Painter, 1962: 96 Hemipenthes comanche (Painter) : Hull, 1973: 385.

Holotype in USNM.

Diagnosis: Face bluntly projecting; mesopleuron black and yellow pilose; color of tomentum on coxae black and yellow; cell a partially infuscated; first, fourth, and fifth abdominal tergites with a band of white scales.

Description: Male. Body length: 6–11 mm; wing length: 6–11 mm. Head: Eyes separated by a little more than width of ocellar triangle. Front black pilose, yellowish tomentose. Face brown, bluntly projecting, with black hairs and yellowish tomentum. Scape black, swollen on inner apical margin, with black hairs, twice as long as pedicel; pedicel black, twice as wide as long, with short black hairs; flagellomere black, 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 white hairs and white scales.

Thorax: Mesonotum anterior margin yellowish pilose, lateral margins white pilose; tomentum on disc entirely yellowish, long, hairlike, not dense; bristles black. Mesopleuron pale yellow pilose with black hairs mixed in on proepisternum and anepisternum, tomentum on katepisternum yellow. Proepimeron with mixed black and yellowish hairs. Mid coxa with black hairs, tomentum on all coxae yellow and black. Legs fulvous or brown, femora not pilose, black tomentose; bristles black. Halter steam yellow, knob yellow to white. Scutellum brown, not pilose, white tomentose 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. 8); cell cup entirely infuscated except tip; cells r1, a and dm with basal half infuscated; cells r2+3, r5, m2, and cua1 infuscated just at base; cell dm infuscated at r-m crossvein; r-m crossvein at or slightly behind middle of cell dm; no crossvein between R4 and R2+3; cell r5 slightly narrowed at wing margin; first section of vein CuA1 twice the long of r-m crossvein, second section as long as r-m crossvein, third section twice the long of first two sections combined; cell a one and a half wider than cell cup; alula well developed.

Abdomen: Abdominal dorsum with white hairs on posterior of first tergite, rest black pilose; a band of white scales on tergites first and fourth, black scales on tergites two and three, fifth to seventh tergites with white scales covering the whole tergites, some fulvous scales may be present, tomentum long, shaggy, hairlike; sides of abdomen with first, second and basal half of third tergites whitish pilose, rest black pilose. Venter black pilose, black and yellowish tomentose. Genitalia fulvous with yellowish 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. 45 ) slightly curved, not 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. 46 ), lateral margins narrowed at both sides at middle, 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.

Distribution: USA (Arizona, California, Colorado, Kansas, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah).

Specimens examined: USA. Colorado: 2 mi W Walzenburg, 24-VII-1965, R. H. and E. M. Painter (2 males, 1 genitalia; USNM). New Mexico: Mc Kinley Co., 24-VIII-1959, N. Marston (1 male PARATYPE 1 female PARATYPE; USNM); Gran Quivera, 10-VIII-1931, R. H. Painter (1 male PARATYPE; USNM); Utah: 7 mi E Eureka, 1-IX-1965, R. H. and E. M. Painter (1 female; USNM).

Remarks: A synonymy between H. comanche and H. chimaera was proposed by Painter & Painter (1962:96) for further discussion see H. chimaera remarks. Hemipenthes comanche is widespread in the southwest USA and probably is also present in northern Mexico but this region is under-collected.

Figures

FIGURES 45 – 46. Hemipenthes comanche male terminalia. 45, lateral view; 46, ventral view.