Purenleon bistictus (Hagen)

Miller, Robert B. & Stange, Lionel A., 2011, Antlions of Hispaniola (Neuroptera: Myrmeleontidae), Insecta Mundi 2011 (182), pp. 1-28 : 17-19

Purenleon bistictus (Hagen)

( Figures 15 , 30, 31 )

Myrmeleon bistictus Hagen 1861: 235 . Holotype, Cuba, Poey (not located). Taxonomy. Navás 1921: 117 (in Nelees ); Banks 1927: 61 (in Psammoleon ); Stange 2002: 286 (in Purenleon ).

Further description. Gundlach 1888: 201; Banks 1927: 61, figure x 33 (female terminalia); Smith 1931: 815, figure 14 (wings); Alayo 1968: 67, figure 24 (wings), Plate V, figure 2 (head; nota), Plate VII, figure 1 (female terminalia).

Distribution. Bahamas; British Virgin Islands; Cayman Islands; Cuba; U.S.A. (Florida Keys); Mexico (Campeche; Quintana Roo); Puerto Rico.

Diagnosis. Adult: body length 25-29 mm; forewing length 28-32 mm, hindwing 26 to 30 mm. Coloration: interantennal dark brown mark large, extending well below antennae and becomes sericeous above antennae; vertex markings black; antenna weakly annulated with brown; pronotum dull black, sericeous, with pale brown median line and broader pale brown streaks on each side; rest of notum dull black with pale brown areas especially at middle; legs predominantly black, forefemur pale brown in front, midfemur and hindfemur with pale band or spot beyond middle; tibiae pale brown at base and with pale brown spot or streak on outer side; tarsi mostly wholly black; abdomen dull black, sericeous, each dorsal tergite with long pale brown streak on either side, sometimes divided into two spots; wings ( Figure 15 ) with oblique streak from anal area and from rhegma; pterostigma with dark brown spot at base; venation dark brown and pale brown in streaks, mostly dark brown at junctures with crossveins. Chaetotaxy: pronotum with elongate white bristles at lateral margin, at least subequal in length to those on forecoxa; mid femoral sense hair about one half length of fore femoral sense hair; femora and tibia with white setae and many black setae; abdomen with mostly white setae. Structure: pronotum broader than long; basitarsus of hindleg over five times longer than greatest diameter, nearly twice as long as pretarsal claw; hindtibial spurs about equal to l.5 times as long as basitarsus; forewing costal area with only one series of cells; CuP + lA of forewing runs obliquely to hind margin along posterior fork of CuA at a point below origin of radial sector.

Larva. Mandible with distal tooth as long as or longer than middle tooth, all teeth parallel and usually equidistant, without dolichasters; ventral head capsule with many dolichasters.

Records. HAITI . No further data (MCZC).

Discussion. This species is often collected at lights near coastal areas of most of the Caribbean Islands. So far, no specimens are available from the Dominican Republic and Smith (1931) mentioned only four specimens collected in Haiti . This is probably a collecting anomaly and further collecting efforts on Hispaniola will probably reveal it to be a common species. The larvae live in loose sand especially in coastal sand dunes. Two chaetotaxy characters will distinguish this species from nearly all other species in Hispaniola. The pronotum has elongate white bristles at the lateral margin and the midfemoral sense hair is only about one half the length of that of the forefemur. The latter character is shared only with Purenleon imbellis on Hispaniola.

Figures

Figures 15-18. Purenleon spp. 15) P. bistictus (Hagen), adult male. 16) P. minor (Banks), adult male. 17) P. nunezi Miller and Stange, adult male. 18) P. nunezi Miller and Stange, wing pattern variation.

Figure 30-31. Purenleon bistictus (Hagen) larva. 30) Dorsal view. 31) Ventral view.