Pseudophotopsis aurea (Klug, 1829)

Soliman, Ahmed Mostafa, 2021, The velvet ant genus Pseudophotopsis Andre, 1896 (Hymenoptera, Mutillidae) in the Arabian Peninsula, with the description of two new species, Journal of Hymenoptera Research 82, pp. 361-415 : 361

publication ID	https://dx.doi.org/10.3897/jhr.82.65252
publication LSID	lsid:zoobank.org:pub:C2CA4E54-C2FE-42DB-806A-6770DB6B5832
persistent identifier	https://treatment.plazi.org/id/B6271022-8363-5419-920E-F12555230A02
treatment provided by	Journal of Hymenoptera Research by Pensoft
scientific name	Pseudophotopsis aurea (Klug, 1829)
status

Treatment

Figures 3 View Figure 3 , 4 View Figure 4 , 5 View Figure 5 , 6 View Figure 6 , 7 View Figure 7 , 8 View Figure 8 , 9 View Figure 9 , 10 View Figure 10 ; 33A, B View Figure 33

Mutilla aurea Klug, 1829: [18], (♀), "Ex Habissinia et Arabia deserta" (Ethiopia and Arabia).

Mutilla kassalina Magretti, 1898: 42, (♂ holotype), “Kassala” (Sudan). Junior subjective synonym of Mutilla aurea Klug, 1829 according to Lelej and van Harten 2006: 7.

Pseudophotopsis kassalina f. semiaurata Bischoff, 1920: 99, (♂ holotype), “Arafali” (Eritrea). Invalidly considered a junior subjective synonym of Mutilla aurea Klug, 1829 according to Lo Cascio et al. 2012: 527, although this is an unavailable name according to Article 45.6.4 of ICZN.

Pseudophotopsis continua subsp. arabica Hammer, 1962: 2, (♀ holotype), "Sufean, Lahej, Aden" (Yemen). Junior subjective synonym of Mutilla aurea Klug, 1829 according to Lelej and van Harten 2006: 7.

Diagnosis.

Male (Figs 3 View Figure 3 - 5 View Figure 5 ; 10A-C View Figure 10 ; 33A, B View Figure 33 ). Body length 12.3-18 mm. Head and mesosoma including tegula dark red (Figs 3C, D View Figure 3 ; 4A, C, D View Figure 4 ); antennal flagellomeres blackish-brown, at most F11 pale at the tip (Fig. 4B View Figure 4 ); posterior metasomal segments (4th to 7th) more or less brownish-yellow, distinctly contrasting with darkened anterior segments (Fig. 5B, C View Figure 5 ). First metasomal segment and S2 (except posteriorly) clothed with long white setae, remaining metasoma densely clothed with golden setae (Figs 5B, C View Figure 5 ; 10B, C View Figure 10 ); T1 with apical fringe of sparse white setae, T2-T6 and S2-S6 with apical fringes of dense golden setae (Figs 5B, C View Figure 5 ; 10B, C View Figure 10 ). POD 1.5-1.85 × OOD (Fig. 3D View Figure 3 ); distance between apex of lower mandibular tooth and upper mandibular ridge slightly longer than mandibular height at base (1.08-1.15 ×) (Fig. 4A View Figure 4 ); T1 rather sparsely foveate (Fig. 5B View Figure 5 ); metanotal horns well developed (1.7-1.8 × as long as wide), distinctly diverging toward the apex (Fig. 4C View Figure 4 ); fore wing wholly deeply infumate in most specimens, with dark brown veins (Fig. 5A View Figure 5 ), with 3rd abscissa of Rs distinctly longer than crossvein r-rs (usually 1.3-1.4 ×, in few specimens reaches 2 ×) (Fig. 5A View Figure 5 ). Cuspis of volsella narrow apically, digitate (Fig. 33B View Figure 33 ); parapenial lobe subrounded, with broadly rounded apex (Fig. 33A View Figure 33 ); genital ventral lobe, rounded apically, with outer margin slightly concave (Fig. 33B View Figure 33 ).

Female (Figs 6 View Figure 6 - 9 View Figure 9 ). Body length 15.5-17 mm. Propodeum, T2 and T3 with yellowish-white to golden setae (Fig. 6A View Figure 6 ); T1-T5 and S2-S5 with apical fringes of compact golden setae (Figs 8D View Figure 8 ; 9C View Figure 9 ). Vertex with distinct anterior and posterior ocelli (Fig. 7A View Figure 7 ); distance between apex of mandibular lower tooth and upper mandibular ridge nearly as long as mandibular height at base; interspaces between foveae or punctures on frons, vertex and mesosomal dorsum irregularly coarsely tuberculate (Figs 7A, B, D View Figure 7 ; 8A View Figure 8 ); propodeal dorsal face distinctly widened laterally, sharply declivitous posteriorly (truncate), 0.50-0.55 × as long as maximal width (Figs 7D View Figure 7 ; 8A View Figure 8 ); meso- and metapleura punctate (Fig. 8A View Figure 8 ); mid and hind tibiae with strong prolongation at their apices (Fig. 8B, C View Figure 8 ); hind tibia without a groove on inner face (Fig. 8C View Figure 8 ); T6 with oval-shaped pygidial area, finely rugose on disc and obliquely striate laterally (Fig. 9B View Figure 9 ).

Remarks.

Examination of Pseudophotopsis kassalina f. semiaurata Bischoff, 1920 (Fig. 10A-D View Figure 10 ), through a series of photos taken of the “type” specimen kept in MSNG, confirm synonymizing of this form with P. aurea (Klug) as proposed by Lo Cascio et al. (2012), and contributes to reinforcing the identity of the new P. subaurea described here. On the other hand, the same authors (2012) considered this form as unavailable infrasubspecific name according to the article 45.6.4 of ICZN, where Bischoff (1920) specified it as a form, but specified other taxa in the genus (e.g. Pseudophotopsis maura ) as subspecies, showing that he considered Pseudophotopsis semiaurata to be infrasubspecific.

Material examined.

1♂ ( Eritrea, Arafali ), Leg. Magretti P. [ “Holotype” of P. kassalina f. semiaurata Bischoff, MSNG] ; 1♂ (WY1), 11.x.2013, LT, leg. Rasool I. [KSMA]; 1♂ (WBQ), 04.xi.2013, LT, leg. Al-Dhafer et al. [KSMA]; 2♂ (SH5), 2♂ (SH6), 2♂ (SH7), 1♂ (SH8), 21.iv.2014, LT, leg. Al-Dhafer et al. [KSMA]; 1♂ (SH5), 6♂ (SH8), 3.vi.2014, LT, leg. Al-Dhafer et al. [KSMA]; 1♀ (SH5), 1♀ (SH8), 5.vi.2014, PT, leg. Al-Dhafer et al. [KSMA]; 1♂ (GR1), 1♂ (GR2), 8.vi.2014, LT, leg. Al-Dhafer et al. [KSMA]; 1♂ (GR2), 26.viii.2014, LT, leg. Al-Dhafer et al. [KSMA]; 1♂ (WR2), 20.x.2014, LT, leg. Al-Harbi M. & Rasool I. [KSMA]; 1♂ (WN2), 10.xii.2014, LT, leg. Al-Dhafer et al. [KSMA]; 1♂ (SH5), 2♂ (SH6), 2♂ (SH7), 3.vi.2015, LT, leg. Al-Dhafer et al. [KSMA]; 1♂ (SH8), 27.vii.2015, LT, leg. Al-Dhafer et al. [KSMA]; 1♂ (GR3), 2♂ (GR4), 31.vii.2015, LT, leg. Al-Dhafer et al. [KSMA]; 1♀ (GR2), 31.vii.2015, PT, leg. Al-Dhafer et al. [KSMA]; 1♂ (SH2), 1♂ (SH3), 1♂ (SH7), 2.ix.2015, LT, leg. Al-Dhafer et al. [KSMA]; 2♂ (SH2), 12.xi.2015, LT, leg. Al-Dhafer et al. [KSMA]; 1♂ (SH5), 1♂ (SH6), 15.xi.2015, LT, leg. Al-Dhafer et al. [KSMA]; 1♀ (SH1), 15.xi.2015, HP, leg. AMS [KSMA]; 1♂ (SH1), 14.xi.2015, LT, leg. Ahmed M. Soliman (AMS) [KSMA]; 1♂ (SH3), 18.xi.2015, LT, leg. Al-Dhafer et al. [KSMA]; 1♂ & 1♀ (SH4), 24.iii.2017, LT for ♂ and HP for ♀, leg. AMS [KSMA]; 1♂ (WM1), 4.iv.2017, LT, leg. AMS [KSMA]; 1♂ ( Al-Sajid ), 28.iv.2017, LT, leg. Abu-Elghiet U. & El-Sheikh T. [KSMA] ; 1♀ ( Al-Huseis ), 28.iv.2017, PT, leg. Abu-Elghiet U. & El-Sheikh T. [KSMA] ; 1♀ ( Al-Mashoor ), 29.iv.2017, PT, leg. Abu-Elghiet U. & El-Sheikh T. [KSMA] ; 1♀ (WRY), 7.iv.2019, HP, leg. AMS [KSMA]; 1♂ (WM2), 11.iv.2019, LT, leg. AMS [KSMA]; 1♂ (WK), 12.iv.2019, LT, leg. AMS [KSMA].

Distribution in the Arabian Peninsula.

Sana’a, Socotra and Ta’izz provinces (Yemen) ( Lelej and van Harten 2006; Lo Cascio et al. 2012; Madl 2018); Al-Baha, Asir, Jazan, and Makkah regions (southwestern Saudi Arabia) (Fig. 1 View Figure 1 ).

Global distribution.

Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Sudan, Yemen ( Gadallah et al. 2020).