The family Mutillidae (Hymenoptera) is a species‐rich group of aculeate wasps that occur worldwide. The higher‐level classification of the family has historically been controversial due, in part, to ...the extreme sexual dimorphism exhibited by these insects and their morphological similarity to other wasp taxa that also have apterous females. Modern hypotheses on the internal higher classification of Mutillidae have been exclusively based on morphology and, further, they include Myrmosinae as a mutillid subfamily. In contrast, several molecular‐based family‐level studies of Aculeata recovered Myrmosinae as a nonmutillid taxon. To test the validity of these morphology‐based classifications and the phylogenetic placement of the controversial taxon Myrmosinae, a phylogenomic study of Mutillidae was conducted using ultraconserved elements (UCEs). All currently recognized subfamilies and tribes of Mutillidae were represented in this study using 140 ingroup taxa. The maximum likelihood criterion (ML) and the maximum parsimony criterion (MP) were used to infer the phylogenetic relationships within the family and related taxa using an aligned data set of 238,764 characters; the topologies of these respective analyses were largely congruent. The modern higher classification of Mutillidae, based on morphology, is largely congruent with the phylogenomic results of this study at the subfamily level, whereas the tribal classification is poorly supported. The subfamily Myrmosinae was recovered as sister to Sapygidae in the ML analysis and sister to Sapygidae + Pompilidae in the MP analysis; it is consequently raised to the family level, Myrmosidae, stat.nov. The two constituent tribes of Myrmosidae are raised to the subfamily level, Kudakrumiinae, stat.nov., and Myrmosinae, stat.nov. All four recognized tribes of Mutillinae were found to be non‐monophyletic; three additional mutilline clades were recovered in addition to Ctenotillini, Mutillini, Smicromyrmini, and Trogaspidiini sensu stricto. Three new tribes are erected for members of these clades: Pristomutillini Waldren, trib.nov., Psammothermini Waldren, trib.nov., and Zeugomutillini Waldren, trib.nov. All three recognized tribes of Sphaeropthalminae were found to be non‐monophyletic; six additional sphaeropthalmine clades were recovered in addition to Dasymutillini, Pseudomethocini, and Sphaeropthalmini sensu stricto. The subtribe Ephutina of Mutillinae: Mutillini was found to be polyphyletic, with the Ephuta genus‐group recovered within Sphaeropthalminae and the Odontomutilla genus‐group recovered as sister to Myrmillinae + Mutillinae. Consequently, the subtribe Ephutina is transferred from Mutillinae: Mutillini and is raised to a tribe within Sphaeropthalminae, Ephutini, stat.nov. Further, the taxon Odontomutillinae, stat.nov., is raised from a synonym of Ephutina to the subfamily level. The sphaeropthalmine tribe Pseudomethocini was found to be polyphyletic, with the subtribe Euspinoliina recovered as a separate clade in Sphaeropthalminae; consequently, Euspinoliina is raised to a tribe, Euspinoliini, stat.nov., in Sphaeropthalminae. The dasylabrine tribe Apteromutillini was recovered within Dasylabrini and is proposed as a new synonym of Dasylabrinae. Finally, dating analyses were conducted to infer the ages of the Pompiloidea families (Mutillidae, Myrmosidae, Pompilidae, and Sapygidae) and the ages of the Mutillidae subfamilies and tribes.
Phylogenomic and dating analyses of the aculeate wasp family Mutillidae were performed using ultraconserved elements. All currently recognized subfamilies and tribes of Mutillidae were represented using 140 ingroup taxa.
The subfamily Myrmosinae was recovered as sister to Sapygidae and not as a member of Mutillidae. The topology of the remaining mutillid subfamilies was mostly congruent with previous morphology‐based analyses.
All tribes of Dasylabrinae, Mutillinae, and Sphaeropthalminae were recovered as nonmonophyletic. Three new tribes were consequently diagnosed in the subfamily Mutillinae.
The male of
Xystromutilla
bucki
Suárez, 1960 is described and associated with the female based on couples reared from trap-nests occupied by
Auplopus
subaurarius
Dreisbach, 1963 (
Hymenoptera
:
...Pompilidae
). Information on the diapause of
X.
bucki
and
Pseudomethoca
nr.
chontalensis
(Cameron, 1895) (
Hymenoptera
:
Mutillidae
) is presented. Seasonal and annual variation in the abundance of
X.
turrialba
Casal, 1969 are also given.
Williams et al. (Syst. Entomol. 36: 180-191) discovered that all former members of the Dasymutilla bioculata species-group were synonymous. Here we present a study of Mexican and Caribbean species ...that closely resemble D. bioculata (Cresson). Dasymutilla bouveiri (Andre), Dasymutilla chionothrix Manley & Pitts, Dasymutilla concordia Manley & Pitts, Dasymutilla insulana Mickel, Dasymutilla latebalteata (Cameron), Dasymutilla nocticaro Manley & Pitts, Dasymutilla truxali Manley & Pitts, and Dasymutilla Veracruz Manley & Pitts are transferred to the D. bioculata species-group based on morphological similarities with D. bioculata. Placement in the D. bioculata species-group, coupled with overlapping disparate ranges, facilitate the following synonymies. D. truxali is a junior synonym of D. chionothrix. D. Veracruz is a junior synonym of D. latebalteata. D. concordia is a junior synonym of D. nocticaro. Genaro (Caribbean J. Sci. 33: 263-268) provided a key to the males of the Caribbean species, including Dasymutilla bouvieri and D. insulana, but these males were not satisfactorily described. Full descriptions are given for these males and diagnoses are provided for all members of the D. bioculata species-group.
This study presents the first report of the occurrence of Dasymutilla gloriosa (Hymenoptera: Mutillidae) on Carmen, Cerralvo (Jacques Cousteau), and San Marcos Islands, Baja California Sur. ...Additionally, we collected D. connectens and D. gloriosa on the mainland of the Peninsula at the Sierra Laguna Reserve, that corresponds to the geographical distribution of these Dasymutilla species. Several individuals were collected in the coastal dune zone and the sandy zones within the shrublands on the islands and sandy areas inside the xerophytic shrubland and deciduous forest at Sierra La Laguna. Two hypotheses were drawn about the arrival of the mutillids to the islands: 1) islands biogeographical history, and 2) anthropogenic influence.
•Fourteen southern islands of the Gulf of California were surveyed after almost 100 years.•New records for a velvet ant in Baja California Sur islands.•Hypothesis of the arrival of velvet ants through the islands.
This study aimed to resolve the differences in the two currently used classifications of Mutillidae, which differ in many respects. Cladistic analyses of 101 genera and subgenera of Mutillidae ...(represented by females of 253 species and males of 260 species) and four outgroups (pepsine Pompilidae, anthoboscine Tiphiidae and both fedtschenkiine and sapygine Sapygidae) based on 230 morphological characters treated in various ways, produced most-parsimonious trees which were in broad agreement but differed in many details. Evaluation of these results led to the proposal of a compromise tree which reflected each proposed taxon as monophyletic, while trying to keep disruptions to the current classifications to a minimum. The result differs from both previous classifications, and proposes the recognition of eight subfamilies: Myrmosinae (with the tribes Kudakrumiini and Myrmosini), Pseudophotopsidinae, Rhopalomutillinae, Ticoplinae (with the tribes Smicromyrmillini and Ticoplini), Sphaeropthalminae (with the tribes Sphaeropthalmini, Dasymutillini
trib. n.
, and Pseudomethocini with the subtribes Euspinoliina
subtrib. n.
and Pseudomethocina), Myrmillinae, Dasylabrinae (with the tribes Apteromutillini
trib. n.
and Dasylabrini) and Mutillinae (with the tribes Ctenotillini
trib. n.
, Smicromyrmini, Mutillini with the subtribes Ephutina and Mutillina, and Trogaspidiini). Notably, Myrmosinae were consistently strongly supported as monophyletic with the remaining Mutillidae (disagreeing with a recent molecular analysis), and thus retained as a mutillid subfamily. The placements of all currently valid genera and subgenera in the proposed classification are provided.
Abstract
The benefits of living in groups drive the evolution of sociality, and these benefits could vary across a life-cycle. However, there may be experimental problems in linking group size at one ...time in a life-cycle to benefits that only become apparent later on when group size has changed, leading to what we call “temporal dissonance”. In the only known social colletid bee, Amphylaeus morosus, parasite pressures arise at various times throughout the life-cycle from different parasitoid species. Amphylaeus morosus is impacted by eight different parasitoid species operating at different host-colony phenology phases, including five species of Gasteruption wasps, a bombyliid fly and two mutillid wasp species. We found that, as the reproductive season progressed, the number of host adults in a nest declined, often to zero, but the presence of even one adult host female during late brood-rearing stages appeared to offer substantial brood protection against mutillids. We propose that the apparent benefits of colony size at one point in time may not reflect the benefits that become apparent at a later point in the season, leading to a temporal dissonance between group size and its later fitness benefits. We also show that A. morosus is strongly protogynous, with variation in parasitoid pressure across the reproductive phenology distorting operational sex ratios away from initial investment ratios. Combined, our data suggest that seasonal variation in parasitoid pressure may have major consequences for understanding social evolution, but these kinds of consequences are largely unexplored in current studies of insect social evolution.
The benefits of group living drive social evolution, but these could vary over time and not be evident at all times that group size is measured. We found that important benefits of group size in a primitively social bee are only apparent late in the reproductive season when group size has dwindled and colonies may not even seem to be social. Understanding social evolution requires a whole-of-life viewpoint, and “snapshot” samples may not capture this.
This paper provides miscellaneous taxonomic updates for diurnal velvet ants in the USA. Six valid species of Dasymutilla Ashmead, 1899, one valid species of Ephuta Say, 1836 and six valid species of ...Pseudomethoca Ashmead, 1896 are regarded. Two new species are described: Pseudomethoca peremptrix sp. nov. and P. sonorae sp. nov. The female formerly associated with Dasymutilla zelaya (Blake, 1871) is recognized as a color variant of D. vestita (Lepeletier, 1845). Sixteen new synonymies are proposed: Dasymutilla chisos Mickel, 1928, syn. nov. under D. gloriosa (Saussure, 1868); D. cotulla Mickel, 1928, syn. nov., D. homole Mickel, 1928, syn. nov. and D. vandala Mickel, 1928, syn. nov. under D. vestita (Lepeletier, 1845); D. dorippa Mickel, 1928, syn. nov. under D. flammifera Mickel, 1928; D. ocydrome Mickel, 1928, syn. nov. under D. connectens (Cameron, 1895); Mutilla phaon Fox, 1899, syn. nov. under D. pseudopappus (Cockerell, 1895); M. zelaya Blake, 1871, syn. nov. under D. gorgon (Blake, 1871); Ephuta tentativa Schuster, 1951, syn. nov. under E. scrupea Say, 1836; P. dentifrontalis Bradley in Mickel, 1924, syn. nov. under P. athamas (Fox, 1899); P. albicoma Mickel, 1924, syn. nov., P. contumeliosa Mickel, 1935, syn. nov., P. manca Mickel, 1924, syn. nov. and P. oculissima Mickel, 1924, syn. nov. under P. contumax (Cresson, 1865); M. aeetis Fox, 1899, syn. nov. under P. sanbornii (Blake, 1871); and P. (Nomiaephagus) vanduzei Bradley, 1916, syn. nov. under P. wickhami (Cockerell & Casad, 1895).
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