Traumatomutilla funebris Gerstaecker, 1874

Bartholomay, Pedro R., Williams, Kevin A., Cambra, Roberto A., Lopez, Vinícius M. & Oliveira, Marcio L., 2025, Revision of the Traumatomutilla quadrinotata species-group (Hymenoptera: Mutillidae, Sphaeropthalminae): new synonyms, sex associations, and a new species from the Brazilian Atlantic Forest, European Journal of Taxonomy 995, pp. 1-75 : 26-28

Traumatomutilla funebris Gerstaecker, 1874

Fig. 7

Mutilla funebris Gerstaecker, 1874: 75 .

Ephuta (Traumatomutilla) funebris – André 1902: 55.

Traumatomutilla funebris – André 1904: 40.

Diagnosis

Female

Occipital carinae equally wide throughout; anterolateral carinae lacking in scutellar area; post mesonotal tubercle absent; lateral surface of propodeum densely but not evenly sculptured, with conspicuously wide intervals; body setae pattern black and silvery-white in color, restricted to propodeum on mesosomal dorsum.

Male

Unknown.

Type material

Holotype BRAZIL • ♀; Minas Gerais; S.v. Langsdorf leg.; ZMB.

Other material examined (4 ♀♀)

BRAZIL • Minas Gerais • 1 ♀; Serra do Caraça ; 1380 m [above sea leve]; Nov. 1961; Kloss, Lenko, Martins and Silva leg.; MNCN • 1 ♀; Serra do Cipó, Monte Ribeiro ; 6 Feb. 1939; Lopes and Tupinambá leg.; MNCN. – Locality unknown • 2 ♀♀; MNHN .

Description

Female

BODY LENGTH. 15–17 mm.

HEAD. Posterior margin straight, with occipital equally wide throughout. Vertex width 0.8 × pronotal width. Eye almost circular, its length in frontal view almost equal to the distance from its ventral margin to mandibular condyle. Front, vertex, and gena densely and coarsely foveolate-punctate with irregular intervals; sculpture sparser on malar space. Genal carina present. Mandible oblique, tapering slightly towards apex with small subapical tooth, unarmed ventrally. Dorsal scrobal carinae well defined, narrowly separated from antennal tubercles, connected to well-defined lateral scrobal carina. Antennal tubercle coarsely punctate to irregularly rugose. Flagellomere 1 2.0× pedicel length; flagellomere 2 1.5× pedicel length.

MESOSOMA. Mesosomal length 1.5× width; pronotum 0.85 × as wide as mesothorax. Mesosomal dorsum densely and coarsely areolate-reticulate with sharp irregular intervals. Humeral carina well developed, slightly projected apically, separated from projected subangulate epaulet; anterolateral corners of pronotum angulate in dorsal view. Pronotal spiracle almost flat against lateral margin of pronotum. Anterior surface of pronotum coarsely punctate dorsad to vestigially, coarsely and longitudinally striate ventrad. Lateral surface of pronotum sparsely and coarsely punctured, with dense micropunctures and conspicuous blunt tubercle anteroventral in relation to pronotal spiracle. Mesopleuron partially concealed by dense setation, micropunctate anteriorly and densely coarsely foveolate-punctate along mesopleural margin where visible. Metapleuron partially concealed by dense setation, except at dorsal fourth unsculptured and smooth. Lateral surface of propodeum partially concealed by dense setation, densely and coarsely areolate-punctate, with vestigially rugose intervals. Post-spiracular area absent. Ratios of width of humeral angles, pronotal spiracles, widest point of mesonotum, narrowest point of mesonotum and propodeum posterior to propodeal spiracles, 66: 76: 86:58: 56. Lateral margin of mesonotum strongly constricted anterior to propodeal spiracle, strongly diverging anterad, medially projected, into blunt tooth-like process; with small inconspicuous tubercle posterior to lateral process. Propodeal spiracle strongly projected from lateral margin of propodeum; post-spiracular area absent. Scutellar scale present, reduced, as narrow as surrounding sculpture; anterolateral carinae absent; intervals irregular on scutellar area, not scabrous. Propodeum gibbose, dorsal surface much shorter than and poorly distinguished from posterior surface.

METASOMA. Ratios of width of T1, width of T2 and length of T2, 33: 75: 78. Disc of T2 densely and coarsely foveolate-punctate to punctate with dense, interspersed micropunctures; foveolations sparser and micropunctures absent laterally and over integumental spots. T3–5 predominantly concealed by dense setation, densely and coarsely foveolate-punctate to 198 simply punctate with interspersed micropunctures where visible; T6 sculpture, except pygidial plate, predominantly concealed by dense setation, densely and coarsely foveolate-punctate. S1 sparsely, coarsely and confusedly foveolate-punctate, longitudinally convex (wedge-like), ending in short blunt longitudinal carina, equally high throughout. S2 densely and coarsely foveolate-punctate, sculpture conspicuously sparser posteromediad; anteromedial crest-fold present, reduced. S3–5 sculpture mostly concealed by dense setation, densely and finely foveolate-punctate with sparse micropunctures where visible; S6 densely foveolate-punctate. Pygidial plate subpyriform, defined by lateral carinae at apical fourth of plate; surface irregularly rugose; interstice apparently granulose.

Coloration and variations

Female

Integument black except for mandibles and antennal flagellomeres partially reddish-brown, and T2 with two pairs of subovate (anterior pair) and subquadrate (posterior pair) orange integumental spots; older or poorly conserved specimens may have the spots with darker more reddish tones.

Male

Unknown.

Distribution

Brazil (Minas Gerais).

Remarks

All specimens examined are from higher altitude areas (1300–1700 m a.s.l.) transitioning between Cerrado and Atlantic Forest in Minas Gerais State, Brazil. Although the holotype has no indication of the specific location in which it was collected, it is also from Minas Gerais. This high-altitude distribution could be purely coincidental, but it is worth pointing out that Minas Gerais is one of the most relatively well-sampled areas in Brazil for velvet ants and no specimens of T. funebris were recorded in lower altitude areas so far. The large orange spots on T2 (darkened by age on the holotype) and indistinct appressed silvery-golden setae on the lateral propodeal surface of T. funebris are reminiscent of the pattern observed in T. quadrinotata . Both species are nonetheless distinct structurally, especially on the sculpture of the lateral propodeal surface and shape of the lateral mesonotal projections. Similar resemblances and differences can be observed between Hoplomutilla spinosa (Swederus, 1787) and Hoplomutilla serena (Mickel, 1939) which occur in Atlantic Forest and Cerrado/Atlantic Forest areas respectively (PRB pers. obs.). Further collecting in higher altitude areas of Minas Gerais may reveal the male of this rare species.

Figures

Fig. 7. Traumatomutilla funebris (Gerstaecker, 1874), holotype, ♀ (ZMB). A. Dorsal habitus. B. Type labels. C. Lateral habitus. Scale bars = 2 mm.