Synonyms and other taxonomic changes
Leptomantispa pulchella (Banks, 1912)
=Mantispa pulchella (Banks, 1912)
=Mantispa zayasi (Alayo, 1968)
=Mantispilla zayasi Alayo, 1968
Orig. comb.: Mantispilla pulchella Banks, 1912
Explanation of Names
Leptomantispa pulchella (
Banks, 1912)
pulchella = from the Latin pulcher ('beautiful, pretty') + -ella (a diminutive suffix, i.e. 'little, small' or as a term of endearment)
Size
Forewing 6.60 - 11.55 mm ♀; 7.20 - 11.75 mm ♂. US specimens are smaller, reaching only 9.90 mm, with those in British Columbia often larger.
(1) In the US, generally smaller than
Dicromantispa sayi.
Identification
Pronotum with no appreciable transverse ridges but with numerous fine
setae visible in lateral view throughout its entire length
(1)
Pterostigma forming an angle of >40° with the end of the RA
Back of head almost always with a single, solid, nearly-rectangular mark.
Wing venation conspicuously simpler than in Dicromantispa sayi.
Range
widespread transcontinental; Canada (sw. ON & s. BC
(1)) south to Costa Rica
(2)Food
Hosts are spiders commonly found on foliage (Anaphaenidae, Salticidae, Clubioidae, etc.) who also build silken retreats on leaves and under bark
(1)Life Cycle
First-instar larvae board spiders to gain access to freshly laid eggs; they will not feed on eggs unless they have spent some time on the dorsum of the spider pedicel, where they apparently feed on the host's haemolymph
(1)See Also
Can be easily confused with paler specimens of
Dicromantispa sayi.