Dicromantispa interrupta? - Entanoneura batesella

Moved

… Jonathan Hoskins, 26 December, 2020 - 12:05am

Moved

Moved from Mantidflies.

I'll let those with more expertise determine whether or not a species page is warranted.

… Ken Wolgemuth, 10 September, 2020 - 4:43pm

Entanoneura

More than 10 RS branches - it must be Entanoneura. It is unlikely that this is an undescribed species, most likely there is an isolated area of the batesella range in Florida. It seems that this is a novelty for the US fauna...

… Vladislav Grigorenko, 10 September, 2020 - 4:32pm

Different species

This has got to be a different species than what has been documented in the U.S. It has several unique features:
The color (brown and yellow), number of forks in wing venation (a dozen or more wishbones), and length/shape of neck (shorter, stouter, and curved) make these really distinct.
Compare side-by-side with the typical Dicromantispa sayi

I've only seen two others like this:
here and here

If someone can collect one of these unusual Florida specimens and send it to me, I can sequence the DNA to assist with identification.

… Russell Pfau, 15 February, 2020 - 9:54am

a third one

Here's a third one

… Russell Pfau, 15 February, 2020 - 10:15am

Doesn't look especially novel for potential D. sayi to me

I'm a bit rusty on all the taxonomic subtleties of Dicromantispa and its relation to similar-looking taxa, but I'd hazard to say this might be reasonably placed as D. sayi based on "current" circumscriptions (i.e. presuming things haven't changed since I studied the situation in 2013).

Note that D. sayi is a variable species, with at least two color forms...for details see "Identification" and "Remarks" headings on this BugGuide info page. So I don't think there's a clear notion a "typical D. sayi" in the vernacular sense. But the 3-banded antennae here seem compatible with the southern form of D. sayi...though the "chocolate & banana" body hues are similar color form of Leptomantispa pulchella. The saturated colors (and very slight "waviness" in the wings) make me wonder whether this may be a teneral individual?

I actually can't discern the wishbones well in the photo here. And, just to be clear, the "wishbones" characters is something I proposed in the remarks & comments here...and while the idea may be useful, I don't know whether formal mantispid taxonomists would fully embrace them ;-). Plus, they can be difficult to count without a clear transverse view of a single fore-wing edge (overlap can often make it hard to clearly discern & count the relevant "wishbones" from the morass of other veins when two wings are held closely together).

Finally, I don't know if the shape/length in the neck here is possibly diagnostic of it being something else. Perhaps it's just the result a voluntary movement that mantispids can make? Or simply individual variation? (Good old variation...the bane of dreams for a "tidy" taxonomy! ;-)

… Aaron Schusteff, 15 February, 2020 - 2:51pm

Is this Dicromantispa...

...or could it be another genus? I'll move this one (if warranted) and also the other BugGuide submission you referenced.

… Ken Wolgemuth, 15 February, 2020 - 10:08am

Moved

Moved from ID Request.

Not D. interrupta--but I can't tell you more than that, unfortuately. With luck, others will take the ID further.

… Ken Wolgemuth, 24 June, 2019 - 5:02pm