Synonyms and other taxonomic changes
Triscolia ardens (Smith, 1855)
= Scolia Montezumae Saussure, 1857
= Scolia ardens Smith, 1855
= Scolia fervida Burmeister, 1853 - preoccupied by Scolia fervida Smith, 185 (junior synonym of Scolia cruenta Klug, 1810)
Explanation of Names
Triscolia ardens (Smith, 1855)
ardens = from the Latin ārdens ('burning, fiery, shining, brilliant, eager, passionate, ardent')
Size
♀ forewing 19.8 mm; body length 23.4 - 26.5 mm
(1)
♂ forewing 19.1 mm; body length 23.6 - 23.9 mm
(1)
(Noticeably larger than S. dubia haematodes.)
Identification
Forewing with three submarginal cells and a single recurrent vein which meets the posterior edge of the 2nd submarginal cell (see
diagram here).
(2) Wings very dark, violaceous; thorax entirely black; first two abdominal tergites mostly black, the remaining (posterior) tergites red and more bushy-hairy.
(3)
Males have a pseudostinger with three narrow spines projecting slightly beyond the tip of abdomen; females lack such spines.
Range
TX, NM, AZ, CA; and south into Mexico.
(3)(4)Habitat
Desert, e.g. the Mojave and Colorado deserts of California
(5)Remarks
Triscolia ardens is presumably the model for the dipteran mimic
Mydas ventralis.
See Also
Scolia dubia haematodes is nearly identical in coloration but is separated in terms of wing venation and a smaller size.
Comparison of wing venation between Scolia (left) and Triscolia (right). The genus Scolia has 2 submarginal cells whereas the genus Triscolia has 3 submarginal cells.
Print References
Betrem J.G., Bradley J.C. (1964). Annotations on the genera
Triscolia, Megascolia and
Scolia (Hymenoptera, Scoliidae). Zoologische Mededelingen 40: 89-96. (
Full text)
