Robber flies (Insecta: Diptera: Asilidae) of Wyoming, USA with keys to genera and species
Author
Lavigne, Robert J.
Author
Dennis, Steve
text
Zootaxa
2019
2019-08-30
4662
1
1
126
journal article
25823
10.11646/zootaxa.4662.1.1
7070ef91-15db-4b7e-a87d-72e7b0bdb192
1175-5326
3383448
366A1E81-946C-4ED4-8A65-C51151FE87CC
Pogonioefferia bicaudata
(Hine)
Erax bicaudatus
Hine 1919: 138
.
Recognition characters:
Gray species; length
15–22 mm
; mystax white with few black bristles on oral margin; bristles and setae of mesonotum largely black, postpronotal setae white, notopleurals straw white, other marginal bristles variable in color; meral bristles straw white; scutellar setae largely white, few black, marginal bristles straw white; in males abdominal tergites 2–5 white setae, segments 6 and 7 silvery white pollinose; legs brown, the femora being darker than tibiae and tarsi. Can be differentiated from
P. helenae
on the basis of the structure of the male basistyle that has a short pointed upper arm in
bicaudata
, which is lacking in
P. helenae
. Female cerci arise medially in
P. bicaudata
, but ventrally in
P. helenae
.
Distribution:
ALBANY:
11 km
E of Centennial,
2–30 Aug. 1960
(
RJL
); West Laramie,
18 July–1 Aug. 1960
(
RJL
),
9 Oct.
(
RJL
). BIG HORN:
11 km
from junction of Rte. 20 and local road to Burlington,
22 Aug. 1963
(
RJL
,
LJS
); Greybull,
7 Sept. 1965
(
RJL
); FREMONT: Gas Hills Rd., Riverton,
9 Sept. 1963
(
RJL
,
LJS
),
21 Aug. 1964
(
RJL
,
FRH
);
16 km
S of Shoshoni (
RJL
). LARAMIE: Cheyenne,
18 Oct.1956
; Laramie,
1 Sept. 1945
(
REP
); Pine Bluffs,
5 Sept. 1964
(
LJS
). NATRONA: South Fork of Powder River at Highway
20, 3 km
W of town of Powder River (
HBL
) (two specimens in
CAS
). NIOBRARA:
4 Sept. 1943
(
REP
). PLATTE: Camp
Guernsey
, WANG, 2001b, (
CSU
,
GMAD
); Dwyer,
18 Aug.–10 Sept. 1959
,
27 July–3 Aug. 1960
(
RJL
); Glendo,
5 Sept. 1957
, (
DRT
); Gray Rocks Ranch, Camp
Guernsey
,
29 Aug.–5 Sept. 2008
(
CSU
,
GMAD
;
Guernsey
,
8 Aug. 1952
(
REP
), 4 Aug.–9 Oct. 1960,
25 Aug 1961
,
5 Sept. 1962
,
1 Sept. 1965
(
RJL
). Recorded from Wyoming by:
Dennis
et al.
(2009
,
2010
) (as
Efferia bicaudata
);
Geller-Grimm (2018)
; Lavigne [(1964) (misidentified, corrected to
Efferia helenae
in
Lavigne & Holland (1969)
].
The revision of the genus
Efferia
by
Wilcox (1966b)
has required a reevaluation of the paper by Lavigne (1964). Subsequent reexamination of the genitalia of the specimens formerly referred to as
Efferia bicaudata
has revealed that all the biological observations refer to
Pogonioefferia helenae
(Bromley)
. The map (
Fig. 1
) shown in Lavigne (1964) should be disregarded since it refers to a complex of 3 species.
Habitat:
Saltbrush-greasewood shrub, sagebrush steppe shrub and grassland, and grama-needlegrass-wheatgrass and grama-buffalo grass grassland vegetation
types
. Open range, short-mid grass plains.
Ethology:
Rests on and forages from soil.
Prey:
The prey records in Lavigne (1964), which should be referred to
bicaudata
, are included in the following records. Glendo should have instead read Dwyer and prey records for Glendo other than the ones included here should be regarded as suspect.
DIPTERA
,
Bombyliidae
:
Pthiria sulphurea
Loew
,
Guernsey
,
1 Oct. 1960
;
Poecilanthrax
sp.;
Systoechus vulgaris
Loew, Centennial
,
30 Aug. 1960
;
Villa
sp. (two records).
HEMIPTERA (Homoptera)
,
Cicadellidae
:
Balclutha neglecta
(DeLong and Davidson)
, West Laramie,
26 July 1960
;
Cuerna gladiola
Oman and Beamer, Dwyer
,
19 Aug. 1959
.
HYMENOPTERA
,
Braconidae
:
Ascogaster rufa
Muesebeck and Walkley
, West Laramie,
25 July 1960
;
Formicidae
:
Halictidae
:
Lasioglossum
(
Chloralictus
)
sp.;
Pompilidae
:
Anoplius
sp. LEPI- DOPTERA,
Noctuidae
:
Platyperigea camina
(Smith)
, Gas Hills Road, Riverton,
9 Oct. 1963
.
ORTHOPTERA
,
Acrididae
:
Melanoplus infantilis
Scudder, Centennial
,
19 Aug. 1960
;
Opeia obscura
(Thomas)
,
Guernsey
,
9 Oct. 1960
;
Trimerotropis gracilis
(Thomas)
,
16 km
S of Shoshoni,
5 Oct. 1966
;
Trimerotropis pistrinaria
Saussure, Greybull
,
7 Oct. 1965
.
DIPTERA
,
HEMIPTERA (Homoptera)
,
HYMENOPTERA
,
LEPIDOPTERA
,
ORTHOPTERA
(see
Dennis
et al.
2009
,
2010
;
Lavigne & Pfadt 1966
;
Rogers & Lavigne 1972
, all as
Efferia bicaudata
).