Lectotype Designation for Mutilla purpurata Smith ...

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Saunders collections in Oxford, duplicates being retained at the British. Museum. The formal designation of a lectotype for Mutilla purpurata. Smith is especially ...
Vol.

43, No.

4, October,

1970

381

FOR MUTILLA LECTOTYPE DESIGNATION PURPURATA SMITH, 1879, FROM SOUTH AFRICA * Mutillidae ) (Hymenoptera: D.

J. Brothers

During research to determine the type species for the genus Mimeco I discovered that mutilla Ashmead, 1903 (Canad. Entomol. 35:327), there are two supposed "type" specimens (males) forMutilla pur pur at a in the Col of New Species of Hymenoptera Smith, 1879 (Descriptions lection of the British Museum, p. 190), the species which Ashmead named as the type of Mimecomutilla. One of these is in the British Museum and other is in the Hope Department, the (Natural History) Oxford University Museum (Day, 1969, in litt.). A similar situation is discussed for certain species of Scoliidae by Bradley and Betrem (1967, Bull. Br. Mus. Natur. Hist. (Ent.)20(7) :290), who point out that much of Smith's type material was returned to the Hope-Westwood and Saunders collections in Oxford, duplicates being retained at the British Museum. The formal designation of a lectotype for Mutilla purpurata Smith is especially necessary, since the two supposed "type" specimens are not conspecific, although they are congeneric (O'Toole and Day, 1969, in litt.). In the present case it is evident that the Oxford specimen (Cat. No. cannot be considered the "type." The British Museum HYM:229) specimen (B. M. Type Hym. 15.569) is very probably the genuine type for the following reasons: 1. In his original description Smith (1879) gave the "habitat" of M. as

purpurata specimen

are

"Natal." "Port

The

accessions

coll.:

Natal,

data

Gueinzius,

for

the

purchased

British of

Museum

Stevens,

1858,"

specimen are "Damaraland / S. Africa / An The locality of the Oxford specimen is derson/Stivery [or Suvery?]." far from that given by Smith, since Damaraland is on the west coast of southern Africa (in South West Africa) and Natal is on the east coast. more 2. The British Museum agrees specimen closely with Smith's than does the Oxford specimen. The only discrepancy is description in the color of the propodeum (Smith's "metathorax"), which Smith de scribed as black. This is true of the British Museum specimen, except that the propodeum is ferruginous on the anterior third. The entire dor sum of the propodeum in the Oxford specimen is ferruginous, however. 3. The British Museum specimen bears a type label in Smith's hand but the data on the Oxford

writing. 1

Contribution

Kansas, Journal

Lawrence, of

the

No. 1449 from 66044. Kansas Kansas

the Department of Entomology, for publication Accepted February

Entomological

Society

43:381-382.

University 3, 1970.

October,

1970.

of

382

the

of

Journal

Kansas

Entomological

Society

For these reasons I have selected the specimen in the British Mu seum (Natural History) as the lectotype of Mutilla pur pur at a Smith, 1879. The specimen bears the following labels, from top to bottom: 1. "Type, H. T." [printed label with red edge]; 2. "58. / 13" [upper face, accession number] "Pt Natal" [under side] [circular label]; 3. "Mutilla / purpurata / Natal Smith" [in Smith's handwriting]; 4. "BM TYPE/HYM [printed] / 15.569" [handwritten]; 5. "Lectotype 1879 / D. J. Brothers, / Mutilla purpurata / Smith, 1970" [handwritten, red]. The Natal," three

type the

other

of M.

locality

modern male

city

of

specimens

should

purpurata

Natal, Durban, of M. purpurata

be

South in

restricted Africa.

the British

to "Port There

Museum,

are two

from "Port Natal" and the third labeled "S. Africa." These may have been seen by Smith when he described this species. This cannot be con firmed,

The History) viding

however,

and

I have

thus

not

designated

any

paralectotypes.

assistance of Mr. M. C. Day of the British Museum (Natural and Mr. C. O'Toole of the Oxford University Museum in pro information

and

comparing

specimens

is gratefully

acknowledged.