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Northern Range Extension of Psorthaspis sanguinea (Smith) (Hymenoptera:Pompilidae) and a Record of Psorthaspis mariae (Cresson) From the Delmarva Peninsula
Christopher M. Heckscher

Northeastern Naturalist, Volume 21, Issue 4 (2014): N53–N55

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N53 2014 Northeastern Naturalist Notes Vol. 21, No. 4 C.M. Heckscher Northern Range Extension of Psorthaspis sanguinea (Smith) (Hymenoptera:Pompilidae) and a Record of Psorthaspis mariae (Cresson) From the Delmarva Peninsula Christopher M. Heckscher* Abstract - Specimens representing the Pompilid genus Psorthaspis are uncommon in collections. The spider wasp Psorthaspis sanguinea is a fairly large and striking pompilid that probably preys on members of the Family Ctenizidae (trapdoor spiders). There are few published distribution records for this wasp species in eastern North America and none north of Florida since 1952. I report the capture of an adult female on 6 August 2003 from a coastal xeric Pinus sp. (pine) forest at Cape Henlopen State Park, Sussex County, DE. This record represents a northern range extension for the species east of the Mississippi River and perhaps range-wide. The collection site is >300 km from the nearest known collection site in North Carolina. I also report the capture of the congener P. mariae from a different site in Sussex County, DE, taken on 9 July 2003. This individual was captured in a semi-xeric pine forest on an ancient inland sand ridge bordering the Nanticoke River. Although P. mariae is known from as far north as New Jersey, this record represents a Delaware state record, a Delmarva Peninsula record, and fills a distribution gap for the species. In the northeast, it appears that both species may be affiliated with forested sand formations. Spider wasps (Hymenoptera: Pompilidae) are solitary wasps that prey on spiders. Genera often specialize on specific spider taxa (Kurczewski and Kurczewski 1968). Therefore, the distribution of many species may be limited by prey availability. Further, Pompilids are notoriously difficult to capture in the field because they are fast fliers and runners, build or provision isolated nests rapidly, often in concealed areas, and have a potent sting (Kurczewski and Kurczewski 1987). These attributes are likely partly responsible for the lack of published information regarding the distribution and life history of many spider wasp species. The Pompilid genus Psorthaspis Banks is especially uncommon in collections, and its life-history characteristics are not well documented. Prey records appear to be lacking for all but one species, P. planata (Fox). Psorthaspis planata is known to prey on trapdoor spiders (Ctenizidae; Bradley 1944, Davidson 1905, Evans 1966). The head and prothorax of all species in the genus are modified, which likely aids in the extraction of recalcitrant prey from their burrows, and it seems probable that all members of the genus prey on trapdoor spiders (Evans 1966). Evans (1966) suggested that Psorthaspis originated in Mexico, yet several species reach the southeastern United States, with the genus represented as far north as New Jersey (Evans 1966). In all, about 40 species have been described, most of which occur from Mexico to Colombia (Bradley 1944; Evans 1954, 1966). Female Psorthaspis sanguinea (Smith) are fairly large, striking pompilids (Fig. 1). On 6 August 2003, I collected a female P. sanguinea at Cape Henlopen State Park, Sussex County, DE (38°46'24''N, 75°5'23''W). I identified the specimen with keys presented in Bradley (1944) and by comparison with specimens at the US National Museum, Washington, DC. I captured the wasp with a sweep net as it flew rapidly in a zig-zag fashion about 20 cm above the ground adjacent to a sandy trail where it was apparently searching for prey. To the best of my knowledge, this specimen represents the only record of P. sanguinea from Delaware *Department of Agriculture and Natural Resources, Delaware State University. 1200 North DuPont Highway, Dover, Delaware 19901; checkscher@desu.edu. Manuscript Editor: Daniel Pavuk Notes of the Northeastern Naturalist, Issue 21/4, 2014 2014 Northeastern Naturalist Notes Vol. 21, No. 4 N54 C.M. Heckscher or the Delmarva Peninsula, is the northernmost confirmed record from the Atlantic Coastal Plain physiographic province, and may represent the northernmost North American record. Published records of P. sanguinea are from Arkansas, Colorado, Florida, Kansas, North Carolina, and Texas (Bradley 1944, Evans 1997, Krombein 1952, Leavengood et al. 2011). Thus, the Delaware specimen represents a significant northern range extension for this species east of the Mississippi River. I was unable to find a published eastern record of P. sanguinea from anywhere north of Florida since Krombein’s 1952 survey of Kill Devil Hills, NC, a period of 62 years. Published habitat associations for P. sanguinea and other members of the genus appear to be scarce. Cape Henlopen is a somewhat unusual natural area for the Delmarva Peninsula in that it is an isolated coastal and inland dune system with extensive areas of xeric or semixeric pine forest—mostly Pinus rigida P. Mill. (Pitch Pine) and Pinus taeda L. (Loblolly Pine). I captured my specimen of P. sanguinea in this pine forest. Two North Carolina locations of P. sanguinea published in Bradley (1944)—“vicinity of Southern Pines, 1908 and the city of Raleigh, date unknown”—lack habitat information but suggest capture in or near the Carolina Sandhills region which is dominated by sandy pine forests. Krombein (1952) published two North Carolina records from the coastal Kill Devil Hills natural area. Like my specimen, these wasps were also captured in a sandy forest community. Given that the origin of Psorthaspis is the American southwest and Mexico, it seems likely that P. sanguinea is at least loosely associated with xeric or semi-xeric natural community types like those found at Cape Henlopen, the North Carolina sandhills region, and the Kill Devil Hills capture sites. Evans (1954) noted that the distribution of Psorthaspis closely follows Figure 1. Psorthaspis sanguinea (Smith) captured at Cape Henlopen State Park, Sussex County, DE, on 6 August 2003. The collection of this specimen extends the range of the species >300 km north from its previous northernmost collection site in North Carolina. N55 2014 Northeastern Naturalist Notes Vol. 21, No. 4 C.M. Heckscher the distribution of the Ctenizidae, so habitat associations may ultimately be limited by the distribution of a yet unrecognized species of trapdoor spider occupying dry sandy forests in this region. On the Atlantic Coastal Plain, only one other member of the genus is known to occur as far north as Delaware: P. mariae (Cresson) recorded from New Jersey (Bradley 1944). On 9 July 2003, I collected a single specimen of P. mariae from a forest on an inland ancient sand ridge bordering the Nanticoke River, Sussex County, DE (38°34'54''N, 75°39'29''W). That specimen represents a state and peninsular record, and its capture fills a distribution gap for the species. Like the collection of P. sanguinea noted above, I captured P. mariae in a pine forest. Krombein et al. (1979) note that P. mariae is associated with forests but provide no other details. I captured both Delaware Psorthaspis species from geographically separate and geologically isolated xeric- to semi-xeric forested inland sand formations, and it appears that these species may be associated with such edaphic conditions. I have made no attempt to relocate either species in Delaware since 2003. Both specimens remain in my private collection, which is currently housed at Delaware State University, Dover, DE. The occurrence of a disjunct location for P. sanguinea at Delaware’s Cape Henlopen enriches the ecological value of this isolated coastal xeric pine forest system. Acknowledgments. I thank F. Kurczewski for encouragement and conversation regarding the rarity of these two wasps in this region. Both specimens were collected while conducting survey work for the Delaware Natural Heritage and Endangered Species Program, Delaware Division of Fish and Wildlife, Dover, DE. Literature Cited Bradley, J.C. 1944. A preliminary revision of the Pompilinae (exclusive of the tribe Pompilini) of the Americas. Transactions of the American Entomological Society 70:23–157. Davidson, A. 1905. An enemy of the trapdoor spider. Entomological News 14:233–234. Evans, H.E. 1954. The genus Psorthaspis on the Mexican Central Plateau (Hymenoptera: Pompilidae). American Novitates. No. 1662. American Museum of Natural History, New York, NY. Evans, H.E. 1966. A revision of the Mexican and Central American spider wasps of the subfamily Pompilinae (Hymenoptera: Pompilidae). Memoirs of the American Entomological Society No. 20. 442 pp. Evans, H.E. 1997. Spider wasps of Colorado (Hymentoptera, Pompilidae): An annotated checklist. Great Basin Naturalist 57:189–197. Krombein, K.V. 1952. Biological and taxonomic observations on the wasps in a coastal area of North Carolina (Hymenoptera: Aculeata). The Wasmann Journal of Biology 10:257–341. Krombein, K.V., P.D. Hurd, Jr., D.R. Smith, and B.D. Burks. 1979. Catalog of Hymenoptera in America North of Mexico. Volume 2 (Aculeata). Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC. 2735 pp. Kurczewski, F.E., and E.J. Kurczewski. 1968. Host records for some North American Pompilidae (Hymenoptera) with a discussion of factors in prey selection. Kansas Entomological Society 41:1–33. Kurczewski, F.E., and E.J. Kurczewski. 1987. Northern distribution records for some Nearctic Pompilidae (Hymenoptera). The Great Lakes Entomologist 20:81–84. Leavengood, J.M., C. Waichert, and J. Rodriguez. 2011. A distributional checklist of the spider wasps (Hymenoptera:Pompilidae) of Florida. Insecta Mundi 0161:1–8.