Species account taken from "A Revision of the Genus Neolarra (Hymenoptera: Nomadidae)
Author(s): Charles D. MichenerSource: Transactions of the American Entomological Society (1890-), Vol. 65, No. 4 (Dec., 1939),pp. 347-362"
This is a rather slender, densely pruinose, species, quite variable in abdominal coloration. It is most closely related to
prinosa, differing by the smaller tubercles, blacker legs, and the
slightly more distinct abdominal fasciae. Pubescence white,
somewhat brown on dorsum of head and thorax.
Female. Head: Eyes, where closest, separated by less than length of an
eye; distance from median ocellus to posterior edge of vertex a little over
half distance from median ocellus to bases of antennae; first segment of
flagellum almost as long as broad and nearly as long as pedicel; flagellum
testaceous beneath, dark brown above; anterior margin of clypeus test
aceous; labrum testaceous; mandibles testaceous except for red apices.
Thorax: Width of thorax across tubercles of pronotum less than width
across mesepisterna; pronotal tubercles and tegulae black; axillae as in
figure 3; process of metanotum bilobed; legs black, bases and apices of
tibiae testaceous, tarsi dusky black; wings with two recurrent and two
transverse cubital veins. Abdomen: Dark red, tergites four to six and
sternites four to five dusky, nearly black; pubescence of abdomen distributed over surface, but distinctly more abundant at posterior margins
of tergites one to five than elsewhere, forming weak fasciae ; margin of fifth
tergite with shallow emargination. Length, 5 mm.
Male. Similar to female but basal four segments of flagellum black; first
segment of flagellum longer than broad and as long as pedicel; anterior
tarsi testaceous; abdomen black; process of seventh tergite rather broad,
short, pointed (Fig. 9), testaceous. Length, 5 mm.
Holotype female (Calif. Acad. Sei. Ent. No. 4571), allotype
male (Calif. Acad. Sei. Ent. No. 4572), and three paratypes:
Five miles east of Oakley, Contra Costa County, California; September 26, 1937, (C. D. Michener) ; two paratypes from same
locality, September 19, 1937, (G. E. and R. M. Bohart).
Paratypes are in the collections of the American Entomological
Society, the Boharts and the author.
In some females the abdomen is almost entirely black, while
in others it is black except for the first two tergites.
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