Anagonia scutellata (Malloch)

Delta scutellata Malloch, 1930:334. Synonymy by Crosskey (1973:139).

Type. Holotype male in ANIC [formerly in SPHTM], Mullewa, Western Australia.

Male. Exceedingly similar to A. tillyardi and doubtfully distinct (see below). Differs mainly in colour of tarsal segments, which are uniformly dark. No difference observed in terminalia. However, specimens other than those from ACT almost all (11/13) with 3 presutural dorsocentral bristles on at least one side and lacking the pair of submedian marginal bristles on abdominal tergite 3. Specimens from ACT rarely (5/20) with 3 presutural dorsocentral bristles and all with differentiated submedian marginals on tergite 3.

Female. Differs from A. tillyardi in colour and bristle characters as for the male; but indistinguishable from female of A. propinqua (see below).

Distribution. Widespread on the Australian mainland. I have also seen a male, apparently of this species, from Wau in Papua New Guinea.

Biology. Specimens have been reared from larvae of the chrysomelids Liliocentris bakewelli (Baly) and Chrysophtharta m-fuscum (Boheman). The remainder were taken at light.

Notes. The relatively slight difference from A. tillyardi, and especially the complete correspondence in fine detail of the male terminalia, suggests that A. scutellata cannot be maintained as a separate species. It could, perhaps, represent a variant “form”, breeding in an unusual host. Even more bothersome is the possibility that this might be true of the ACT specimens, whereas the others, with their rather distinctive chaetotaxy, may comprise yet another, different species. It is certainly true that reared specimens of A. scutellata (one from Queensland, and a long series from ACT) are from hosts from which A. tillyardi has never been reared.

Principal Component analysis of head measurements (not shown) does show a degree of separation of the two species, but of no diagnostic value. The situation is intriguing, but the evidence either way inconclusive. Since there exists a

holotype male for scutellata —and therefore an available name—it seems best to let the matter rest there for the present.