Subgenus Huaedes Huang, 1968
Aedes wauensis Huang, 1968.
Subfamily Culicinae, tribe Aedini, genus Aedes. Subgenus Huaedes includes three species. Subgenus abbreviation – Hua.
Species of subgenus Huaedes are ornate mosquitoes that have a dark-scaled proboscis which is longer than the forefemur, narrow scales covering the scutum, patches of broad pale scales on the thoracic pleura, including a large V-shaped patch on the mesepimeron, femora sprinkled with yellow scales, tarsi with narrow basal pale bands and abdominal segment VIII of females is partially retracted into segment VII. These and following features distinguish subgenus Huaedes from other generic-level taxa of tribe Aedini.
ADULTS – Decumbent scales of vertex largely pale and narrow; erect scales numerous, not restricted to occiput; eyes separated in both sexes; antenna less than 0.8 length of proboscis, verticillate in males, pedicel and flagellomere 1 with pale scales on mesal side; proboscis dark-scaled, longer than forefemur; maxillary palpus less than 0.25 length of proboscis in both sexes; clypeus bare; scales of scutum all narrow; acrostichal setae and dorsocentral setae present; scutellar scales all narrow or both narrow and broad; paratergite and postspiracular area with scales; proepisternum, subspiracular area and upper and lower areas of mesokatepisternum with patches of broad pale scales, large V-shaped patch on mesepimeron; lower prealar area without scales; upper mesokatepisternal setae absent; lower mesepimeral seta present; femora and tibiae sprinkled with yellowish scales; tarsomeres with narrow basal pale bands; ungues of females simple, anterior fore- and midungues toothed in males. FEMALE GENITALIA – Abdominal segment VIII partially retracted; posterior margin of tergum VIII rounded; posterior margin of sternum VIII with median emargination; tergum IX comprised of 2 sclerites connected by membrane; postgenital lobe with median emargination; cercus short and rounded apically; 1 large and 2 smaller spermathecal capsules. MALE GENITALIA – Gonocoxite long, more than twice as long as wide, scales on dorsolateral, lateral and ventral surfaces; gonostylus simple, elongate, with a conspicuous apical spiniform gonostylar claw; claspette a single setose plaque at base of gonocoxite; aedeagus with several teeth on distal ≥0.68 of each side; paraprocts sclerotised at apex; cercal setae absent. LARVAE – Setae 4,5-C inserted caudad of antennal base; seta 4-C small, branched, inserted anterolateral and close to seta 5-C; seta 6-C inserted well anterior and slightly mesad of seta 5-C; seta 12-I absent; seta l-VIII small, branched; comb scales in triangular patch, scales with lateral spicules, sometimes with small apical spine; siphon short, siphon index less than 4.0, acus present, small; saddle complete; seta 1-X single, removed from caudal margin of saddle; seta 2-X multi-branched; seta 3-X single; ventral brush (seta 4-X) with more than 6 pairs of plumose setae on grid, no precratal setae; anal papillae lanceolate. PUPAE – Setae 2,3-I not widely separated, distance between them same as distance between setae 4,5-I; seta 1-II branched; seta 2-II inserted laterad of seta 3-II; seta 2-V inserted caudad of seta 3-V; seta 9-VII relatively large, fan-like with aciculate branches, markedly different than seta 9-II–IV, seta 9-VIII inserted mesal to posterolateral corner of segment; paddle margins distinctly spiculate, midrib weak, terminating well before apex of paddle; seta 1-Pa branched. See genus Aedes.
Huang (1968) observed that adults of Huaedes species are superficially similar in coloration to some species of subgenus Finlaya, and males seem to share some basic genitalic characters with species of subgenus Christophersiomyia, suggesting affinities with that group. In the phylogeny of Aedini recovered in the cladistic analyses of morphological data conducted by Reinert et al. (2009), Huaedes (based on characters coded for Ae. wauensis) was placed in a clade comprised of subgenera Polyleptiomyia + (Bifidistylus + (Albuginosus + (Tewarius + (Christophersiomyia + (Huaedes + Leptosomatomyia))))), indicating an affinity with subgenus Leptosomatomyia as well as subgenus Christophersiomyia. Huaedes was recovered as the sister to Leptosomatomyia in the phylogeny of Wilkerson et al. 2015), and the sister pair was sister to a clade comprised of genus Armigeres + (subgenus Alanstonea + genus Eretmapodites).
The immature stages of Huaedes species inhabit plant cavities, including bamboo, tree holes and pitcher plants. A female of Ae. variepictus was captured while attempting to bite, but nothing else is known about the bionomics of species of subgenus Huaedes.
Species of subgenus Huaedes are unlikely to be of medical and economic importance to humans.
New Guinea.
Huang, 1968 (taxonomy); Lee et al., 1984 (taxonomy, bionomics, literature review); Reinert, 2000 (female genitalia); Reinert et al., 2004, 2009 (as genus, morphology, phylogeny); Wilkerson et al., 2015 (phylogeny, classification).
