Culex territans Walker, 1856.
Subfamily Culicinae, genus Culex. Subgenus Neoculex includes 26 species. See Culex classification, Subgenus Neoculex). Subgenus abbreviation – Ncx.
ADULTS – Small to medium-sized mosquitoes; maxillary palpus of females very short, with 3 palpomeres, sometimes with very small palpomere 4; maxillary palpus of males as long as or longer than proboscis, with 5 palpomeres, palpomere 3 at most with short setae in a ventromesal line, palpomeres 4 and 5 with or without long setae; scutal scales usually predominantly pale, sometimes with striking pattern of coloration or entirely dark; acrostichal setae present; thoracic pleura usually with extensive patches of scales on proepisternum, upper area and lower posterior border of mesokatepisternum, upper area of mesepimeron and sometimes on postspiracular area and prealar area, scale-patches rarely entirely absent; lower mesepimeral seta present or absent, middle and lower areas of mesepimeron sometimes with numerous small setae; wing and legs dark-scaled; abdominal terga with or without basal or apical pale bands, sometimes with apicolateral pale spots. MALE GENITALIA – Tergum IX lobes varied, distinct or weakly developed, with or without setae; gonocoxite without scales; subapical lobe always with 2 long rod-like setae on proximal division, distal division with only narrow flattened setae, foliform setae absent; phallosome columnar, H-shaped in tergal view with tergal bridge above midpoint or near apex of lateral plates, rarely at mid-length, a few denticles present or absent, without a basal hook on each side; paraproct with crown of flat blunt spicules in single row, sometimes also with a few coarse pointed spicules. LARVAE – Antenna long, seta 1-A near middle or more distal; setae 2,3-A inserted short distance from apex; seta 3-P shorter than setae 1,2-P, less than half length of seta 1-P; comb scales small, apically fringed, in patch; siphon long, slender, with numerous posterolateral seta 1-S, at least 1 seta out of line; segment X long, saddle complete, posterior margin with distinct caudal spicules; seta 2-X with 2 or more branches; seta 3-X single; ventral brush (seta 4-X) comprised of 6 or 7 pairs of setae on grid and 1 or more precratal setae. PUPAE – Meatus of trumpet without slit from proximal part of pinna; seta 2-III,VI inserted mesad of seta 1; seta 9-VII longer than seta 3-VII; caudal lobe of tergum VIII not overlying lateral part of tergum IX; seta 9-VIII at or immediately adjacent to caudolateral angle of segment; seta 1-Pa and seta 2-Pa present. See genus Culex.
Neoculex does not appear to be a monophyletic group (St John, 2007; Harbach et al., 2012) - it includes several morphologically disparate lines that share various similarities with Culiciomyia, Eumelanomyia, Lophoceraomyia and Melanoconion. Sirivanakarn (1972) hypothesised a close relationship between Eumelanomyia, Lophoceraomyia, Maillotia and Neoculex based on similarities of the adults, and Sirivanakarn (1983) noted that Melanoconion shares several anatomical features with the “more primitive” subgenus Neoculex.
The immature stages of Neoculex species inhabit permanent and temporary bodies of ground water, as well as rock holes, crab holes, tree holes, bamboo internodes and artificial containers. Adult females apparently do not feed on humans. Some species are known to feed on frogs, small mammals and birds. Egg rafts are apparently laid above the water line and the newly hatched larvae wriggle their way to the water.
Species of subgenus Neoculex are not known to be of medical or economic importance.
Neoculex is predominantly an Old World genus but several species occur in the Nearctic Region.
Belkin, 1962 (South Pacific, keys, taxonomy, bionomics, distributions); Bram, 1967 (Thailand, keys, taxonomy, bionomics, distributions); Sirivanakarn, 1971 (taxonomy, keys and descriptions of species groups); Lee et al., 1988 (Australasian Region, keys, literature, distributions, bionomics); Becker et al., 2003, 2010 (Europe, subgenus, species descriptions, bionomics, distributions).
apicalis Adams, 1903 arizonensis Bohart, 1949 boharti Brookman & Reeves, 1950 chaetoventralis (Theobald, 1910) cheesmanae Mattingly & Marks, 1955 crassistylus Brug, 1934 derivator Dyar & Knab, 1906 douglasi Dobrotworsky, 1956 dumbletoni Belkin, 1962 europaeus da Cunha Ramos, Ribeiro & Harrison, 2003 fergusoni (Taylor, 1914) gamma Séguy, 1924 gaufini Belkin, 1962 impudicus Ficalbi, 1890 johni Cova Garcia, Pulido F. & Escalante de Ugueto, 1979 judaicus Edwards, 1926 latus Dobrotworsky, 1956 leonardi Belkin, 1962 martinii Medschid, 1930 millironi Belkin, 1962 pedicellus King & Hoogstraal, 1947 postspiraculosus Lee, 1944 pseudomelanoconia Theobald, 1907 reevesi Wirth, 1948 rubensis Sasa & Takahashi, 1948 territans Walker, 1856