Epameibaphis Oestlund

This is a genus for a handful of species that feed on various sagebrushes (Asteraceae: Artemisia) in North America.  It is remarkably similar to Pseudoepameibaphis except for the shape of the siphunculi being straight with an apical knob or swelling, as opposed to apically curved in Pseudoepameibaphis.  Apart from this difference, the two genera have almost identical morphology, down to setal numbers, shapes, patterns, antennal morphology, etc.  I have no decent photos of this genus, but I thought I would add a page due to all the work I’ve put into it in the past few years.  Also, I finally decided to put species names on about half my slides, which decision was reflected in the 2018 release of the slide collection database.

After study of my specimens during 2017 through 2022 I estimate there are at least 7 species of Epameibaphis.  There are currently 3 generally accepted species, E. atricornis, E. frigidae, and E. utahensis. I have decided that recognizing the first two of these is possible, but am still not clear on what E. utahensis is.  One of the groupings of specimens in my collection is almost certainly E. utahensis.  Correct identification will probably require examination of the original types.  Since moving to Colorado in 2021, I have made many new collections of this genus from some new host plants (e.g. Artemisia nova, Artemisia bigelovii, and what I’m calling Artemisia tridentata parishii). It’s interesting that Epameibaphis as a group is more common than Pseudoepameibaphis in Colorado, whereas Pseudoepameibaphis is the more common group in the northwestern states. I hope to some day have gathered enough material to publish a good review of the genus.