Blepharella leucaniae ( Chao and Jin, 1984 )

Shima, Hiroshi, Tachi, Takuji & Zhang, Wenxia, 2025, The genus Blepharella Macquart (Diptera: Tachinidae) from the Oriental Region, Journal of Natural History 59 (21 - 24), pp. 1647-1687 : 1661-1663

Blepharella leucaniae ( Chao and Jin, 1984)

( Figure 4 (D–G))

Pujolina leucaniae Chao and Jin, 1984: 285 . Holotype ♂ (IZCAS, examined). Type locality: China, Yunnan, Longchuan , 950 m.

Isopexopsis parafacialis Sun and Chao, 1994: 482 . Holotype ♂ (IZCAS, examined). Type locality: China, Yunnan, Weixi, Lidiping , 3400 m. syn. n.

Pujolina leucaniae Chao and Jin : Chao, 1999: 1910.

Takanomyia parafacialis (Sun and Chao) : O’Hara et al. 2009: 119 – O’Hara et al. 2020b: 919.

Blepharella leucaniae (Chao and Jin) : Zhao, 2006: 906.

Diagnosis

A large-sized goniine fly; head with yellowish pruinosity in male; antenna with scape and pedicel reddish yellow, sometimes darkened at median portions, postpedicel 3.3–3.5 times as long as pedicel in male, about 2.5 times in female; thorax with thin yellowish white pruinosity, 4 narrow longitudinal vittae; apical scutellar setae very fine hair-like, at most 2/3 as long as scutellum in male; tibiae yellowish, darkened basally and apically; hind tibia with a closely set row of anterodorsal setae, no submedian strong seta among them; abdominal venter without distinct sexual hair patches in male.

Redescription

Type material examined. Holotype male of Pujolina leucaniae Chao and Jin : Yunnan, Longchuan , 950 m, 26.iii.1981, Z. Jin [in Chinese characters] ( ZICAS, examined) . Holotype male of Isopexopsis parafacialis Sun and Chao : Yunnan, Weixi, Lidiping , 3400 m, 27.2°N, 99.2° E, 13.viii.1984 [in Chinese characters] ( ZICAS) .

Additional material examined. China, Yunnan Prov., 3 males, Jinggu, Shengtaishan , 2100–2600 m, 19–23viii .1990, L. Su and H . Shima ( IZCAS, KUM); 1 male, Dehong, Xima, 1700–2000 m, 13–14 .ix .1996, H. Shima ( KUM) .

Male. Head with pale yellowish pruinosity; antenna brown-black in ground colour, with pedicel and scape reddish yellow, darkened medially, and base of postpedicel sometimes narrowly reddish; palpus reddish yellow. Frons 0.22–0.23 of head width; frontal vitta widened anteriorly, about 5/7 of fronto-orbital plate at middle; parafacial about 1.5 times as wide as postpedicel at mid-height; gena almost completely occupied by genal dilation and 0.34–0.35 of eye height; lower margin of face weakly produced forward by about 5/8 length of pedicel; occiput flattened. Inner vertical seta about 1/4 as long as eye height; fronto-orbital plate with dense long fine hairs, which do not descend below lowest frontal seta; 2 reclinate frontal setae, anterior seta slightly longer than posterior seta and slightly shorter than inner vertical seta; 8–9 frontal setae, lowest seta slightly below level of base of arista; parafacial bare; facial ridge with short setae and fine hairs on about 1/3 of lower portion; gena with fine dense short hairs, 3–4 longer hairs mixed on lower portion; occiput without black setulae on upper 3/5 behind row of postocular setae. Antenna falling short of lower margin of face by about 1.5 times length of pedicel; postpedicel about 3.5 times as long as pedicel; arista thickened on basal 1/3; 2nd aristomere at most slightly longer than wide.

Thorax black in ground colour, scutellum brown to reddish yellow, darkened basally; scutum with rather thin pale yellowish grey pruinosity, 5 longitudinal vittae distinct, median vitta narrow and sometimes absent on presutural area; pleura with rather thin pale yellowish grey pruinosity. Scutum with dense fine short suberect hairs; scutellum somewhat stronger hairs, mixed with some fine short erect bristle-like hairs on posterior portion; prosternum with some fine erect long hairs on each side; 3 katepisternal setae; scutellum with basal scutellar seta slightly longer than subapical scutellar seta, and about 1.6 times as long as scutellum; lateral scutellar setae double, posterior seta stronger than anterior seta and about 1.2 times as long as scutellum; apical scutellar setae hair-like parallel-sided or absent, at most 1/2 as long as scutellum or absent; distance between subapical scutellar setae 1.7–1.8 times as long as that between basal and subapical scutellar setae of corresponding side. Wing hyaline, weakly tinged with pale brown basally and marginally; lower calypter pale yellowish white; relative lengths of costal sectors 2nd, 3rd and 4th approximately 2:2.5:1.5; length of vein M1 from dm-cu crossvein to bend only slightly more than distance between bend and wing margin; dm-cu crossvein weakly sinuate, about 1.5 times as long as last section of vein CuA1 from dm-cu crossvein to apex. Legs black including dark brownish anterior portion of fore tibiae and other portion of fore tibia and mid- and hind tibiae reddish yellow, darkened basally and apically; mid-tibia with 3–4 anterodorsal setae; hind tibia with a closely set comb-like row of anterodorsal setae, without submedian strong seta; claws and pulvilli longer than 5th tarsomeres.

Abdomen black in ground colour, anterolateral portions of 3rd and 4th tergites weakly reddish; dorsum with whitish pruinosity on anterior 1/2–1/3 of 3rd tergite and 1/2–3/5 of 4th and 5th tergites, median longitudinal vitta narrow and distinct. Hairs fine dense and suberect on 3rd and 4th tergites, erect and long on 5th tergite; syntergite 1 + 2 and 3rd tergite each with a pair (rarely 2 pairs) of median marginal setae, at most 2/5 as long as following tergite; venter of 4th tergite without sexual hair patches; 5th sternite concave along anterior margin, median membranous area narrow, without any projection on inner margin of posterior lobe.

Male terminalia. Sixth tergite reduced to very narrow and weakly sclerotised hemitergite, without hairs; cerci in lateral view dorsally enlarged at base, then inner margin weakly ridged dorsally and parallel-sided to narrowed apex, ridged area with dense long hairs, in dorsal view evenly narrowed to apex, apical 1/2 portions weakly separated from each other; surstylus in lateral view evenly narrowed from base to apex, with many long hairs; dorsal arms of hypandrium separated from each other; pregonite with several distinct setae on posterior margin.

Female. Unknown. Body length: 11.1–13.0 mm.

Host. Lepidoptera , Noctuidae : Mythimna separata Walker (Chao and Jin, 1986, as Leucania separata ).

Distribution

China (Yunnan Prov.).

Remarks

O’Hara et al. (2009) mistakenly placed this species in Takanomyia Mesnil, 1957 . Although the genus resembles in many characters Takanomyia species, the latter has distinct downcurved setae on the parafacial. We think Pujorina leucaniae Chao and Jin and Isopexopsis parafacialis Sun and Chao are the same species judging from the description and figures made by these authors and from Shima’s own examination of the type specimens.

We have examined two females from Cameron Highlands, Malaysia, which we first considered were females of B. leucaniae . These specimens have the wing base somewhat tinged with brown and facial structure slightly different from that of B. leucaniae . We postpone the assignment of these specimens to this species, until a corresponding male specimen can be found in this area.

Figures

Figure 4. Blepharella lateralis Macquart and B. leucaniae (Chao and Jin). (A) Adult male in B. lateralis in lateral view. (B) B. lateralis puparium in lateral view. (C) Same in posterior view. (D) Adult male of B. leucaniae in dorsal view. (E) Same in lateral view. (F) B. leucaniae epandrium, cerci and surstylus in dorsal view. (G) Male genitalia in lateral view. Scale bars: B, C = 1 mm; F, G = 0.2 mm.