Zeugodacus (Zeugodacus) cataracta Doorenweerd, 2025

Doorenweerd, Camiel, Chung, Arthur Y. C., Mustapeng, Andi Maryani A. & Rubinoff, Daniel, 2025, The Dacini fruit flies of Borneo: an annotated checklist with 89 species including three new to science (Tephritidae, Dacinae), ZooKeys 1240, pp. 305-325 : 305-325

Zeugodacus (Zeugodacus) cataracta Doorenweerd sp. nov.

Fig. 5

Type material.

Holotype. Male. “ Malaysia: Sabah: Danum Valley Tembaling waterfall trail . WGS 84 4.9506, 117.8061 3–5. xii. 2018 Zingerone trap. Leg. D. Rubinoff & C. Doorenweerd. DNA sample ms 08933. ” Deposited at the University of Hawaii Insect Museum reg. no. UHIM.ms 08933 . Paratype. One male. “ Malaysia, Sabah, Danum Valley access road . WGS 84 4.9689, 117.8126 3–5. xii. 2018 Zingerone trap. Leg. D. Rubinoff & C. Doorenweerd. DNA sample ms 08929. ” Deposited at the Sabah Forestry Department Insect Collection reg. no. UHIM.ms 08929 .

Differential diagnosis.

The wing pattern of Zeugodacus cataracta is strikingly different from any other species of Dacini , with a medial dark band that extends down to midway of cell dm, dark marking throughout cell br, and three dark smudges in the distal part of the wing. The species is further unique in having vein CuA 2 and A 1 merge at ~ 1 / 2 the length of A 1, leaving a short cell cup, and all antennal segments are remarkably short, combined less than half the height of the head.

Molecular diagnostics.

The COI - 5 P 3 P sequences of ms 08929 and ms 08933 are most similar to published sequences of Zeugodacus scutellaris (Bezzi, 1913) , but at 8.9 % minimum pairwise difference ( Doorenweerd et al. 2024 b).

Description.

Male. Head (Fig. 5 C ). Fulvous; face dark with indistinct oval black spots in the antennal furrows. Antennal segments dark fulvous and short, combined length less than half the height of the head. Thorax (Fig. 5 A, D ). Scutum and pleural areas black with narrow red-brown areas surrounding parts of the yellow markings. Yellow markings: postpronotal lobes; notopleura; presutural area adjacent to notopleura; postsutural yellow lateral vittae that narrow sharply posteriorly and do not reach intra-alar seta; medial elongate postsutural vitta; mesopleural stripe dorsally wider than notopleuron but does not reach postpronotal lobe; anatergite; katatergite. Scutellum yellow with a narrow black basal band. Setae: two pair scutellar; one pair prescutellar; one pair intra-alar; one pair posterior supra-alar; one pair anterior supra-alar; two pair notopleural and four scapular. Abdomen (Fig. 5 B, E, F, H ). Oval to diamond-shaped; terga free; pecten of setae on tergum III absent. Posterior lobe of the male surstylus long (Fig. 5 F ). Abdomen overall fulvous with interrupted black ‘ T’ on segments III – V. Anterolateral corners of segment IV black. Paratype with more extensive black lateral markings on tergum IV and V (Fig. 5 H ). Ceromata yellow and indistinct. Legs (Fig. 5 D ). Legs overall fulvous. Outer surface of the fore tibia black, distal third of hind tibia black. Wings (Fig. 5 G ). Wing length 5.8 mm. Cells bc and c clear, faint tint in cell sc. Costal band confluent with vein R 2 + 3 and continues at more or less the same width until just past where vein R 4 + 5 reaches the costa. Anal streak absent, vein CuA 2 and A 1 merge at # 1 / 2 the length of A 1. A medial dark band extends from the costal band down to midway of cell dm and dark marking throughout cell br. The distal part of the wing has three dark brown smudges below vein R 4 + 5. Female. Unknown.

Male lure. Zingerone.

Host plant.

Unknown.

Etymology.

The species epithet cataracta, Latin for waterfall, is a noun in apposition that refers to both the peculiar wing pattern that resembles a waterfall going over the edge and the type locality; the Tembaling waterfall trail in the Danum Valley Conservation Area.

Comments.

This species was included as Zeugodacus ‘ spnMalaysia 02 ’ in the DNA barcoding study of Doorenweerd et al. (2024 b). The combination of a short cell cup and antennae shorter than the height of the head makes accurate systematic placement of this species challenging. Within Dacini , this combination is only known in the monotypic Bactrocera subgenus Queenslandacus; B. exigua (May), known from Australia. However, the yellow presutural markings and long posterior lobes of the male surstylus clearly place this species in Zeugodacus , and we find placement in subgenus Zeugodacus best fitting and consider the similarity with B. exigua paralogous.

Figures

Figure 5. Holotype male of Zeugodacus cataracta sp. nov., UHIM. ms 08929 A dorsal view of head and thorax B dorsal view of abdomen C anterior view of the head D lateral view E dorso-anterior view of the abdomen showing the ceromata F detail image of the genitalia showing the surstylus length G left wing, dissected and slide mounted H dorsal view of the abdomen of the paratype (ms 08929) showing variation in the abdomen markings.