Ebenia Macquart, 1846a

Domingos, Marcelo, 2024, Revision of the Neotropical Obscure Genus Ebenia Macquart 1846 (Diptera, Tachinidae, Dufouriini), Neotropical Entomology 53 (4), pp. 833-853 : 834-836

Genus Ebenia Macquart, 1846a , b

Ebenia Macquart, 1846a: 299 (also published separately in 1846b: 171). Type species: Ebenia claripennis Macquart, 1846a , b, by original designation ( Brazil).

Comyopsis Townsend, 1919: 176 . Type species: Comyopsis fumata Townsend, 1919 , by original designation. Synonymy given by Santis & Nihei (2022).

Comyops Wulp, 1891: 213 , in key (1891: 262, description). Type species: Comyops nigripennis Wulp, 1891 , by subsequent designation of Brauer and Bergenstamm, 1893. New synonymy.

Remarks. Macquart (1846a, b: 299) mentioned about Ebenia the following: “Le type de ce genre est du Brésil ” [“The type of this genus is from Brazil ”]. This statement is accepted as a type species designation for Ebenia of the single included species, Ebenia claripennis Macquart , from Brazil.

Included species:

claripennis Macquart, 1846a , b: 299. Holotype ♀: Brazil ( NHMUK); fumata ( Wulp, 1891: 261) ( Morinia ). Holotype ♂: Mexico, Tabasco ( NHMUK); neofumata Santis & Nihei, 2022: 33 (nomem novum for Comyopsis fumata Townsend, 1919: 176 ). Holotype ♂: Nicaragua: Chinandega (USNM); nigripennis ( Wulp, 1891: 262) ( Comyops ). Lectotype ♂ (by designation herein) Mexico, Tabasco, Teapa ( NHMUK) comb. nov.; striaticollis ( Wulp, 1891: 262) ( Comyops ). Holotype ♂: Mexico, Guerrero, Venta de Zopilote ( NHMUK) comb. nov.; spinosa ( Bigot, 1889: 268) ( Homodexia ). Holotype ♂: Mexico ( NHMUK) comb. nov.; Morinia trichopoda Wulp, 1891: 261 . Lectotype ♂ (by designation herein): Mexico, Tabasco, Teapa ( NHMUK) new synonymy

References. Brauer & Bergenstamm (1891: 381, redescription of Comyops ); Brauer & Bergenstamm (1893: 183, designation of C. nigripennis Wulp, 1891 as type species of Comyops ); Townsend (1936: 49, diagnosis of adults and immatures of “ Ebeniini ” including Comyops , Comyopsis , and Ebenia ); Townsend (1939, redescription of: 156, Comyops ; 157, Comyopsis and Ebenia ); Guimarães (1971, catalogue of Neotropical Tachinidae : 109, Comyops , Comyopsis , and Ebenia ); Janzen & Hallwachs (2005, host record of Ebenia spp. in larvae of Sceloenopla scherzeri (Baly, 1858)) ; Cuignet et al. (2008: host record of Ebenia spp. in larvae of Chelymorpha alternans Boheman, 1854 and Spaethiella marginata (Champion, 1893)) ; Wood & Zumbado (2010: 1372; 1392, Ebenia in key to Central American Tachinidae ; 1403, comments about distribution and hosts); Evenhuis et al. (2016: 58, genus-groups names of Macquart) Stireman et al. (2019, Ebenia in molecular phylogenetic analysis of Tachinidae ); O’Hara & Henderson (2020, world checklist of tachinid genera: 21, Comyops ; 26, Ebenia ); O’Hara et al. (2020, checklist of World Tachinidae : 91, Comyops ; 93, Ebenia ); Santis & Nihei (2022, Comyopsis as synonymous with Ebenia ; morphological phylogenetic analysis of Dufouriini ).

General characterization. Small, about 4.5 mm, blackish flies, with big eyes, almost touching on top, with arista long plumose, gena height very narrow in males, scutellum somewhat triangular and with abdomen mostly cylindrical.

Eyes with long setulae or scattered short setulae. Ocellar setae well developed, divergent and proclinate. Inner and outer vertical seta decussate and long. Arista long plumose. Fronto-orbital plate with uppermost frontal seta not reaching antennal insertion. Fronto-orbital plate with several setae around the antennal socketwihtout setae in male and with two proclinate and two reclinate orbital setae in females. Fronto-orbital plate in females about twice larger than males., parafacial bare. Genal dilation poorly developed. Lower facial margin not protruding, invisible in profile. Vibrissa arising at the level of lower facial margin, long and converging. Thorax. Postpronotal lobe with 2 setae. Notopleuron with 2 equal-sized setae. Intra-alar setae 1 +2. Intra-postalar seta absent. Supra-alar setae 1 +2. Postalar callus with 2 setae. Propleuron bare. Katepimeron setulose only on anterior region, with 1–3 setulae. Anepimeron with numerous long setae. Katepisternal setae 2. Anatergite setulose apically. Scutellum with one pair of basal, discal, lateral setae, and a pair of decussate apical setae; the apical one about 2x longer than the lateral. Postmetacoxal area membranous. Posterior spiracle with posterior lappet larger than anterior. Wing, with costal spine present. Cell r 4+5 open at wing margin; length of opening shorter than crossvein r-m. Crossvein dm-cu sinuous. Vein M 1 ending at wing margin close to tip, bent forward to R 4+5, forming an angle slightly smaller than 90°, and convex after bend. Legs. Males with claws and pulvilli longer than tarsomere 5, shorter in females. Abdomen with syntergite 1 + 2 with at least 4 pairs of lateral marginal setae; tergite 3 with at least 4 pairs of lateral marginal setae and a pair of median marginal seta, tergite 4 and 5 with a row of marginal setae. Male terminalia. Tergite 6 undivided, about 1/5 length of syntergosternite 7+ 8. Syntergosternite 7+ 8 broad. Sternite 6 symmetrical. Anterior epandrial process undeveloped. Cerci not fused, narrow, and distally slightly tapered in posterior view. Ejaculatory apodeme fan-shaped. Hypandrial arm short, hypandrial apodeme poorly distinguishable, with narrow central plate. Bacilliform sclerite, long, rod-like. Epiphallus present, distally narrow, and fused with basiphallus. Pregonite and postgonite not fused; pregonite fully fused to each other; postgonite with anterior margin weakly sclerotized, with setulae on anterior margin. Basiphallus subrectangular, usually as long as postgonite. Extension of dorsal sclerite of distiphallus long, more than half of the length of dorsal sclerite; dorsal sclerite ventrally serrulated; granular zone absent.

Diagnosis In order to differentiate Ebenia from other Dufouriini genera, the following diagnosis is given: Arista long plumose. Postpedicel about 2x the combined lengths of scape and pedicel. Fronto-orbital plate with several setae on the antennal socket. Prosternum setulose or bare. Anepimeron with numerous long setae. Anatergite setulose apically. Wing with vein M 1 ending at wing margin close to tip, bent forward to R 4+5, forming an angle slightly smaller than 90°. Abdominal tergites without discal setae. Male terminalia. Tergite 6 undivided, about 1/5 length of syntergosternite 7 + 8. Syntergosternite 7 + 8 broad. Sternite 6 symmetrical. Sternite 5 with slightly developed lobules, setulose, with basal plate long and slightly curved; sensilla “ trichodea ” present on distal portion. Ejaculatory apodeme fan-shaped.

Phylogenetic position. One undetermined species of Ebenia was included in the molecular phylogeny of Stireman et al. (2019) and three species of Ebenia and one species of Comyops (here as syn. nov. of Ebenia ) were included in the phylogenetic analysis of Santis & Nihei (2022). Both studies conclusively placed Ebenia in the tribe Dufouriini ( Dexiinae ), and the latter placed Ebenia + Comyops as sister group of the genus Dufouria Robineau-Desvoidy , and constituting a clade. This clade, named by Santis & Nihei (2022) as clade 15, is supported by four unambiguous synapomorphies: fronto-orbital plate with several setae on the antennal socket (43:1); male terminalia with phallapodeme with fan-shaped apex (126:1); distiphallus with ventral sclerite with dorsal projection (139:1) and distiphallus with a distal portion (144:1). Additionally, clade 16 comprises Ebenia and Comyops and is supported by one unambiguous synapomorphy: male terminalia with surstylus with lateral setae (119:1). It is also supported by three unambiguous homoplasies: antenna with postpedicel subcylindrical (5X the ratio of length to width) (54:0); antenna with plumose arista (55:2) and abdominal tergites with pruinosity only on anterior margin (93:0). Comyops possesses a single autapomorphy that differentiates it from Ebenia : facial ridge with setulae until the antennal insertion (58:1). Ebenia spp. , that included E. spinosa (as E. undetermined sp), E. claripennis and E. neofumata , possesses a single autapomorphy, male terminalia with cerci with a globose expansion (114:1) and two homoplasies, first instar larva with segment IV without microtrichia (14:1) and vein R 4+5 with dorsal setulosity beyond R base (87:1). Following the synonymy proposed herein, the synapomorphy of clade 16 it is an autapomorphy of the newly defined Ebenia .

Distribution. Mexico (Veracruz, Tabasco, Guerrero), Costa Rica (Guanacaste, Cartago), Nicaragua, Trinidad & Tobago and Brazil (Rio de Janeiro). In addition, based on the records of the CNC online database, some undetermined specimens of Ebenia further expands the distribution of this genus by the following countries: Venezuela (Aragua), Colombia (Valle Rio Anchicaya), Ecuador (Napo) and Bolivia (Cochabamba).

Remarks. Guimarães 1971: 216) listed Hylemyia probata Walker, 1861 from Mexico as an unrecognized species of Tachinidae . I examined the holotype of this species in NHMUK and it is in poor condition with only a portion of the thorax remaining. D.M. Wood examined the specimen in 1989 and labeled it as “ Ebenia ”, but I have concluded that a determination to genus, or even to subfamily, is not possible based on the remaining structures of the holotype.

Key to Ebenia species

1 – Eyes with conspicuous setulae ( Fig. 7b ; 8b ) ………… 2.

– Eyes bare, or practically bare, at most with very short and widely scattered setulae………………………… 3.

2 – Thorax without pruinosity, wing smoky, abdomen with silvery pruinosity occupying just anterior margin of each tergite, about 1/5 of each segment laterally (Fig, 7a, c) ………………………. E. nigripennis comb. nov.

– Thorax with silver pruinosity, wing hyaline, abdomen with silvery pruinosity almost reaching posterior margin laterally on each tergite ( Fig. 8a, c ) …………………………….. E. striaticollis comb. nov.

3 – Prosternum with setulae …………………………….. 4.

– Prosternum bare …………………………………….. 5.

4 – Wing with vein R 4+5 with setulae beyond or at the level of r-m dorsally, wing hyaline ( Fig. 1a, c ). ………… ………………………………………….… E.claripennis .

– Wing with vein R 4+5 with setulae ending about ¼ to crossvein r-m dorsally, wing smoky ( Fig. 3a, c ) ……………………………………………… E. fumata .

5 – Abdominal tergites without pruinosity, brownish black ( Fig. 9a, c ; 10 a, c ) ………………………… E. spinosa .

– Abdominal tergites with silvery pruinosity,better visible on posterodorsal view, blackish ( Fig. 4a, c ) ……..................………………………… E. neofumata .

Figures

Fig.7 Ebenia nigripennis (Wulp 1891), Rio de Janeiro, Brazil (MZSP). Male termi- nalia. A. epandrium, cerci and surstylus, posterior view. B. ejaculatory apodeme. C. epan- drium, cerci, surstylus, hypan- drium, phallapodeme, basiphal- lus, epiphallus, distiphallus, pregonite and postgonite, lateral view

Fig. 8 Ebenia striaticollis (Wulp 1891), holotype male (NHMUK). A. Dorsal habitus. B. head, frontal view. C. lateral habitus. D. labels

Fig. 1 Ebenia claripennis Macquart 1846a, b, male from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil (MZSP). A. dorsal habitus. B. head, frontal view. C. lateral habitus

Fig. 3 Ebenia fumata (Wulp 1891), holotype male (NHMUK). A. Dorsal habitus. B. head, frontal view. C. labels; D. lateral habitus

Fig. 9 Ebenia spinosa (Bigot 1889), holotype male (NHMUK). A. Dorsal habitus. B. head, frontal view. C. labels. D. lateral habitus

Fig. 10 Ebenia spinosa (Bigot 1889), female from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil (MNRJ). A. Dorsal habitus. B. head, frontal view. C. lateral habitus

Fig. 4 Ebenia neofumata Santis & Nihei 2022, male from Gua- nacaste, Costa Rica. A. Dorsal habitus. B. head, frontal view. C. lateral habitus