Phytomyza serriola, Guglya, 2025

Guglya, Yuliia, 2025, Rearing mining flies (Diptera: Agromyzidae) from host plants as an instrument for associating females with males, with the description of two new species. Report 2, Zootaxa 5658 (1), pp. 1-86 : 50-53

Phytomyza serriola sp. nov.

( Figs. 94–99 , 304–318 )

Holotype ( KUMN). “ Ukraine, Kharkiv, City / Center , 50°00'N 36°14'E / 23.iv.2020 —collected / 10.xii.2020 — imago / Yu. Guglya leg.”, “narrow blotch mine / along the midrib on / Taraxacum officinale , / 28.iv.2020 —pupation / outside the mine (1♂).

Paratypes ( KUMN). “ Ukraine, Kharkiv, City Center , / 50°00'N 36°14'E, / 23.iv.2020 —collected / 11.xii.20— developed / imago inside the puparium”, “ white blotch / gregarious mine on / Lactuca serriola , / 25-30.iv—pupar. outside / Yu. Guglya leg.” (3♂ 3♀) ; “ Ukraine, Kharkiv Region / near Petrivske / 49°10'N 36°58'E / 2.v.2020 / Yu. Guglya leg.”, “white blotch / mine on Lactuca serriola / 3-4.v.2020 —pupation / outside, 8.xi.2020 —/ developed fly inside pup.” (1♂ 2♀) ; “ Ukraine, Vinnytsa / Region, near Chechelnyk , / Vyshenka location / 48°10'45"N 29°20'00"E / 8.v.2019 Yu. Guglya leg.”, “blotch mine with larva / on Lactuca serriola / 11.v.2019 —7 puparia / outside the mine, dried / developed fly inside pup.” (1♂) .

In addition collection consists of 13 puparia with not developed flies from all three localities.

Etymology. The name of the new species reflects its host specialization. Most of the larvae were collected in Lactuca serriola leaves.

Hosts. Asteraceae : Lactuca serriola L., Tarxacum officinale F.H.Wigg.

Mine. ( Fig. 94, 95 ) The gregarious larvae form a white upper surface leaf mines located mainly along the midrib. Pupation tales place either within or outside the mine in a soil.

Puparium. ( Figs. 96–99 ) Bright yellow, 3.0 mm long, with distinct segmentation; surface wrinkled, more between segments; a row of sparse large spines encircles each segment medially. All spiracles are blackish-orange. Posterior spiracles set on short separated cylindrical protuberances; with 22–24 minute spherical sessile bulbs in a 8-shaped configuration. Two small dark orange appendages developed between anal plate and posterior spiracles well seen from the side. Anal plate yellow, anus blackish-orange; directed ventro-posteriorly.

Cephalopharingeal skeleton. ( Fig. 309 ) Right mouthhook larger dorsally than the left, both with ventro-anterior portion acute, abducted ventrally. Mouthhooks bear two sharp accessory teeth which are uniformly curved and directed ventrally; dorsal teeth larger than ventral. Mouthhooks and anterior half of intermediate sclerite are strongly sclerotized, posterior half of intermedial sclerite, dorsal and ventral cornua much less so. Intermediate sclerite straight, cylindrical; bears one sharp tooth on the posterior third of ventral margin that is directed ventrally. Ventral cornu bears small “closed” window posteriorly. Indentation index 86.

Distribution. Ukraine (Kharkiv and Vinnytsa Regions).

Adult description. Head ( Figs. 304–306 ) dark yellow, with occiput, post gena, palpi brown, 1 st fl and ocellar tubercle black. Fronto-orbital plate distinctly visible laterally; 2 ors, 2 ori, with areolae brown, arranged in flat arc configuration viewed from above ( Fig. 305 ); orbital setula in 3–4 irregular rows, small, sparse, proclinate; i vt s and o vt s in brown ground; fronto-orbital plate wide; parafacial extremely wide; lunule of medium size, reaching the level of the ori p; gena and parafacial together medially 0.58× as wide as maximum height of eye; gena wider at rear; 1 st fl elongated, rounded apically, covered with thick pale hairs clearly viewed from the side.

Wing: ( Fig. 307 ) Slightly greyish, with brownish veins; costa ending after R 3+4; second cross vein absent; calypter and margin yellowish-brown, fringe black. Wing length 2.0 mm.

Mesonotum: ( Fig. 308 ) Ash grey, silky-shining viewed from above, blackish-brown viewed from the side, same as sctl; 1+3 dc s, posterior pair slightly longer than others; acr s absent; halter yellow; legs blackish-brown with all knees dark orange.

Male genitalia. ( Figs. 313–318 ) Epandrium subovate; cerci small and narrow, 0.3× as long as height of epandrium in posterior view; hypandrium narrow U-shaped, with narrow arms, pregonite wider than long, bearing weakly sclerotized narrow lobe anteriorly; located on the arm medially, bearing 0–2 small setae near the inner basal corner viewed from below. Postgonite large, elongated, 2.35× as long as its maximum width, with closely spaced triangular lobe located apically. Ejaculatory apodeme small; narrow blade with unevently torn apical edge; base with sperm sac 0.9× as wide as apodemal blade. Basiphallus and hypophallus strongly sclerotized, distiphallus is weakly so. Basiphallus long, straight, bearing large acute posteriorly widening lobe, which is more weakly sclerotized. Hypophallus consists of one fractured ventro-anteriorly directed sclerite, which is slightly widening apically viewed from the side and acute viewed from below. Mesophallus and paraphallus not evident. Distiphallus long, bearing well sclerotized beak-shaped appendage apically; scarcely sclerotized tubule-shaped part with two long lateral strongly sclerotized areas located basally. Posterior part of distiphallus cup-shaped, wrinkled.

Female genitalia. ( Figs. 310–312 ) Proctiger wide in posterior three quarters; dramatically narrowing anteriorly; two pairs of long setae located on the posterior margin between cerci. Cercus wide, oval, tapering apically, 0.35× as long as proctiger; short and medium setae located apically, subapically and interna-laterally. Ventral receptacle brown, S-shaped, with well sclerotized tail that bears weakly sclerotized lobes in basal half; these lobes narrow basally and widening and rounded apically. Body of receptacle spherical, with slightly curved basal connecting tube, strongly sclerotized. Opening small, 0.44× as wide as a diameter of spherical part of the body, located on wide projection that is ring-shaped basally and beak-shaped apically. Basal connecting tube at the confluence of the tail 3.33× as wide as tail.

Comments. Mines with larvae of this species can be collected only in mid-spring (late April to early May). One generation develops per year.

Figures

FIGURES 94–99. Phytomyza serriola sp. nov.; 94, 95: mine in Lactuca serriola leaf; 96: puparium viewed from the side; 97: posterior segments of puparium viewed from the side; 98: posterior segments of puparium (posterior view); 99: posterior spiracles (posterior view).

FIGURES 299–305. Figures 299–303: Phytomyza pubicornis Hendel; 299 a, b: cephalopharingeal skeleton; a: total viewed from the side; b: right mouthhook; 300: oviscape, ventral receptacle and spermathecae proportionally; 301: spermathecae; 302: ventral receptacle; 303 a, b: proctiger; a: viewed from above; b: viewed from below. Figures 304–305: Phytomyza serriola sp. nov. 304: frontal view of head; 305: head viewed from above.

FIGURES 306–313. Phytomyza serriola spec. nov; 306: head viewed from the side; 307: wing; 308: dorsal view of scutum and scutullum; 309: cephalopharingeal skeleton; 310: oviscape, ventral receptacle and proctiger proportionally; 311: ventral receptacle; 312: proctiger; 313: ejaculatory apodeme.

FIGURES 314–318. Phytomyza serriola spec. nov; 314: epandrium; 315: hypandrium viewed from below; 316: metepiphallus, proepiphallus, phallophorus and postgonite vieved from the side; 317: phallus and anterior half of hypandrium viewed from the side; 318: phallus viewed from below.