Conops (Conops) schachti, Stuke, 2019

Stuke, Jens-Hermann, 2019, New conopid records from the Afrotropical Region (Diptera: Conopidae). Part 2: Conopinae excluding Physocephalini, Israel Journal of Entomology (Oxford, England) 49 (2), pp. 277-349 : 319-325

Conops (Conops) schachti n. sp.

( Figs 89–95)

LSID: urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:A5FDA910-8983-4E7B-BC11-98CDB9F484AD .

Etymology: The species is dedicated to Wolfgang Schacht (1939–2011), who collected the type and was one of the most important Diptera collectors in Germany.

Diagnosis: C. schachti can be easily recognised by the unique shape of the female abdomen ( Fig. 91), and by the completely brown scutum. The species is included in Key 8 (p. 325).

Description: Female. Body length ca. 12 mm. Wing length 8.0 mm. Head height 2.7 mm.

Head without setae. Antenna orange. Arista stylus-like, with 3 aristomeres at tip of first flagellomere ( Fig. 94). Basal aristomere inconspicuous and about half the length of medial aristomere. Apical aristomere slightly longer than two basal aristomeres together. Medial aristomere distinctly higher than basal and apical aristomeres. Apical aristomere with broad base and pointed tip. Scape about 4× longer than maximum width, apically and laterobasally with black setae. Pedicel about 4× longer than maximum width, dorsally and laterally covered with black setae. First flagellomere about as long as pedicel, ventrally with barely visible membranous area and without setae dorsally. Lunule between base of antennae and ptilinal suture distinctly developed, longer than width of scapus. Eyes brown, without ommatrichia. Facets in middle of medial margin distinctly enlarged compared to surrounding facets. Posterior margin of eye convex, with indistinct indentation. Genal height of head/eye height (measurements taken from head in lateral view) = 0.2. No ocellar tubercle and no ocelli evident. No ocellar triangle evident. Frons ( Fig. 95) shorter than broad, slightly concave and with anterior margin almost straight. Frons not projecting above eyes, lacking grooves and without setulae. Frons yellow with distinct brown hind margin and brown central stripe ( Fig. 95), and slightly silver dusted. Distinct black frontofacial spots. Vertex slightly narrower than frons and separated from the latter by indistinct ridge. The ridge between vertex and frons without longitudinal grooves. Vertex covered with black setulae. Face yellow to yellowish brown, without darker markings. Gena light brown. Parafacial and antennal grooves silver dusted. Facial ridge and gena only inconspicuously dusted. Gena without setulae. Distinct facial carina reaching from base of antennae to distinct broadened and outstanding frontoclypeal tubercle. Ptilinal suture stretching on either side beneath antennal bases. Mouth opening tapering dorsally. Postcranium not obviously invaginated. Postcranium orange-brown.Adjacent to posterior margin of eye there is an obvious stripe of silver dusting, remaining postcranium slightly dusted. Postcranium with black setulae. No setulae on small area adjacent to eye margin and on bottom portion of postcranium. Postgena not widened and therefore not separated from occiput. Bottom portion of postcranium distinctly separated off. Proboscis orange-brown. Frontoclypeal membrane narrow, hardly broadened basally, orange-brown and clearly distinguished from clypeus. No palps recognised. Proboscis capitate. Labium distinctly longer than head length, distinctly thickened basally, anterior section completely fused into a tube. Labrum cannot be examined in holotype. Labellum short, completely divided, slightly broader than adjacent haustellum, and covered with isolated short black setulae. Labellum with about 5 pseudotrachaea.

Thorax brown and dark brown, without any black markings. Thorax slightly silver dusted all over, dusting strongly depending on viewing angle. Distinct dusted stripe reaching from middle coxa to notopleuron. Presternum distinct, only slightly smaller than compound basisterna with which it is fused. Basisternum broad, not narrowed to tip, without setulae. Proepisternum with 2 black setae and 2 smaller setulae. Mediotergite convex, without setae, and projecting distinctly over scutellum. Subscutellum inconspicuous. Scutellum small, with scattered black setulae and 2 scutellar setae, which barely stronger than black setulae. Scutum with short black setulae, no setulae medially and sublaterally. Setae cannot be distinguished from long black setulae on scutum. 1–2 long black setae dorsally on katepisternum, none ventrally. Metakatepisternum without setae. Anepisternum and anepimeron without setae or setulae. Wing generally tinged brownish, more intensely at tip, with obviously yellowish anterobasal area ( Fig. 92), which is seen best when looking from wing tip, and encompasses subcostal cell sc, radial cell r 1, base of radial cell r 2+3, basal radial cell br and base of basal medial cell bm. Veins in this area yellow too, contrasting with brown veins outside this area. Wing completely covered with microtrichia. Basal-medial-cubital crossvein bm–cu very short and incomplete.Veins R 1 and R 2 terminate close to each other in costa, well beyond end of subcosta. Vein R 4+5 with shallow, even curve in distal section directed towards wing tip. Cell r 4+5 pedunculate, with vein R 4+5 +M distinctly expressed and longer than r–m crossvein. Cubital cell cup elongated (distinctly longer than vein A 1 +CuA 2) and pointed distally (cubitus CuA 2 and anal vein A 1 meet at an acute angle). Cubital vein CuA 1 and crossvein bm–cu separated. Upper and lower calypters yellowish white, upper calypter with long white setulae on margin. Alula broad, about 2× broader than long, with short setulae on posterior margin. Obvious vena spuria in radial cell r 4+5. Haltere yellowish white with light brown base. Base and stem of haltere each with areas of sensilla. No black setulae recognised on haltere. Legs light brown, with silver dusting. Posterior surfaces of fore and middle tibiae with densely silver dusted fields. Legs with black setulae. Areas with dense golden-brown setulae ventrally at tip of fore tibia and with dense black setulae posteriorly at tip of hind tibia. Apical half of middle femur posteriorly with row of regularly arranged, long black setulae. Hind femur dorsally with slightly outstanding longer setulae at its tip. No preapical seta recognised. No setae ventrally on tibiae. Femora ventrally with rows of short, stout black setae. Fore and middle coxae without outstanding setae. Pulvilli whitish yellow. Claws yellow with distinct black tips. Empodium whitish yellow.

Abdomen in dorsal view markedly constricted in apical part by rapid reduction in width of tergite 3 towards apex. Abdomen brown with diffuse black midstripe on tergite 2. Tergite 3 black in anterior half. Abdomen with scattered, short black setulae. Tergite 2 without setae. Tergites 1+2 with a distinct narrow dusted hind margin, tergite 3 dusted in posterior half, tergites 4–6 completely lightly dusted; syntergite 8+9 only dusted in anterior half. Tergites 1–3 fused but distinct from each other. The female holotype was not dissected, therefore the description of the postabdomen remains incomplete. Maximum width of abdomen at base of segment 3. Sternites 1–2 fused but still distinct. Sternites 3–4 not protruding ventrally. Tergite 5 and sternite 5 fused laterally to form syntergosternite, with obvious theca below. Theca long and distinctly protruding. Shape of theca as in Fig. 90. Anterior surface of theca without setulae. Posterior surface of theca with close-set short, blunt spicules, not or almost not arranged in horizontal lines. Sternite 6 almost completely covered with spicules that are not or almost not arranged in horizontal lines. Tergite 7 distinctly bent ventrally, and without longitudinal gap or any tooth. Tooth on syntergite 8+9 distinct, its base elongated anteriorly. Long setulae lateral to base of tooth long setulae. Paired cerci distinct.

Holotype: ♀ The Gambia: (1) “The Gambia / North Bank / Berending / 23.101999 / leg. W. Schacht ”; (2) “ Holotypus / Conops / schachti / spec. nov. ♀ / det. Stuke 2018” ( ZSM). The specimen is pinned and in a very good condition ( Fig. 95).

Remark: There are five triungulin larvae ( Coleoptera : Meloidae ) attached to the base of the proboscis.