Tomosvaryella merinater Földvari, Skevington & Motamedinia, 2023

Motamedinia, Behnam, Földvari, Mihaly, Skevington, Jeffrey H. & Kelso, Scott, 2023, Revision of Australian Tomosvaryella Aczél (Diptera: Pipunculidae) with description of 100 new species, Zootaxa 5599 (1), pp. 1-271 : 141-143

Tomosvaryella merinater Földvari, Skevington & Motamedinia sp. nov.

urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:D1650A82-AF8E-4110-B1AC-4E7AD3037649

Figs 63A–F , 131

Diagnosis: This species can be recognized by the presence of four long, dark bristles on mid coxa; hind trochanter with 4–5 pale bristles in a row; elongated surstyli, bent outwards by 90° distally, with two small protrusions before apex at inner margin in dorsal view ( Fig. 63A ); gonopods covered by short bristles ( Fig. 63B ); phallic guide with a long spine dorsomedially in lateral view ( Fig. 63D–F ).

Description: MALE: Body length: 3.2 mm. Head. Flagellum long acuminate; yellow. Face silvery pollinose. Frons, upper part shining black, lower part distinctly silver pollinose; eyes touching for distance equal to 2–2.5 times the length of ocellar triangle. Occiput silvery pollinose, less so on upper 1/3. Thorax. Postpronotum pale, with 1–2 indistinct pale bristles. Mesonotum (viewed obliquely from front) brownish pollinose, anterior part slightly silver pollinose, very faintly grayish also from the side. Scutellum brownish pollinose and with 6–8 weak bristles along the distal edge. Dorsocentral bristles developed, short, somewhat longer on frontal half, numerous pale bristles around postpronotum. Halter, knob pale, stem brown. Legs. Mid coxa with four long, dark bristles. Trochanters and femora brown-black, shining ventrally, silvery pollinose posteriorly except shiny hind femur; knees, basal 1/5 and distal extremity of tibia yellow (tibia otherwise brown), tarsal segments yellow, last segment brown. Fore and mid trochanters with 2–3 short bristles. Hind trochanter without a keel, but with a few pale bristles (4–5) in a row that looks like a half circle (flat dorsally). Ventroapical row of spines on fore femur missing; 6–8 short, black spines on mid femur; no spines on hind femur, only 14–16 pale bristles equally spaced posteriorly, uniform in length (up to as long as 0.4–0.5 times the width of hind tibia at the distal end). Subapical (distal) spines on first four tibiae present (short). Ventrobasal spines (2) present on fore and absent on mid femur. Hind metatarsus not flattened, metatarsus almost as long as 2–5 combined; last tarsomere unusually long almost as long as segments 3–4 combined. Pulvilli as long as the last tarsal segment, shorter on metatarsi. Wing. Length: 3.5 mm. Upper side of basal costal cell with one dark and short bristles. Fourth costal section 2–2.2 times as long as third costal section. Cross-vein r-m at middle of discal cell. Three distinct dark setulae on tegula. Abdomen. Viewed obliquely from front tergites subshining black with a greenish hint, tergite 1 silvery grey, sides silvery pollinose on tergites 5. Dispersed strong dark bristles on all tergites present, the longest on tergite 5 and up to as long as half the width of hind tibia at base, otherwise tergites covered with very faint, velvet-like bristles. Lateral bristles on first tergite present, 4–5 long pale bristles in a row up to 0.8–1 time as long as the width of hind femur at distal tip in lateral view. Postabdomen in dorsal view: T6, S7 invisible; T5 2.4–2.6 times as long as ST8. Genitalia without dissection: ST8 medium sized, wide, with occasional small bristles; membranous area elongated, broadening on dorsal part; epandrium and surstyli uniformly brown, surstyli appear to be long and with broad base. Genitalia. Genital capsule in dorsal view: epandrium square-shaped (MLE:MWE=1.0). surstyli symmetrical, broadened at base, gradually slenderized before apical fourth, bent outwards by 90° distally, with two small protrusions shortly before apex at inner margin ( Fig. 63A ). Genital capsule in ventral view: gonopods equal, extended towards surstyli, both gonopods covered by short bristles; lobes of hypandrium sclerotized; subepandrial sclerite shortened with some scattered short bristles in its middle ( Fig. 63B ); Genital capsule in lateral view: both surstyli broadened at base and apex, constricted in middle ( Fig. 63D–E ); phallic guide straight, with a long spine dorsomedially; phallus with three ejaculatory ducts ( Fig. 63F ). Ejaculatory apodeme tube-like, bent, with a bulb in its middle ( Fig. 63C ).

FEMALE: Unknown.

Etymology: The name is in reference to the four long, dark bristles on the mid coxa and is derived from the Greek word merinx (bristle) and the Latin ater (black).

Examined material: HOLOTYPE: AUSTRALIA: Queensland: Forest Station, Bulburin State Forest via Many Peaks , 24°32’S, 151°34’E, 600m, long grass, wet sclerophyll forest, 12–15.iv.1974, I. Naumann, JSS8306 (1♂, QM) ; PARATYPE: AUSTRALIA: Queensland: Brisbane , 27°28’S, 153°1’E, 24.i.1960, Haseler, JSS8301 (1♂, QM) ; Northern Territory: McArthur River , 48 km SW by S of Borroloola, 15°54’S, 136°40’E, 14.IV.1976, D.H. Colless, JSS9221–22 (2♂, ANIC) .

Distribution: Australia (Northern Territory, Queensland) ( Fig. 131 ).

Notes: One specimen was collected in wet sclerophyll forest and the Northern Territory specimen was found near the coast in what would presumably be wet, monsoon forest. Future searches for this species should likely focus on wet forest types.

Figures

FIGURE 63. Male genitalia of Tomosvaryella merinater sp. nov. (JSS8306, QM) A) dorsal view, B) ventral view, C) ejaculatory apodeme, D, E) lateral view, F) right surstylus and phallus in lateral view.

FIGURE 131. Distribution of Tomosvaryella macrostyla sp. nov., T. merinator sp. nov., T. miltocentra sp. nov. in Australia.