Phytomyza bipunctata Loew

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 : 35

Phytomyza bipunctata Loew

( Figs. 65–67 , 242–248 )

Material examined. Ukraine: Kharkiv Region: N Kharkiv, Piatykhatky , 50°05'42"N, 36°15'38"E, 10.vii.2021, Yu. Guglya (1♂); near Petrivske, 49°10’N, 36°58’E, 28.vi.2020 —mine with larva collected, 30.vi.2020 —pupation outside the mine on lower leaf surface, 11.vii.2020 —imago, Yu. Guglya, ex Echinops sphaerocephalus (1♀) .

Hosts. Asteraceae : Echinops spp. ( Spencer 1976).

Mine. ( Fig. 65 ) The solitary larva forms a yellowish linear upper surface leaf mine, with frass arranged in long lines along the margin. Pupation takes place outside the mine.

Puparium. ( Figs. 66, 67 ) Brown, semi-glossy, 1.9 mm long, with distinct segmentation; surface quite smooth except for wide bands of fine spines between all segments. Posterior spiracles set flat on the body cuticle and entirely separate; black with 12 fine sessile bulbs in an elliptical configuration. Ventral portion of last abdominal segment slightly protruding posteriorly viewed from the side. Anal plate directed ventro-posteriorly.

Cephalopharingeal skeleton. ( Fig. 245 ) Right mouthhook larger dorsally than the left, both with ventro-anterior portion acute, abducted ventrally. Mouthhooks bear two accessory teeth; both dorsal and right medial sharp, uniformly curved and directed ventrally; left ventral rounded directed anteriorly. Mouthhooks and intermediate sclerite are strongly sclerotized, dorsal cornu much less so. Ventral cornu bearsa small “closed” window medially. Intermediate sclerite straight, bearing two sharp teeth on the posterior third of ventral margin that are directed ventro-posteriorly. Indentation index 80.

Female head. ( Figs. 242, 243 ) Pale orange, not bright, with ped and 1 st fl black; orbit not or scarcely projecting above eye in profile; 2 ors, 1 ori; lunule small, narrow, semicircular, reaching the level of ori; 1 st fl large, rounded apically, with thick gold pubescence; gena medially 0.32 × as high as maximum height of eye.

Wing. ( Fig. 244 ) Hyaline, with beige veins; costa ending after R 3+4; second cross vein absent; calypter and margin pale yellow, fringe black. Wing length 2.1 mm.

Female genitalia. ( Figs. 246–248 ) Spermathecae of medium size, 0.15× as high as anterior part of oviscape. Proctiger wide, cylindrical, with pair of medium setae located on posterior margin between cerci. Cercus broadly ovate, 0.46× as long as proctiger; several thin elongate setae and thick short setae located subapically and apically. Spermathecae equal in size, brown, wider than high and flattened basally and apically. Internal duct invagination wrinkled, 0.8× as deep as height of spermatheca, tapering apically. Spermathecal duct relatively wide and very weakly sclerotized. Ventral receptacle brown, S-shaped, with weaker sclerotized tail that is two-bladed basally; body of receptacle spherical, with slightly curved basal connecting tube, strongly sclerotized; opening relatively small, 0.57× as wide as a diameter of spherical part of body.

Distribution. Belgium, the Czech Republic, Germany, Great Britain, Hungary, Italy, Lithuania, Norway, Poland, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, Serbia ( Papp & Černý 2019). Ukraine (first record).

Figures

FIGURES 62–67. Figures 62–64: Phytomyza aurei Hering; 62: mines with larvae in Chaerophyllum aromaticum leaf; 63: puparium viewed from the side; 64: posterior segments of puparium (posterior view). Figures 65–67: Phytomyza bipunctata Loew; 65: mine in Echinops sphaerocephalus leaf; 66: empty puparium viewed from the side; 67: posterior segments of puparium (posterior view).

FIGURES 242–248. Phytomyza bipunctata Loew; 242: frontal view of head; 243: head viewed from the side; 244: wing; 245: cephalopharingeal skeleton; 246: oviscape, ventral receptacle, proctiger and spermathecae proportionally; 247 a, b: spermathecae and ventral receptacle proportionally; a: spermatheca; b: ventral receptacle; 248: proctiger.