Blepharoneura regina Giglio-Tos, 1893

Norrbom, Allen L. & Condon, Marty, 2010, Revision of the femoralis group of Blepharoneura Loew (Diptera: Tephritidae) 2374, Zootaxa 2374 (1), pp. 1-139 : 100-102

Blepharoneura regina Giglio-Tos

Figs. 58–59 , 170 , 191

Blepharoneura regina Giglio-Tos 1893: 9 ; Giglio-Tos 1895: 56 [type data; additional description]; Hendel 1914: 20 [in key], 21 [in catalog]; Aczél 1950: 197 [in catalog]; Foote 1967: 18 [in catalog]; Norrbom et al. 1999: 106 [in catalog].

Blepharoneura sp. 22: Condon & Norrbom 1999: 161.

Diagnosis. This species differs from other species of Blepharoneura by the following combination of characters: Scutellum dorsally and anepisternum entirely yellow; cell r2+3 between crossveins r-m and dm-cu more extensively hyaline than brown (spots large or fused); cell r4+5 with hyaline spot or mark nearest to dmcu more than 3/4 width of cell; and cell r1 with 2–3 marginal hyaline spots in addition to the large basal spot distal to apex of vein R1. The aculeus differs from all other Blepharoneura species by the narrowness of the lobed part (less than 1/3 of aculeus width) and the evenly rounded, minutely serrate lateral margin.

Description. Head: Dark brown area on ocellar tubercle extended less than half distance to postocellar seta or reaching it. Medial occipital sclerite occasionally (3 of 8 specimens) with pair of faint brown submedial vittae on ventral half. Occipital suture narrowly orange brown to dark brown.

Thorax: Scutum entirely microtrichose, with 1 pair of submedial brown marks on anterior margin (holotype) or usually 2 pairs of red brown to dark brown vittae or rows of spots; submedial vitta often reduced to 1–3 spots (at least spot on anterior margin present, and except in holotype, also 1 spot near midway between transverse suture and posterior margin present), at maximum narrow but continuous from anterior margin to midway between transverse suture and posterior margin, always well separated from marks on posterior margin; sublateral vitta usually almost complete, but broadly interrupted at transverse suture, postsutural part absent in 2 teneral specimens, entire vitta absent in holotype; posterior margin with 2 well separated quadrate or subtriangular dark brown marks. Notopleuron often (4 of 8 specimens) with small brown spot near anterior seta on lateral margin, sometimes (2 specimens) also with small brown spot near posterior seta on lateral margin. Small brown spot anterior to postsutural supra-alar seta often (5 of 8 specimens) present, sometimes faint. Sometimes (1 of 4 specimens with character visible) with small brown spot anterior to postalar seta. Small brown spot posterior to intra-alar seta often (5 of 8 specimens) present. Scutellum entirely yellow. Subscutellum and mediotergite with pair of brown vittae or entirely brown except medial vitta on both sclerites and dorsolateral corner of mediotergite. Pleuron mostly yellow, with following brown marks: medial brown spot on anepimeron; sometimes (4 of 8 specimens) with medial brown spot on meron and brown spot ventrally on anatergite and katatergite; less commonly (2 of 8 specimens) with brown spot on posterior half of katepisternum. Basalare entirely yellow. Dorsocentral seta aligned with or usually slightly anterior to postalar seta.

Legs: Entirely yellow.

Wing ( Figs. 58–59 ): Length 6.70–8.24 mm, width 2.93–3.56 mm, ratio 2.22–2.43. Crossvein r-m at 0.48– 0.57 distance from bm-cu to dm-cu. Cell c with 2 broad rectangular to trapezoidal hyaline spots, both reaching costa and subcosta; medial brown area almost as dark as to distinctly paler than area of cell r1 posterior to pterostigma, sometimes faint anteriorly and/or posteriorly, distinctly narrower than both hyaline spots. Pterostigma with large subapical hyaline spot [#3], usually reaching R1. Cells r1 and r2+3 basally (proximal to apex of R1) with 1–4 and 2–3 hyaline spots, respectively. Radial cells medially with 1 slightly to very broad quadrate basal hyaline mark [#5 fused with additional spot?] in cell r1; cell r2+3 with 2 broad hyaline spots [#8, 9] or 1 extremely broad hyaline mark [fused #8 and 9]; cell r4+5 with large, broad hyaline spot [#14] aligned with r1 mark and large broad hyaline spot [#15] slightly proximal to anterior end of dm-cu, both at least 3/4 width of cell and often touching R4+5 and M, or with 1 extremely large and broad hyaline area [fused #14 and 15], sometimes partially divided; usually (9 of 10 specimens) with anterior hyaline spot [#48] near midlength, and often also with 1 to several additional tiny hyaline spots on or near anterior and/or posterior margins. Distally cell r1 with 2–3 small marginal hyaline spots [#6 and additional spots] (1 wing of 1 specimen with 1 broad spot), occasionally (2 specimens) also with 1 small more proximal posterior hyaline spot. Cell r2+3 with 2 large marginal hyaline marks [#10, #11], brown area between them sometimes pale and diffuse, both extending to vein R4+5. Cell r4+5 with small hyaline spot [#16] anteriorly, aligned with either apical mark in cell r2+3 or between them; with 2 or rarely 1 posterior hyaline spots aligned with hyaline mark(s) in cell m; and with 2 small ovoid marginal or submarginal hyaline spots [#18, #18A], rarely with spots connected away from margin to form C-shaped mark or anterior spot [#18A] absent (1 Ciudad Mendoza ♀). Cell m with basal or usually subbasal hyaline spot [#49] near midlength of dm-cu; and with 3 large ovoid hyaline spots, 2 marginal [#27, #29] and 1 anteromedial spot [fused #26, #26A], usually diffusely separated or partially fused, especially anteromedial and proximal spots, to form large irregular mark. Cell br with large subbasal hyaline spot [#12]. Cell bm with large circular subbasal and subapical hyaline spots [#19, #20] (3 specimens), or usually with single broad hyaline area [fused #19, #20]. Cell bcu occasionally (3 specimens) with small irregular pale brown spot in lobe. Posteromedial part of wing with very large broad hyaline areas; cell br with broad subapical hyaline spot [#13] and smaller more proximal spot [#44], occasionally connected posteriorly; cell dm with broad hyaline area [fusion of at least #51, #52, #21, #22, #23, #24, #50] aligned with large hyaline area in cell cu1, sometimes partially divided anteriorly (in 1 specimen with very narrowly separated anteromedial and anterodistal spots), anteriorly extended beyond level of r-m, nearly transverse distally; cell cu1 with anteriorly trilobed and posteriorly bilobed mark [fusion of at least #31, #32, #33, #34, #39, #36, #36A] or more broadly fused hyaline area covering more than medial half, very broad on posterior wing margin, including 1 or usually 2 small anterior and 1 subbasal marginal or submarginal brown spots; subapical marginal hyaline spot [#37] large, reaching vein Cu1, rarely connected anteriorly to large proximal hyaline area. Cell dm with moderate sized to large anterior subapical hyaline spot [#25?], sometimes (4 of 10 specimens) connected to proximal hyaline area, and with moderate sized posterior hyaline spot [#53] aligned with subapical mark in cell cu1.

Abdomen: All tergites with 4 evenly spaced dark brown spots and 2 pairs of spots (more medial pair usually weak or absent on syntergite 1+2) or pair of narrow posterolateral dark brown bands on posterior margin, on tergites 3–5 L-shaped but lateral margin yellow anteriorly, bands separated medially; more anterior spots not connected to posterior spots or bands.

Female terminalia: Oviscape entirely dark brown or occasionally with base and extreme apex orange; length 1.10–1.50 mm. Aculeus ( Fig. 170 ) 0.74 mm long, 2.47 times as long as wide, without scales dorsally or ventrally on medial membrane; tip evenly curved basolaterally, margin with minute serrations extending to lateral lobe; lobed part very narrow, less than 1/3 as wide as aculeus, and short (0.37–0.43 times as long as wide), with narrow medial concavity (about as broad and deep as medial lobe) and 4 pairs of small lobes; medial lobes convex; sublateral lobe larger than submedial lobe, both step-like; lateral lobe acute, directed distally, separated from sublateral lobe by gap as deep and broad as lateral lobe. Spermathecae subspherical, with slender, convoluted neck and large cylindrical basal apodeme ( Fig. 191 ).

Male terminalia: Medial surstylus with prensisetae separated by several times width of medial prensiseta, medial prensiseta on curved lobe, lateral prensiseta small to minute, less than one-fourth as wide as medial prensiseta, acute, and orange brown (similar in color to medial surstylus, not dark brown like medial prensiseta).

Distribution. Mexico ( Mexico, Morelos, Veracruz). The specimens for which elevation data were provided by the collectors were taken between 2400–2900 m.

Type data. Holotype ♂ ( IMZ), MEXICO: "senza indicazione de località" [unspecified locality]. The holotype has labels with "N.A.", "1214", and, in Giglio-Tos' writing, " Blepharoneura regina Giglio-Tos ♂ ".

Other specimens examined. MEXICO: México: Atlacomulco , 22 mi N, 8100 ft. [2470 m], 18 Aug 1954, J. G. Chillcott, 1♀ ( CNC USNMENT00213844 ) . Morelos: Lagunas de Zempoala , 9400 ft. [2866 m], 22 Aug 1969, G. W. Byers, 2♀ ( UKaL USNM USNMENT00213845 , USNMENT00213847 ) 1♀ ( USNM USNMENT00213846 ) ; Lagunas de Zempoala , emerged 13 Mar - 11 Apr 1993 reared ex fruit of Microsechium helleri (Peyr.) Cogn. collected 5 Nov 1992, M. A. Condon, 1♂ ( IEXV USNMENT00213381 ) 1♀ ( USNM USNMENT00213380 ) . Veracruz: Ciudad Mendoza , 27 km W of, 13 Aug 1987, Brown & Powell, 1♂ 1♀ ( UCB USNMENT00213825–26 ) 1♀ ( UCB USNMENT00213827 ) .

Biology. This species was reared from fruit of Microsechium helleri (Peyr.) Cogn. in central Mexico. Larvae found in fruit of the same plant in 1991 at Lagunas de Zempoala (Norrbom plant voucher 91M18), but not reared, fed on developing seeds and associated tissues ( Figs. 206–208 ).

Figures

FIGURES 56–65. Wing: 56, B. quadristriata (Mexico: Los Tuxtlas, USNMENT00054201); 57, B. quetzali (holotype); 58–59, B. regina (lectotype; Mexico: Lagunas de Zempoala, USNMENT00213847); 60, B. rupta (lectotype); 61, B. ruptafascia (holotype); 62, B. septemdigitata (Peru: Pakitza, USNMENT00213939); 63, B. sinepuncta (Costa Rica: La Suiza, USNMENT00213918); 64–65, B. splendida (Guatemala: Pacayal, USNMENT00213874; Venezuela: Rancho Grande, USNMENT00213864).

FIGURES 165–172. Aculeus: 165, B. amplihyalina (holotype); 166, B. marshalli (holotype); 167, B. multipunctata (holotype); 168, B. mikenoltei (holotype); 169, B. mexicana (Mexico: Mexico City, USNMENT00213809); 170, B. regina (Mexico: Lagunas de Zempoala, USNMENT00213846); 171, B. variabilis (Mexico: El Triunfo, USNMENT00213899); 172, B. bidigitata (Brazil: Nova Teutonia, USNMENT00213907).

FIGURES 188–195. Spermathecae: 188–190, B. femoralis (Mexico: Lagunas de Zempoala, USNMENT00213772; Oaxaca, USNMENT00213778; Brazil: Nova Teutonia, USNMENT00052306); 191, B. regina (2) (Mexico: Lagunas de Zempoala, USNMENT00213846); 192, B. quadristriata (3) (Mexico: Los Tuxtlas, USNMENT00213949); 193, B. furcifer (3) (lectotype). Egg: 194, B. femoralis (Mexico: Mexico City, USNMENT00213773); 195, B. lutea (Costa Rica: Golfito, USNMENT00213824).

FIGURES 204–209. Host plants: 204, Cyclanthera dissecta, host of B. cyclantherae, Mexico: road to Huitzilac, 27 Sep 1991, mass of vines; 205, same, flowers and fruit (arrow); 206, Microsechium helleri, host of B. regina, Mexico: Lagunas de Zempoala, 25 Sep 1991, vine with fruits (arrow); 207, same, fruits, on right with emergence hole of larva (arrow); 208, same, cross section of infested fruit; 209, Gurania acuminata, host of B. hirsuta, Venezuela: Guatopo, Jan 1980, basal shoot mined by larva.