Pseudosmittia forcipata (Goetghebuer)

Andersen, Trond, Saether, Ole A. & Mendes, Humberto F., 2010, Neotropical Allocladius Kieffer, 1913 and Pseudosmittia Edwards, 1932 (Diptera: Chironomidae) 2472, Zootaxa 2472 (1), pp. 1-77 : 39-41

Pseudosmittia forcipata (Goetghebuer)

( Figs 106–111 )

Camptocladius forcipatus Goetghebuer, 1921: 87 .

Smittia triappendiculata Goetghebuer, 1931: 216 .

Pseudosmittia antillaria Saether, 1981: 29 . Syn. n.

Smittia (Pseudosmittia) forcipata Goetghebuer 1943: 106 in Goetghebuer (1940 –50).

Pseudosmittia forcipata (Goetghebuer) ; Langton and Pider (2007: 136), Cranston and Oliver (1988: 450), Pinho et al. (2009: 164).

Material examined. BELGIUM: Destelbergen , holotype male, 31.x.1916, M. Goetghebuer ( IRSN) ; 1 male, 1 female paratypes, as holotype ( IRSN) . SAINT VINCENT: Majorca Estate, SVT 218B, 1 male, viii.1972, A.D. Harrison, holotype male of Pseudosmittia antillaria ( ZMBN Type No. 33); 3 male paratypes, same as holotype ( ZMBN) . BRAZIL: Santa Catarina State, São Bento do Sul , 3 Trilha Rugendas , 26º19'25.6''S, 48º18'26.5''W, 660 m a.s.l., 1 male, 13–16.x.2001, Malaise trap, M.V. Yamada; São Bento do Sul , 5 Trilha Rugendas , 26º19'25.6''S, 48º18'26.5''W, 660 m a.s.l., 3 males, 13–16.x.2001, Malaise trap, M.V. Yamada ( ZMBN) . Rio de Janeiro State, Itatiaia, Penedo-Gramado entorno do Lago da Pousada do Lago , 3 males, 16.vi.1963, L.R. Silva-da-Silva & S.J. Oliveira ( ZMBN) . Amazonas State, Rio Marauiá, outlet from mountains ( upper Rio Negro ), A504, 1 male, 29.i.1963, drift, E.J. Fittkau ( ZSM) . Pará State, Rio Pará do Oeste, Oberland, Mission Tiriyos , A356–1, 1 male, 22–23.vii.1962, drift, E.J. Fittkau ( ZSM) . PERU: Huanuco Region, Mouth of Río Azul in Río Tullumayo, 1 male, 21.v.1963, E.J. Fittkau ( ZSM) . ECUADOR: Napo Province, Baeza, Quijos , 2.200 m a.s.l., 11 males, 21.i.1997, J. Skartveit ( ZMBN) . VENEZUELA: Falcón State, Sierra de San Luis , 11º11.750'N, 69º41.454'W, 1.371 m a.s.l., 1 male, 8–9.vi.2001, Malaise trap, R.W. Holzenthal et al.; Río Mitare near San Luis , 11º07.930'N, 69º39.184'W, 589 m a.s.l., 4 males, 07.vi.2001, R.W. Holzenthal et al. ( ZMBN) . Aragua State, Parque Nacional Henri Pittier, Rancho Grande , 10º21.047'N, 67º41.198'W, about 1.000 m a.s.l., 3 males, 16–18.ix.1999, rainforest, hand net / light trap, T. Andersen ( ZMBN) . COLOMBIA: Antioquia State, near Medellín , 1.700 m a.s.l., 1 male, 28.iv.1983, M. Wolf ( ZSM) . COSTA RICA: Guanacaste Province, Guanacaste Conservation Area, Cerro Cacao, Río San Josecito, 1.000 m a.s.l., 10 males, 3–7.v.1993, Malaise trap, T. Andersen ( ZMBN) . Heredia Province, La Selva Biological Station , 5 males, 03.iv.1993, Malaise trap, O.A. Saether ( ZMBN) . MEXICO: Campeche State, Calakmul Biosphere Reserve, Aguada pequeña, 1 km Northeast of Hormiguero, 18º24'10.9''N, 89º29'13.8''W, 300 m a.s.l., 4 males, 6–7.v.1997, Malaise trap, A. Contreras-Ramos et al. ( ZMBN) . Nuevo León State, Santiago, 30 km West of Cola de Caballo on road to Laguna de Sanchéz , small stream with silt, 14 males, 19.ix.1998, hand net, T. Andersen & A. Contreras-Ramos ( ZMBN) .

Diagnostic characters. The male imago can be separated from other species with divided superior volsella by the shape of the accessory lobe of the inferior volsella, AR of 0.74–1.48, an anal point length of 11–48 µm and a clearly sinuate Cu 1. The female can be distinguished from other females with tergite IX divided by broad caudal notch and slight caudal projection of gonocoxites by lacking a strong apical seta on the antenna. The pupa has uneven shagreen spinules on tergal conjunctives III/IV, VI/VII and sternal conjunctives IV/V– VII/VIII, no setae on anal segment, no nose on wing sheath, no stronger spinules or spines on anal segment, female genital sac without spinules, but tentatively associated male exuviae with basiventral but not apical spinules. The larva has a mandible with 3 inner teeth, posterior parapods with 5 claws and antennal blade 2–3 times as long as width of basal antennal segment.

Description. The species will be redescribed in detail by Ferrington and Saether (in manuscript).

Distribution and biology. The species is widely distributed all over the Holarctic and Neotropical regions. In the Neotropical Region the species is recorded from Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Mexico, Peru, Saint Vincent and Venezuela. In addition the species is known from Belgium, Germany, Norway, Thailand and China and all over Canada and U.S.A.

In Brazil it was collected in lowland areas with Amazon forest in the northern states of Pará and Amazonas at altitudes up to 660 m a.s.l.; in the southern states Rio de Janeiro and Santa Catarina it was taken in areas with Mata Atlântica forest . In Costa Rica it was taken in Malaise traps both in a tropical pre-montane wet forest at La Selva and in a cloud forest on the Cacao Volcano at about 1.000 m altitude .

Reared larvae from Georgia were from moist or saturated soils over lateral lines of a septic system in an urban lawn. It is likely that a larva of this species typically inhabits similar types of moist or saturated organically rich substrate .

Figures

FIGURES 106–111. Pseudosmittia forcipata (Goetghebuer, 1921), male. 106—tentorium, stipes, and cibarial pump; 107—palp; 108—thorax; 109—wing; 110—hypopygium, dorsal aspect; 111—hypopygium with anal point and tergite IX removed, dorsal aspect to the left, ventral aspect to the right.