Platypalpus kintrishiensis, Kustov, Semen, Shamshev, Igor & Grootaert, Patrick, 2015

Kustov, Semen, Shamshev, Igor & Grootaert, Patrick, 2015, New data on the genus Platypalpus (Diptera: Hybotidae) from the Caucasus with description of seven new species, Zootaxa 3973 (3), pp. 451-473 : 456-457

Platypalpus kintrishiensis sp. nov.

( Figs 4–6 )

Type material. HOLOTYPE, ♂ labelled [printed in Cyrillic], [ GEORGIA], “Kintrishskiy zapov. les [=Kintrishskiy Nature Reserve, forest]/ 300–400 m [a.s.l.]/ 20.v.1973, coll. Zagulyaev” ( ZIN).

Recognition. Medium-sized species of the P. pallidiventris-cursitans group; occiput with 1 pair of pale verticals; antenna with pale yellow scape and pedicel, postpedicel largely pale yellow, narrowly brownish on subapical part, 1.5X longer than wide; palpus pale yellow; thorax with yellowish bristles, 3 notopleurals, katepisternum entirely pollinose; legs almost entirely yellow, only last tarsomere of all tarsi brownish; abdomen brownish-black, shiny, only tergites 1–2 faintly dusted laterally.

Description. Male. Wing length 3.3 mm. Head black. Occiput densely light grey pollinose; with 1 pair of pale, closely aligned inclinate verticals; upper part of occiput with whitish bristly hairs becoming longer on lower part. Ocellar tubercle greyish pollinose, with moderately long anterior and minute posterior setae. Frons narrow, almost parallel-sided, with silvery grey pollinosity. Face narrow, nearly as broad as frons, densely silvery grey pollinose, slightly widening below; clypeus with silvery grey pollinosity. Antenna with scape and pedicel pale yellow, postpedicel largely pale yellow, narrowly brownish on subapical part; postpedicel conical, short, 1.5X longer than wide; stylus black, short pubescent, 3X longer than postpedicel. Gena narrow. Proboscis dark brown, half as long as head height. Palpus pale yellow, large, oval, broader than proboscis, with 2 whitish, long subapical bristly hairs, faintly whitish pubescent.

Thorax brownish black, with mesonotum densely grey dusted; pleura densely silvery grey pollinose including katepisternum; with yellowish bristles. Postpronotal lobe with 1 moderately long and several minute setae. Mesonotum with 3 long notopleurals (posterior longer), 2 postalars (anterior very long) and 4 scutellars (apical pair long, cruciate, lateral pair short); acrostichals pale, rather long, arranged in 2 broad almost regular rows (partly obscured by pin); dorsocentrals somewhat longer than acrostichals, irregularly 2–3-serial, 2 prescutellar pairs long; additionally, some setulae present just behind postpronotal lobe, on notopleuron and supra-alar surface.

Legs almost entirely yellow only last tarsomere of all tarsi brownish. Fore femur thickened, with long anteroventral and posteroventral setae (2/3rds width of femur). Fore tibia somewhat thickened, with some brownish bristly hairs dorsally. Mid femur moderately thickened, with double row of short black spines ventrally and row of moderately long yellow posteroventral bristles. Mid tibia slender; tibial spur large, pointed, black at tip. Hind legs long and slender, covered with only short pale hairs. Tarsi of all legs unmodified.

Wing slightly yellowish, with yellowish veins. One long pale costal seta. Veins R4+5 and M1+2 evenly bowed and strongly convergent near wing margin; CuA2 recurrent. Crossveins m-cu and r-m separated. Calypter yellow, with yellow setae. Halter yellow.

Abdomen brownish black, shiny, only tergites 1–2 faintly dusted laterally, covered with fine pale hair-like setae of different lengths; sternites entirely shiny. Terminalia ( Figs 4–6 ) moderately large, shiny brownish black, subglobular; cerci ( Fig. 5 ): right cercus digitiform, moderately long, narrowed on about basal half (dorsal view), rounded apically, covered with short ordinary setae; left cercus digitiform, more or less parallel-sided (dorsal view), somewhat truncate apically, slightly longer right cercus, covered with short ordinary setae, without apical hook and ventral bulge (lateral view); right epandrial lamella ( Fig. 4 ) elongate oval (lateral view), with row of several long subapical setae and short setae along ventral margin; right surstylus rounded apically, with some short ordinary setae; left epandrial lamella ( Fig. 6 ) rather subrectangular, broadly convex apically, with almost straight ventral margin bearing numerous pale yellow setae of different lengths including several longest curved setae closer to base, with some short ordinary setae along upper margin on subapical part.

Female. Unknown.

Etymology. The name of the new species refers to the area of its origin, Kintrishskiy Nature Reserve ( Georgia).

Distribution. Georgia (Adjara).

Remarks. This species is known from submontane forest of Kintrishskiy Nature Reserve.

The new species resembles P. cursitans (Fabricius) differing from the latter by its smaller size (3.0– 4.8 mm in P. cursitans ), 3 notopleurals (2 in P. cursitans ), almost entirely shiny abdomen and details of the male terminalia. From the similar species P. odintsovi Kustov, Shamshev & Grootaert , the new species differs by coloration and size of the postpedicel ( P. odintsovi has black postpedicel and 2.5X as long as wide), 3 notopleurals (2 in P. odintsovi ) and other features, including structure of the male terminalia.

Figures

FIGURES 4 – 6. Platypalpus kintrishiensis sp. nov., male. 4, right epandrial lamella and surstylus, lateral view; 5, epandrium and cerci; 6, left cercus and left epandrial lamella, lateral view. Scale bar = 0.1 mm.