Curtonotum herrero Tsacas, 1977

Kirk-Spriggs, Ashley H. & Wiegmann, Brian M., 2013, A revision of Afrotropical Quasimodo flies (Diptera: Schizophora; Curtonotidae). Part IV — the continental Afrotropical species of Curtonotum Macquart, with descriptions of thirteen new species and a combined phylogenetic analysis of the Curtonotidae , Zootaxa 3684 (1), pp. 1-166 : 61-63

publication ID	https://doi.org/ 10.11646/zootaxa.3684.1.1
publication LSID	lsid:zoobank.org:pub:E922034E-1247-400B-97F6-1778CF766B91
persistent identifier	https://treatment.plazi.org/id/03E45152-FFA3-FFD8-A6AB-FD5857C6468F
treatment provided by	Felipe
scientific name	Curtonotum herrero Tsacas, 1977
status

Treatment

Curtonotum herrero Tsacas, 1977 View in CoL

Figs 106 View FIGURES 106–111 , 130 View FIGURES 130–141 , 154, 155 View FIGURES 154–159 , 160 View FIGURES 160–165 , 166, 191, 194, 197, 200, 207, 210, 323.

Curtonotum herrero: Tsacas, 1977: 156 View in CoL ; figs 5 a–e, p. 156. Type locality: [ Namibia] “ S.-O. Africa (29): Kahn River , 8 km W. Usakos ”.

Curtonotum herrero: Wirth and Tsacas (1980: 672) View in CoL .

Curtonotum herrero: Kirk-Spriggs (2008c: 251) View in CoL .

Curtonotum herrero: Klymko and Marshall (2011: 8) View in CoL .

Redescription: Male (primarily based on field-pinned N-T).

As redescribed for C. maculiventris (above), differing in the following respects:

Measurements: Overall length unknown; 6–9 mm ( Tsacas 1977: 157); length of head and thorax combined 3.5–4.5 mm; length of thorax and scutellum combined 2.8–3.8 mm; wing length 3.6–6.0 mm (n = 5, N-T).

Head ( Figs 106 View FIGURES 106–111 , 130 View FIGURES 130–141 , 154, 155 View FIGURES 154–159 ). Eye height/length ratio: 15:9 (n = 1, N-T); frons ( Fig. 130 View FIGURES 130–141 ) length/width ratio: 11:13 (n = 1, N-T); arista with 10–11 dorsal branches and 2 or 3 ventral branches in addition to terminal fork; eye height/genal height ratio: 15:3 (n = 1, N-T).

Thorax ( Fig. 106 View FIGURES 106–111 ). Postpronotum with 18 fine black-brown setulae; the more dorsal katepisternal seta ca. ½ length of ventral katepisternal setae.

Legs. Fore tibia with ctenidium of 16–18 long, sharp, black spinules.

Wing ( Fig. 160 View FIGURES 160–165 ). Dm–cu crossvein virtually straight.

Abdomen. Sternite 6 ( Fig. 191 View FIGURES 191–202 ) subquadrate, with extensive brown macula laterally and antero-medially, setulae at apical margin long and prominent, with pair of preapical divergent medial setae.

Terminalia ( Figs 194, 197, 200 View FIGURES 191–202 ). Hypandrium ( Fig. 194 View FIGURES 191–202 , hy); postgonite ( Fig. 194 View FIGURES 191–202 ); epandrium (ep); cercus (ce); surstylus (ss); phallus (as in Figs 197 View FIGURES 191–202 , ph, bp, dp, lw; 200, lw, dp); phallapodeme ( Fig. 197 View FIGURES 191–202 , ph); ejaculatory apodeme (ea); basiphallus (bp) apical section ( Fig. 200 View FIGURES 191–202 , dp, lw) with conspicuous lateral wing with 2 basal projections (resembling moose antler); distiphallus ( Figs 197, 200 View FIGURES 191–202 , dp) with complex arrangement of projections as illustrated.

♀ Similar to ♂, except in the following respects: wing length 3.9–6.1 mm (n = 4, N-T). Auxiliary sclerites in region of sternite 7 as illustrated in Fig. 207 View FIGURES 203–217 and spermatheca as illustrated in Fig. 210 View FIGURES 203–217 .

Variation. As is the case with C. maculiventris (noted above), this species exhibits an unusually extreme range of sizes, with the smallest specimen examined having a wing length of only 3.6 mm (normal range 5.4–6.0 mm). Such size extremes may be directly related to the larval breeding medium, early pupariation often being triggered by poor larval food availability with smaller resultant imagoes.

Differential diagnosis. Curtonotum herrero is mainly separable from its congeners, C. maculiventris and C. striatifrons , on head shape (compare Figs 154–159 View FIGURES 154–159 ), form of the terminalia, especially the shape of the distiphallus, the lateral wing of the basiphallus ( Figs 197–202 View FIGURES 191–202 ) and of sternite 6 ( Figs 191–193 View FIGURES 191–202 ) (see above key for details). Females of the three species can be separated on the shape of the auxiliary sclerites in the region of sternite 7 ( Figs 207–209 View FIGURES 203–217 ) and the shape and structure of fine protuberances on the spermatheca ( Figs 210–212 View FIGURES 203–217 ).

Type material examined. [ NAMIBIA]: holotype ♂, “Holo- / type [paper disc with pale red border] // S.W. AFRICA (29) / [blue line] Kahn River, 5 mls. / N. Usakos / 30–31.i.1972 // Southern / African Exp. / B.M.1972–1 // HOLOTYPE [printed; dark red card] // CURTONOTUM / herrero / n.sp. / L. TSACAS DET. 1976 [printed & handwritten] // Curtonotum / herrero Tsacas, 1977 / A.H. Kirk-Spriggs vidit 2006” (BMNH). In fair condition, left wing, right fore tibia and fore tarsus; left fore tarsus, left and right hind tibia and hind tarsus missing; scutellar setae missing or damaged; re-staged on nu-poly mount; dissected, abdomen and terminalia in micro-vial pinned beneath specimen. Paratypes (all labelled: “ CURTONOTUM / herrero n.sp. / L. TSACAS DET. 1976 [printed & handwritten] // Curtonotum / herrero Tsacas, 1977 / A. H. Kirk-Spriggs vidit 2006”): ANGOLA: 1♀, “Para- / type [paper disc with yellow border] // ANGOLA ( A15 ) / [blue line] R.Giraul, 10 mls. / NE. Mocamedes / 27– 29.ii.1972 // Southern / African Exp. / B.M.1972–1” ( BMNH); 1♂, “ ANGOLA: / 10 mi. SW. of / Quirimbo ♂ / VI- 1-[19] 58, 180m // E.S. Ross & / R.E. Leech / collectors // PARATYPE [printed; dark red card]” ( CAS). [ NAMIBIA]: 1♂, “Para- / type [paper disc with yellow border] // S.W.AFRICA (31) / Okahandja / 2–4.ii.1972 // Southern / African Exp. / B.M.1972–1” ( BMNH); 1♂, “S.W.AFRICA (31) / Okahandja / 2–4.ii.1972 // Southern / African Exp. / B.M.1972–1 // PARATYPE [printed; red card]” ( MNHN) .

Remarks. Tsacas (1977: 157) lists two male paratypes from Okahandja, but only one is present in the BMNH collection. The second specimen is in fact deposited in MNHN. Tsacas (1977: 157) also lists the label data of the paratype from Angola as “ 16 km S.W. of Quirimbo …”, in truth the label reads “ 10 mi. SW of Quirimbo …”.

Additional material examined (all labelled “ Curtonotum herrero Tsacas, 1977 det. A.H. Kirk-Spriggs 2006/ 2013”): [ NAMIBIA], 1♂, S.W. Africa, Okahandja , 3–9.ii.1928, R.E. Turner, Brit. Mus. 1928–119 ( BMNH) ; 1♂, Okahandja [SE2116Dd], 29.3.[19]52, [ex coll. Fritz Gaerdes] ( NMSA) ; 1♂, same data, except: 29.iii.[19]52, Curtonotum herrero sp. n. L. Tsacas det. 1977 ( MNHN) ; 1♀, Namibia , 60 km E Otjiwarongo, rd 101, 20°39'S, 17° 05'E, 20.iii.1984, J. Londt & B.R. Stuckenberg, Acacia thornveld and dry river course [not plotted on Fig. 323 View FIGURE 323 ] ( NMSA) GoogleMaps ; 10♂, 3♀, Khorixas District , River on Amkarab 269 at: 19°50'12"S 14°42'16"E, 24–26.v.2001, A. H. Kirk-Spriggs & E. Marais, Malaise traps GoogleMaps ; 1♂, Windhoek District , Davelsaub 29, 22°25'58"S 16°09'5"E, 01.iii.2004, A. H. Kirk-Spriggs, ephemeral riverbed (all NMNW) GoogleMaps .

Distribution. Angola and Namibia ( Fig. 323 View FIGURE 323 ). Restricted to higher elevations in the Namibian and Angolan sections of the Great Escarpment.

Bionomics. Occurring in six habitat types; predominantly in Deserts and Xeric Shrublands, with one record from the Tropical and Subtropical Grasslands, Savannas and Shrublands vegetation type (Appendix III). Sampled with Malaise traps in ephemeral riverbeds in Namibia .