Mythicomyia kinsa, Sánchez & Evenhuis, 2024

Sánchez, Pável & Evenhuis, Neal, 2024, New Mythicomyia Coquillett, 1893 (Diptera: Mythicomyiidae: Mythicomyiinae) from Peru, Zootaxa 5541 (4), pp. 513-538 : 523-525

Mythicomyia kinsa sp. nov.

( Figs. 38–54 )

Diagnosis. Male. Proboscis much longer than height of eye; middle tibia deformed on about ½ distal; pseudo-surstylus strongly curved backwards, characteristically thumb-shaped in lateral view, spur shaped in posterior view ( Figs 43–46 ); anterior lobe of gonocoxa medially united forming a well-developed keel in dorsal view ( Figs 47–48 ). Female. Upper half of frons with dark brown suffusion and a central dark brown stripe; scutellum yellow on sides, black medially; femora yellow with mottled brown suffusion; spermathecal reservoir located in abdominal segment VI, fusiform and with glandular trichome.

Description of the male holotype. Length: body, 3 mm; wing, 2.2 mm.

Head ( Fig. 39 ). Predominantly black, yellow pruinose; eyes contiguous for 10 facets, separated at vertex by about the width of ocellar triangle; anterior ocellus little larger than posterior ones, ocelli whitish yellow; frons yellowish, thin black line along eye margin; face yellowish on the upper ⅔, black bellow; antenna dark brown; scape minute, wider than long; pedicel as long as wide; first flagellomere linear-lanceolate, about 4 times as long as pedicel; second flagellomere lanceolate, about ¾ the length of first one, with subbasal stylus, little evident; proboscis dark brown, long, length beyond oral margin about 2.5 times the height of eye; occiput and ocellar triangle white setose. Thorax ( Figs 38–39 ). Predominantly shining black, yellow pruinose; mesonotum quite humped, as high as half its length; postpronotal lobe and postalar callus whitish with brown suffusion; pleura with whitish yellow markings on posterior margin of anepisternum, posterosuperior angle of anepimeron, upper ⅓ of proepimeron and katepisternum; white setae on mesonotum, postpronotal lobe, postalar callus and anterior margin of anepisternum; scutellum black, yellow pruinose, with white setae. Legs ( Fig. 38 ). Dark brown, except on distal third of femora, ventrally, and basal fourth of fore tibia, yellowish; middle tibia deformed on about ½ distal; pulvilli as long as claws. Wing ( Fig. 41 ). Hyaline, microtrichose; veins brownish yellow; costal vein ending in R 4+5; vein Sc incomplete, ending later than of Rs origin; Rs evanescent at connection with R 1; R 2+3 arising approximately ¾ distance from origin of Rs to r-m crossvein, this latter placed at about basal ⅕ of dm cell (first portion of M 1+2, before r-m, shorter than first portion of M 4); vein separating cells br and bm little evident; cell dm six-sided, about four times as long as wide; m-m cross vein as long as r-m and about a sixth the length of dm-m; R 4+5 gently curved downward, ending almost at level of M 1; vein M 1 curved downward; M 4 and CuA slightly sinuous at wing margin; CuP evanescent; anal lobe developed; haltere white, stained with brown. Abdomen ( Fig. 40 ). Predominantly dark brown, except on anterior margin of tergite I and posterior margins of tergites II–VII, whitish; white setose. Terminalia ( Figs 42–48 ). Brownish yellow; epandrium elongate, somewhat rectangular-shaped in lateral view ( Figs 43–44 ), somewhat circular with scattered setae dorsally in posterior view ( Figs 45–46 ); pseudo-surstylus narrow at base, apex strongly curved backwards, characteristically thumb-shaped in lateral view ( Figs 43–44 ), spur-shaped and strongly convergent in posterior view ( Figs 45–46 ); cercus somewhat triangular-shaped, with upper half protruding and scattered setae in lateral view ( Figs 43–44 ), some-what dome-shaped with scattered setae on upper half in posterior view ( Figs 45–46 ); ejaculatory apodeme thickened, wide and ventrally excavated in lateral view ( Fig. 44 ), long in dorsal view, thin on distal ¾; lateral ejaculatory process translucid on basal third, upward-directed in lateral view, sideways-directed and about ¾ the length of ejaculatory apodeme in dorsal view; phallus drop-shaped, distiphallus simple with single apical opening, about a fourth the length of basiphallus; parameral sheath large, about ⅔ as wide as long, with two tips sideways directed and one tip united posteromedially; anterior arms of parameral sheath elongate, thickened, somewhat spatula-shaped with round apex, almost extending to level of ejaculatory apodeme and convergent in dorsal view ( Figs 47–48 ); gonocoxa subdivided, with an anterior lobe medially united forming a well-developed keel and a posterior lobe subconical in dorsal view ( Figs 47–48 ); gonostylus elongate, with acute apex and downward directed in lateral view ( Fig. 43 ); somewhat sigmoid in dorsal view ( Fig. 48 ).

Female ( Figs 49–54 ). Differs from the male description by the following: Head ( Fig. 50 ). Eyes dichoptic, separated at vertex by about 1.5 times the width of ocellar triangle; anterior ocellus barely larger than posterior ones; frons whitish with sparse dark brown suffusion and a central dark brown stripe on the upper half ( Fig. 50 ). Thorax ( Fig. 51 ). Black and yellow; mesonotum little humped, black dorsally, notopleural and supraalar regions broad yellowish (black emarginate above notopleural suture); postpronotal lobe and postalar callus yellowish as well; pleura yellow on upper margins of anepisternum, anepimeron, katepisternum and meron; scutellum yellow on sides, black medially. Legs ( Fig. 49 ). Coxae and femora yellow with mottled brown suffusion; tibiae yellowish except dark brown apex, concolorous with tarsi. Abdomen ( Figs 49, 52 ). More extensively yellow, especially ventrally. Terminalia ( Figs 53–54 ). Genital fork U-shaped, anterior margin arched with lower margin acute and elongate in a membranous process, posterior margin bifurcate, inner arms as long as outer ones; sperm pump cylindrical with a conspicuous disc-shaped valve apically, relatively small, about half the length of spermathecal reservoir and half the length of genital fork; proximal spermathecal duct wider than distal; distal spermathecal duct 3–4 times as long as proximal duct, translucent; three fusiform spermathecal reservoirs, located in abdominal segment VI, basal fourth narrow and translucent, with glandular trichomes.

Type material. HOLOTYPE. Male: PERU: AR [Department of Arequipa]. [Province of] Caravelí, [district of] Atiquipa 15°40.8’S, 74°18’W, 1121 m, iii. 2023, A. Dominguez. Holotype in MUSM . PARATYPES. Same data as holotype (1 ♂, 58 ♀) ; PERU: AR. [Province of] Arequipa, [District of] La Joya, 16°21’44.08”S, 71°46’5.28”W, 1960 m, 03.iv.2022, G. Sarabia (2♂, 3 ♀) ; PERU: AR. Caravelí, Cháparra, UM [Unidad Minera] Esperanza , 3150 m, 15°37’23”S, 73°55’15”W, 23–24.ii.2024, Yellow pan trap, N. Zenteno leg. (8 ♂, 26 ♀) . Paratypes in MUSM (6 ♂, 44 ♀) and BPBM (5 ♂, 43 ♀) .

Etymology. The specific epithet is a masculine noun in apposition, kinsa is the Quechua word for “three”.

Distribution ( Fig. 91 ). Southern Peru, Arequipa (Arequipa and Caravelí provinces).

Remarks. M. kinsa sp. nov. is readily recognized by the long proboscis and the deformed middle tibia in the male. This species shares with M. trepta the deformed middle tibia, but in this latter species the proboscis is shorter than height of eye, while other Neotropical species with long proboscis, like M. citrina , M. macra , M. problis and M. tawa sp. nov., present middle tibia straight. On the other hand, in females, M. tawa sp. nov. is the most similar species, but both species can be differentiated based on the frons (conspicuous dark stripe on upper half in M. kinsa sp. nov. vs faint dark stripe at middle in M. tawa sp. nov.), mesonotum (lateral margin black emarginate above notopleural suture in M. kinsa sp. nov. vs shallowly emarginate in M. tawa sp. nov.) and the spermathecal reservoir (fusiform and only extending to abdominal segment VI in M. kinsa sp. nov. vs knob-like and almost extending to abdominal segment III in M. tawa sp. nov., something visible with a proper light in some specimens, without dissection).

Figures

FIGURE 91. Distribution map of Peruvian species of Mythicomyia.

FIGURES 38–42. Mythicomyia kinsa sp. nov. Male holotype. 38. Lateral habitus, 39. Head and thorax, dorsal view, 40. Abdomen, dorsal view, 41. Wing, 42. Terminalia.

FIGURES 43–48. Mythicomyia kinsa sp. nov. Male terminalia (based on paratype). 43–44. Lateral view, 45–46. Posterior view, 47–48. Dorsal view.

FIGURES 49–54. Mythicomyia kinsa sp. nov. Female. 49. Lateral view, 50. Head, dorsal view, 51. Thorax, dorsal view, 52. Abdomen, dorsal view, 53–54. Terminalia.