Elaphropeza chekjawa, Published, 2007

SHAMSHEV, IGOR V. & GROOTAERT, PATRICK, 2007, Revision of the genus Elaphropeza Macquart (Diptera: Hybotidae) from the Oriental Region, with a special attention to the fauna of Singapore, Zootaxa 1488 (1), pp. 1-164 : 72-74

Elaphropeza chekjawa sp. nov.

( Figs. 111–114 )

Diagnosis. Small species with occiput and thorax black; postpedicel brownish, about 3.5 times as long as wide; hind femur near apex above and hind tibia near base brownish, hind tibia lacking prominent bristles.

Description. Male. Body length 1.5 mm, wing length 1.5 mm. Occiput black, subshining, with brownish setation. Anterior ocellars rather short, proclinate and cruciate; posterior ocellars minute. Inner verticals long, outer ones shorter. Antenna ( Fig. 111 ) with scape and pedicel brownish yellow, postpedicel brownish. Pedicel with circlet of subequally short setulae. Postpedicel 3.5 times longer than wide. Style normally pubescent, brown, nearly 1.5 times longer than postpedicel and about as long as scape, pedicel and postpedicel combined. Proboscis brownish yellow. Palpus brown, small, rounded.

Thorax entirely black, shining, with brownish bristles. Prothoracic episterna lacking long upturned bristle just above fore coxa, with 1 short bristle in upper part. Postpronotal bristle minute. Mesonotum with 2 notopleural, 1 postsutural supra-alar, 1 postalar and 4 scutellar (inner ones very long, cruciate; outer ones very short) bristles. Acrostichals and dorsocentrals multiserial, uniform (except for 1 pair of long prescutellars), extending to base of scutellum.

Legs almost entirely yellow, with yellow to brownish yellow setation; hind femur near apex above and hind tibia near base brownish, tarsomere 5 of all legs rather brownish yellow. Coxae and trochanters with unmodified setation. Fore and hind femora and tibiae somewhat thickened. Fore femur with rows of short antero- and posteroventral bristles (2 bristles near base longer). Fore tibia lacking prominent bristles (except subapicals). Mid femur slender, with 2 rows of spinule-like, very short, ventral bristles, 1 long thin bristle near base and 1 anterior subapical bristle. Mid tibia lacking ventral spinules and prominent bristles (except subapicals). Hind femur bearing 1 row of short anteroventrals (3–4 subapicals longer) and 2–3 erect dorsal bristles near base. Hind tibia lacking prominent bristles; apical projection prominent, small, angular, clothed in dense brownish setulae. Tarsi of all legs unmodified.

Wing normally developed, finely uniformly infuscate, covered with uniform microtrichia; veins yellowish to brownish yellow. Costal vein with moderately long setulae along anterior margin. Basal costal bristle moderately long, brown. Costal index: 30/27/23/14. Vein Rs somewhat longer than crossvein bm-cu. Veins R4+5 and M1+2 divergent near wing apex, both straight. Vein CuA1 reaching wing margin. Vein A1 absent. Crossvein bm-cu almost transverse. Crossvein r-m near middle of cell bm. Halter dark.

Abdomen. Tergite 1 almost entirely pale yellow, only with very narrow short brownish space laterally. Tergites 2 and 3 of subequal width, both with brownish subtriangular space viewed laterally, deeply concave anteriorly and divided along midline; with unmodified setation. Tergites 4–7 brown, tergite 4 broadest, tergite 5 very narrow, tergites 6 and 7 divided. Tergites 4 and 5 with squamiform setae, tergites 6 and 7 with short posteromarginal bristles.

Terminalia ( Figs. 112–114 ) brown, rather large. Cerci fused forming single, quite long, digitiform lobe; covered with bristles of different length, lacking spines. Epandrium completely divided. Right epandrial lamella subtriangular, somewhat concave on apex forming two short processes, covered with numerous bristles of different length, upper process with two moderately long spines. Right surstylus not prominent. Left epandrial lamella fused to hypandrium, with 1 long bristle apically. Left surstylus with upper lobe quite large, as in Fig. 114 , with numerous rather long bristles. Hypandrium with 1 long and 1 very short bristle. Phallus very short. Two rod-shaped apodemes.

Female. Unknown.

Material examined: Holotype male labelled: SINGAPORE, Pulau Ubin , Chek Jawa, 15 December 2005, mangrove, sweeping (reg. 25452, leg. PG, E-54).

Derivatio nominis. The name refers to the type locality: Chek Jawa, a very rich mangrove on Pulau Ubin.

Distribution. Singapore. Mangrove.

Remarks. Elaphropeza chekjawa sp. nov. appears closely related to E. asiophila sp. nov. Within Elaphropeza only these two species have modified tergites 6 and 7 of the male abdomen.

Figures

FIGURES 111–114. Elaphropeza chekjawa sp. nov. 111. antenna. 112. epandrium with cerci. 113. right epandrial lamella. 114. left surstylus.