Elaphropeza sp.

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 : 75

Elaphropeza sp. 51

( Fig. 115 )

Description. Female. Body length 2.6–2.8 mm, wing length 2.3–2.4 mm. Occiput black. Anterior ocellars long, proclinate; posterior ocellars minute. Inner verticals long, outer ones somewhat shorter. Antenna ( Fig. 115 ) wholly brown. Pedicel with circlet of subequally short setulae. Postpedicel 2.0 times longer than wide. Style normally pubescent, brown, about 5.0 times longer than postpedicel and nearly 2.5 times as long scape, pedicel and postpedicel combined ( Fig. 115 ). Palpus yellow, small, rounded.

Thorax entirely black. Prothoracic episterna lacking long upturned bristle just above fore coxa, with 1 very short bristle in upper part. Postpronotal bristle minute. Mesonotum with usual set of bristles. Acrostichals prominent in anterior part of scutum only, very few in number; dorsocentrals 1-serial.

Legs largely yellow, tibiae becoming darker from fore (pale brownish) to hind (dark brown). Fore and mid femur with ordinary armature. Fore tibia lacking prominent bristles. Mid tibia lacking ventral spinules and prominent dorsal bristles, with short black spine-like posteroventral bristle. Hind femur with ordinary setation. Hind tibia with hardly prominent rounded apical projection, lacking prominent bristles. Tarsi of all legs unmodified.

Wing uniformly brownish infuscate. Costal index: 51/32/44/18. Veins R4+5 and M1+2 parallel near wing apex, both straight. Crossvein bm-cu somewhat oblique. Crossvein r-m somewhat beyond middle of cell bm. Halter black.

Abdomen. Tergite 1 entirely pale yellow. Tergite 2 and 3 brownish, deeply concave anteriorly, narrowly divided along midline, elongate subtriangular viewed dorsolaterally, bearing scattered unmodified setae. Tergite 4 broadest, dark brown, with squamiform setae. Tergite 5 subrectangular, nearly as broad as tergite 3, bearing squamiform setae. Tergites 6–7 unmodified, brownish. Sternites 2–6 divided, sternite 7 subrectangular, with long posteromarginal bristles. Segment 8 dark brown, shining, elongate, covered with numerous brown short bristles, with sclerites separated; sternite 8 somewhat folded apically. Cercus brown.

Male. Unknown.

Material examined: SINGAPORE, 1 ♀ , Nee Soon , 7 September 2005, swamp forest, Mal 2 (reg. 25332, leg. PG, E-51); 1 ♀ , SINGAPORE, Nee Soon , 16 September 2005, swamp forest, Mal 3 (reg. 25351, leg. PG, E-51) .

Remarks. These two females are very similar in many characters to E. pauper sp. nov. differing primarily in unmodified mid and hind tibiae. However, in E. pauper sp. nov. (known only from a male) these modifications may be sexual dimorphic. Further findings of both sexes of E. pauper sp. nov. will possibly permit resolution of this problem. Elaphropeza bicoloripes differs from this species by darker legs and some other characters.

Figures

FIGURES 115–116. Antennae. 115. Elaphropeza sp. 51. 116. Elaphropeza sp. 58.