Elaphropeza demeijerei, 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 : 124-126

Elaphropeza demeijerei sp. nov.

( Figs. 200–203 )

Diagnosis. Occiput black, antenna almost entirely yellow, postpedicel about 3.5 times longer than wide; thorax with scutellum and metanotum brown, otherwise yellow; hind tibia bearing 2 strong antero- and 2 similar posteroventral bristles in middle part, tarsomere 5 of all legs dark brown.

Description. Male. Body length 2.6 mm, wing length 2.0 mm. Occiput black, subshining, with yellow to brownish yellow setation. Anterior ocellars moderately long, proclinate; posterior ocellars minute. Inner verticals long, outer ones shorter. Antenna ( Fig. 200 ) almost wholly yellow, postpedicel slightly darker, with brownish tinge. Pedicel with circlet of subequally short setulae. Postpedicel about 3.5 times longer than wide. Style normally pubescent, brown, somewhat (1.3 times) longer than postpedicel and nearly as long as scape, pedicel and postpedicel combined. Proboscis brownish yellow. Palpus yellow, small, rounded.

Thorax almost entirely yellow, shining, with yellow to brownish yellow bristles; scutellum and metanotum dark brown. Prothoracic episterna lacking long upturned bristle just above fore coxa and 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. Acrostichal bristles 2–3 serial, lacking on prescutellar depression; dorsocentrals mostly multiserial, extending to base of scutellum, 2 pairs of prescutellars long.

Legs largely yellow, mostly with yellow to brownish yellow setation; hind femur slightly darkened on apical part, tibiae brownish yellow, tarsomere 5 of all legs dark brown. Coxae and trochanters with unmodified setation. Fore and hind femora and tibiae somewhat thickened. Fore femur with rows of short antero- and posteroventral bristles (1 bristle near base longer). Fore tibia lacking prominent bristles (except subapicals). Mid femur slender, with 2 rows of spinule-like, short, ventral bristles (posteroventrals longer), 1 long thin bristle near base and 1 anterior subapical bristle. Mid tibia with black ventral spinules in apical part (1 subapical longer), lacking prominent bristles (except subapicals). Hind femur bearing 1 row of short anteroventrals and 5–6 erect dorsal bristles near base. Hind tibia bearing 2 strong antero- and 2 similar posteroventral bristles in middle part; apical projection prominent, small, rounded, 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 long, yellow. Costal index: 45/37/29/16. Vein Rs somewhat longer than crossvein bm-cu. Vein R2+3 smoothly arched. Veins R4+5 and M1+2 slightly divergent near wing apex, both straight. Vein CuA1 not quite reaching wing margin. Vein A1 absent. Crossvein bm-cu transverse. Crossvein r-m near middle of cell bm. Halter pale yellow.

Abdomen. Tergite 1 very narrow, brownish, narrowly divided dorsally. Tergites 2 and 3 brownish, subtriangular viewed dorsolaterally, deeply concave anteriorly; with unmodified setation. Tergite 4 broadest, dark brown, with unmodified setae. Tergite 5 very narrow, as broad as tergite 1, bearing squamiform setae. Tergites 6 and 7 brownish, tergite 7 with moderately long posteromarginal bristles. Segment 8 unmodified. Sternites weakly sclerotised, with scattered setulae. Gland-like structures between tergites 4 and 5.

Terminalia ( Figs. 201–203 ) large, brown. Cerci fused forming single, short, digitiform lobe; covered with bristles of different lengths, lacking spines. Epandrium completely divided. Right epandrial lamella subtriangular, covered with numerous bristles of different lengths and with spine-like bristles apically. Right surstylus not prominent. Left epandrial lamella fused to hypandrium, with 4 long bristles apically. Left surstylus with upper lobe large, subtriangular, almost devoid of bristles, only with 1 long bristle on lower margin basally and scattered, minute, marginal setulae. Hypandrium with 1 bristle, lacking slender apical processes. Phallus very short. Two rod-shaped apodemes.

Female. Body length 2.3 mm, wing length 2.0 mm. Mid tibia lacking ventral spinules. Abdominal segment 8 narrow, rather elongate, with sclerites separated; sternite 8 folded apically. Cercus brownish. Otherwise as in male.

Material examined. Holotype male labelled: SINGAPORE, 1 ♂, Chek Jawa , 11 October 2005, mangrove, Mal (reg. 25380, leg. PG, E-32).

Paratype: 1 ♀, Nee Soon, 14 December 2005, swamp forest, Mal 1 (reg. 25446, leg. PG) .

Derivatio nominis. E. demeijerei sp. nov. is named after the famous Dutch dipterist, J.C.H. de Meijere who described many empidoids from Southeast Asia.

Distribution. Singapore. Forest.

Singapore. This is a very rare species known only from a single male and female. One record is from the swamp forest at Nee Soon, the other from the mangrove at Chek Jawa. More records are needed to understand the bionomics of this species.

Remarks. The relationships of E. demeijerei sp. nov. are unclear beyond inclusion within the monophyletic lineage of the E. ephippiata species group sharing completely fused cerci (see “Discussion” for details).

Figures

FIGURES 200–203. Elaphropeza demeijerei sp. nov. 200. antenna. 201. epandrium with cerci. 202. right epandrial lamella and cerci. 203. left surstylus.