Phaenopsectra Kieffer, 1921

Chamutiová, Tímea, Hamerlík, Ladislav & Bitušík, Peter, 2020, Subfossil chironomids (Diptera, Chironomidae) of lakes in the Tatra Mountains an illustrated guide, Zootaxa 4819 (2), pp. 216-264 : 253

Phaenopsectra Kieffer ( Fig. 88 )

Head capsule medium sized, yellow, occipital margin dark brown. Antenna 5-segmented, premandible with 2 apical teeth and broad basal tooth. Mandible with relatively short dorsal tooth and 3 inner teeth; deep notch between basal inner tooth and mola can be present; all mandibular teeth dark brown. Mentum dark pigmented with four median teeth forming ventromentum (set forward of rest of mentum), inner median teeth are shorter than outer teeth; 5–6 pairs of lateral teeth, first lateral tooth much shorter than the second one and outermost pair of lateral teeth reduced. Ventromental plates as long as width of mentum, moderately curved and continuously striated.

Remarks: Phaenopsectra can be confused with genera that have clearly delineated ventromentum, i.e. Sergentia , Endochironomus / Syndendotendipes, Tribelos and Stictochironomus . In Tribelos , however, the line running from the anterior inner margin of ventromental plates meets the inner median tooth, while this line meets outer median tooth in other genera. Sergentia and Synendotendipes have four inner teeth on the mandible, while Stictochironomus usually only two inner teeth. Ventromental plates in Endochironomus / Synendotendipes are extended to a lobe and are longer as opposed to narrower and more curved plates in Phaenopsectra .

Subfossil remains belonging to P. flavipes - type ( Brooks et al., 2007) were found only in one dystrophic forest lake.

Figures

FIGURES 85–90. Lauterborniella: 85—head capsule (arrow indicates ventromental plate). Microtendipes pedellus-type: 86— head capsule. Pagastiella orophila: 87—head capsule (arrow indicates position of seta submenti). Phaenopsectra flavipes-type: 88—head capsule, A—mandible. Polypedilum nubeculosum-type: 89—head capsule (arrow indicates two inner teeth of the mandible). Polypedilum sordens-type: 90—head capsule (arrow indicates three inner teeth of the mandible).