Empis (Coptophlebia) neesoonensis, Daugeron & Grootaert, 2005

Daugeron, Christophe & Grootaert, Patrick, 2005, Empidine Dance Flies From Singapore And Southern Malaysia (Diptera: Empididae: Empidinae), Raffles Bulletin of Zoology 53 (2), pp. 211-220 : 211-213

Empis (Coptophlebia) neesoonensis , new species

( Figs. 1A , 2 )

Material examined. – Holotype - male, Singapore, Nee Soon, primary rain forest, sample 22054, coll. P. Grootaert, 4 Dec.2002 ( ZRC).

Paratype – 1 female with same data ( ZRC) .

Other material – 1 male in bad condition (head missing), Singapore, NUS campus, sample 23082, coll. P. Grootaert, 22 Nov.2003 (KBIN- IRScNB) .

Etymology. – The name of the species is derived from the type-locality.

Diagnosis. – Small blackish species with all bristles black, wing clear with median veins almost not visible, fore tibia deformed with about 6 spine-like anterodorsal bristles in basal half not longer than tibia depth.

Description. – Male – Head. Occiput, antenna dark brown, second and third flagellomeres aristiform. Face blackish. Palpus apparently brown. Labrum length about twice head height.

Thorax brown, scutum subshiny. Acrostichals missing; dorsocentrals uniserial ending with 1 strong, long bristle in prescutellar depression. Legs ( Fig. 1A ) brown. Left mid and hind legs missing. All femora with rather short bristles. Fore tibia deformed, somewhat S-shaped with about 6 spine-like anterodorsal bristles in basal half; first fore tarsomere with 1 strong, long anterolateral bristle at base. Mid tibia with 3 strong, rather long dorsal bristles (at basal quarter, about at middle, at tip); first mid tarsomere with 1 strong, long anterodorsal bristle at apical tip. Hind tibia swollen apically with strong, long dorsal bristles, several distinct ventral bristles at apical half; hind tarsus swollen, first four tarsomeres with long dorsal bristles. Wing (length = 2.2 mm) clear. Discal cell and median veins almost not visible. A1 abbreviated. Halter brown. Abdomen brown, sternites with pair of distinct bristles posteriorly. Hypopygium ( Fig. 2 ). Epandrium triangular with strong, long bristles at tip. Hypandrium pointed. Phallus thin.

Female similar to male except for the following characters: palpus almost yellow. Dichoptic with all ommatidia of the same size. Fore femora with distinct dorsal pennation at base; first fore tarsomere with short dorsal pennation. Mid and hind femora with long dorsal and ventral pennation. Mid tibia with distinct dorsal pennation and some distinct ventral pennate bristles at base. Hind tibia with long dorsal and ventral pennation.

Remarks. – Empis neesoonensis belongs to the E. jacobsoni clade as defined recently (Daugeron & Grootaert, 2005). Within this clade E. neesoonensis seems to be closely related to E. cameronensis ( Malaysia) and differs from this species by the following characters: smaller species; anterodorsal spine-like bristles of fore tibia shorter than tibia depth; first mid tarsomere not whitish; median veins almost not visible; epandrium rather pointed at tip, not rounded, with ventral bristles less numerous basally.

Figures

Fig. 1. Male fore leg in frontal view: A, tibia and first tarsomere of E. (C.) neesoonensis; B, tibia and tarsus of E. (C.) producta; C, tibia and first tarsomere of E. (C.) tortuosa; D, tibia and first tarsomere of E. (C.) verruca.

Fig. 2. Male hypopygium of E. (C.) neesoonensis, lateral view. Scale = 4.2 mm.