Acrosticta fulvicornis ( Bigot, 1886 ) Kameneva & Korneyev, 2022

Kameneva, E. P. & Korneyev, V. A., 2022, Identity Of Species Assigned To The Genus Cephalia (Diptera, Tephritoidea), Zoodiversity 56 (6), pp. 447-462 : 453-454

Cephalia fulvicornis Bigot, 1886 (fig. 4)

Valid name. Acrosticta fulvicornis ( Bigot, 1886) comb. n. ( Ulidiidae )

Cephalia ? fulvicornis Bigot, 1886: 385 .

Cephalia fulvicornis: Steyskal, 1965: 643 (as “unrecognized”); Poole & Gentili, 1996: 203.

Acrosticta fulvipes Coqullett, 1900: 24 ; Steyskal, 1965: 650 (possible synonym).

M a t e r i a l. Holotype ♀ Cephalia fulvicornis : “ C. Fulvicornis . ♀. / Californ. J. Bigot” [bottom label], “Type” [red-boarded circle].

O r i g i n a l d e s c r i p t i o n: “Castanea, obscure nitida. Capite et antennis, omnino, fulvis; palpis castaneis; halteribus albis; abdomine basi rufo; pedibus fulvis, tibiis pallide fuscanis, tarsis fuscis, praeter posticos basi fulvo pictos; alis hyalinis, costa basi, late, usque ad partent trientem et macula magna apicali, nigris.

D’un châtain foncé et luisant. La tête et les antennes entièrement fauves; palpes châtains; abdomen à base roussâtre; balanciers blancs; pieds fauves, tibias un peu brunâtres, principalement les antérieurs, tarses plus foncés, les postérieurs largement fauves à la base; ailes hyalines, une assez grande macule à l’extrémité, le bord externe, à la base et jusqu’à l’extrémité de la deuxième nervure longitudinale, largement, noirâtres.

Californie. — 1 specim.

Les trois espèces marquées du point? n’étant représentées dans ma collection que par un seul spécimen, il ne m’a pas été possible de les étudier suffisamment pour pouvoir affirmer leur identification avec le genre Cephalia . ”

[E n g l i s h t r a n s l a t i o n: (from Latin) Brown, darkly shiny. Head and antennae entirely yellow; palps brownish; halteres white; base of abdomen rufous; femora yellow, tibiae pale brown, tarsi brown, hind tarsi also basally yellow; wings hyaline, base of costa widely until third section, as well as large apical spot, black.

(From French) Dark and shiny brown. Head and antennae entirely rufous; palps chestnut; abdomen with a reddish base; halteres white; legs fawn, tibiae a little brownish, mainly the front ones, tarsi darker, the hind tarsi broadly fawn at the base; wings hyaline, a fairly large macula at the tip; costal edge from base to the end of the second longitudinal vein broadly blackish.

California. — 1 specimen .

The three species marked with the query mark are represented in my collection by only one specimen, and it was not possible for me to study them sufficiently to be able to affirm their identification with the genus Cephalia .]

R e m ar k s: The holotype of Cephalia fulvicornis is very similar to Acrosticta fulvipes Coqullett, 1900 , another nominal species also described from California (Coqullett, 1900). We examined the holotype ♀ (“Los Angel[es Co.]/Cal[ifornia]”,“Collection/Coquillett”,“ Acrosticta / fulvipes / Coq.”, “Type / No. 4473 / U.S. N.M.”), which looks to share all the characters of the latter including the number and position of frontal pits at bases of setulae, wing pattern and venation, coloration of legs, etc., except in the face and frons (raised ridges among shining pits at bases of setulae) being densely whitish microtrichose, which is the diagnostic character of A. fulvipes , whereas the holotype of A. fulvicornis has them partly shining. This could be due to partial damage of the fine vestiture by moisture or aging, or even due to individual variation. Additional material is therefore needed to confirm their synonymy.