Atrichops intermedius Muller, 2023

Muller, Burgert S., Swart, Vaughn R. & Snyman, Louwrens P., 2023, Afrotropical Atrichops Verrall (Diptera, Athericidae) with description of a new species, African Invertebrates 64 (3), pp. 303-322 : 303

publication ID	https://dx.doi.org/10.3897/afrinvertebr.64.113133
publication LSID	lsid:zoobank.org:pub:000F15D7-0DD7-46F7-9826-25F13C43AF4C
persistent identifier	https://treatment.plazi.org/id/B3B59959-1502-472A-89C2-C21017DE04D1
taxon LSID	lsid:zoobank.org:act:B3B59959-1502-472A-89C2-C21017DE04D1
treatment provided by	African Invertebrates by Pensoft
scientific name	Atrichops intermedius Muller
status	sp. nov.

Treatment

Atrichops intermedius Muller sp. nov.

Figs 2 View Figures 1–6 , 5 View Figures 1–6 , 8 View Figures 7–12 , 11 View Figures 7–12 , 14 View Figures 13–18 , 17 View Figures 13–18 , 20 View Figures 19–24 , 23 View Figures 19–24 , 27 View Figures 25–30 , 28 View Figures 25–30 , 32 View Figures 31–36 , 35 View Figures 31–36 , 38 View Figures 37–39

Material examined.

Type material: Holotype: South Africa • 1♂; Mpumalanga, Gladdespruit River nr Nelspruit [Mbombela] airfield, Transvaal ; [25°30.6703'S, 30°54.4575'E]; 2530 Db ; 2975 ft [907 m asl]; 23 Feb. 1971; Stuckenberg [Stuckenberg, B.R] leg.; streamside bush; (NMSA-DIP 81808) (NMSA). GoogleMaps

Paratypes: South Africa • 2♂ 2♀; Mpumalanga, Gladdespruit River nr Nelspruit [Mbombela] airfield, Transvaal ; [25°30.6703'S, 30°54.4575'E]; 2530 Db ; 2975 ft [907 m asl]; 23 Feb.1971; Stuckenberg [Stuckenberg, B.R] leg.; streamside bush; (2♂ NMSA-DIP 81811, NMSA-DIP 28122; 1♀ NMSA-DIP 81809) (NMSA) GoogleMaps . 1♀; Mpumalanga, Graskop , [24°55.5480'S, 30°49.7993'E]; 6 Mar. 2000; Picker, M. leg.; (NMSA-DIP 212861) (NMSA) GoogleMaps .

Diagnosis.

This species is most similar to A. adamastor . However, it differs from A. adamastor in several ways: ♂ more narrowly dichoptic, ♀ with a darkened transverse line between the face and clypeus, ♂ legs nearly unicolorous yellowish compared to both males of A. adamastor and A. stuckenbergi , which have yellow hind femora and all tibiae and tarsi darker; Additionally, A. intermedius has wings with darker brown suffusions over base and apex of the discal cell that are similar to A. stuckenbergi , in contrast to A. adamastor which has a more uniformly suffused wing. Its gonocoxite is also more rounded and less tapering toward base compared to both A. adamastor and A. stuckenbergi .

Description.

Measurements (♂ n = 2, ♀ n = 2): Wing span: ♂ 5.4-5.8 mm (avg. 5.6 mm); ♀ 5.9-6.5 mm (avg. 6.2 mm); body length: ♂ 5.5 mm-6.1 mm (avg. 5.8 mm); ♀ 4.8-5.4 mm (avg. 5.1 mm); wing span to body length ratio (avg.): ♂ 0.96; ♀ 1.2.

Male. Head (Fig. 5 View Figures 1–6 ): Colour dark brown, with some yellowish pruinosity on face; eye densely covered in ommatrichia; narrowly dichoptic; ommatidia on lower ½ of eye smaller than upper ½; lateral edge of eye with indentation (absent in ♀); ocellar tubercle base level with frons, ocellar tubercle with short dark setulae; vertex dark brown, almost appearing black, with markedly longer setulae than ocellar tubercle, similar to that of frons; ocelli similar in size; ocellar tubercle in front of dorsal margin of eye, margin less indented than in ♀; vertex narrower than in ♀; dorsal inner edge of eye, surrounding ocellar tubercle without discernible paired dark markings; occiput same dark brown as frons, when viewed at angle appearing shiny blackish; upper occiput with short dark setulae on dorsal margin and on rest of upper surface, lower occiput with erect, long and pale setulae, these continue ventrally on head to before mouthparts bearing dark ventral setulae; frons dark brown, almost black, narrow area above antenna lighter brown; frons at narrowest slightly narrower than anterior ocellus, widening towards antennal base; frons with well-developed dark setulae on surface except for narrow area above antennae, these similar to ocellar and vertical setulae; frons less setulose than ♀; face lateral edges bare; gena bare; face light brown, clypeus darker brown; clypeus bare; face separated from clypeus by prominent, deep, dark transverse suture; clypeus less prominent than in ♀; face much wider than in ♀, with prominent longitudinal emarginations on sides of clypeus, giving appearance that face bulges laterally; face and clypeus not visible in profile; antennal bases close together, almost touching; scape light-brown, dorsally infuscate around setulae; pedicel comparatively darker than scape, dorsal surface infuscate; scape and pedicel setulae dark; 1st flagellomere reniform; appearing almost 2 × the height of pedicel, same colour as pedicel, basal margins lighter brown; 2nd flagellomere arista-like, dark brown; scape and pedicel setulae similar in size, palpus brown, well-developed, ca 0.5 × length of proboscis; proboscis comparatively smaller than ♀ proboscis in relation to head; proboscis dark brown with long dark setulae.

Thorax (Figs 14 View Figures 13–18 , 20 View Figures 19–24 ): Scutum with short dark setulae, postsutural setulae longer than presutural setulae; scutellum with well-developed dark setulae; postpronotal lobe lighter brown than scutum, with fine dark setulae; scutum and scutellum uniformly dark brown when viewed dorsally, scutellum similar in colour as anepimeron, anatergite and katatergite when viewed laterally; pleura generally brown in colour, anepimeron, katatergite and anatergite lighter brown than rest of pleura (more pronounced in ♀); proepimeron with reduced knoblike process near anterior edge; notopleuron with well-developed dark setulae; area surrounding posterior spiracle dark brown, postspiracular scale dark brown almost black; proepisternum brown and pronotum yellow; anterior spiracle bare posteriorly; proepimeron and proepisternum bare, anepisternum with short dark setulae; katatergite with long pale setulae; rest of pleura bare; postmetacoxal bridge narrow.

Legs (Fig. 2 View Figures 1–6 ): Coxae brown; fore coxa with short black setulae on surface, more pronounced apically, mid coxa with long black setulae on surface, hind coxa with black setulae on anterior and lateral apical edges, with well-developed anterior apical point; trochanters brownish yellow with some scattered short dark setulae; hind trochanter somewhat lighter than rest; apical margins of trochanters with darker markings; fore and mid femora, and basal ¼ of hind femur yellow, apical ¾ of hind femur dark brown; fore, mid and hind femora with small anterior apical dark mark; fore, mid and hind tibiae yellow; tarsi dark brown; fore tarsal claws symmetrical, empodium at least 2 × size of pulvilli on fore legs; fore femur covered with dark setulae on all surfaces, posteroventral setulae forming row, mid femur with row of longer anteroventral setae and hind femur with similar dark setulae on ventral and dorsal surfaces; hind leg stouter than fore and mid legs; fore tarsi densely covered with long setulae along dorsal and ventral surfaces, at least as long as width of segment, similar setulae on fore tibia, although much sparser; hind tarsal segments 0.9-1.1 (♂) as long as hind tibia.

Wing (Fig. 27 View Figures 25–30 ): Suffused brown on entire surface, with much darker pterostigma over area of veins R1 and R2+3 and cell r1; veins light brown; cell br and discal cell darker suffused apically; costa with distinct downward flexure over pterostigma; cell cua closed short distance from wing margin, cell m3 open, veins M1, M2, M3 present; halter with stalk yellow on basal half, gradually darkening apically with dark brown knob.

Abdomen: Brown, with anterodorsal margins of tergites 2-4 brownish yellow; tergites and sternites similar in colour with short black setulae, except sternite 1 lighter in colour; tergites with longer black setulae laterally; long pale setulae on sternites 1-3; tergite 1 without median suture.

Terminalia: Epandrium and cerci dark brown, hypoproct dark brown; epandrium, hypandrium and cercus with dark setulae; gonostylus finger-like, narrowing slightly towards apex, gonocoxite widening from middle towards base, apically rounded with long setulae; parameral apodeme short, not reaching base of gonocoxite in ventral view; gonocoxal apodeme markedly shorter than gonocoxite.

Female. Similar characters as ♂ except for the following:

Head (Fig. 11 View Figures 7–12 ): Widely dichoptic, ommatidia of similar size, comparatively larger than in ♂; lateral edge of eye without indentation (present in ♂); ocellar tubercle base with sunken appearance; ocellar tubercle with slightly longer setulae than in ♂; dorsal margin of eye more indented than in ♂; vertex wider than in ♂; dorsal inner edge of eye, surrounding ocellar tubercle with paired dark markings; frons at least 2 × width of ocellar tubercle, narrowing only slightly towards antennal base; frons more setulose than ♂; face separated from clypeus by transverse emargination with darkened transverse line; clypeus more prominent than in ♂; face and clypeus visible in profile; 1st flagellomere smaller in comparison to pedicel compared to ♂; 2nd flagellomere ca 0.75 × length of proboscis; proboscis comparatively larger than ♂ proboscis in relation to head.

Legs (Fig. 8 View Figures 7–12 ): Trochanters yellow; apical margins of trochanters with darker markings, less pronounced than in ♂; all femora almost entirely yellow, except for small anterior apical dark marking on each femur; tarsi yellow; fore tarsi without prominent long setulae on dorsal and ventral surfaces; hind tarsal segments 0.8-1.0 (♀) times as long as hind tibia.

Wing (Fig. 28 View Figures 25–30 ): Some specimens with cell br and majority of discal cell surface hyaline.

Abdomen: Darker overall colour, similar anterodorsal margin and setation colour, setulae shorter overall.

Terminalia: Cercus dark brown with dark setulae; genital fork (Fig. 38 View Figures 37–39 ) with distal apodeme slender, median lobe with shallow apical emargination, paired apical lobes with angular appearance, arms each having angular projection; 3 sclerotised, elongated spermathecae.

Etymology.

From the Latin " intermedius ", meaning in the middle, referring to the species known occurrence being roughly between the distributions (Fig. 40 View Figure 40 ) of A. adamastor and A. stuckenbergi , but also in reference to A. intermedius exhibiting a mixture of characteristics found in both the other two Afrotropical species.

Distribution.

South Africa (Mpumalanga).