Lasiopogon leleji Cannings

Young, Charles L., 2007, Robber flies of South Korea IV. Species of the subfamily Stichopogoninae Hardy, 1930 (Diptera: Asilidae), Zootaxa 1521, pp. 43-58 : 49

Lasiopogon leleji Cannings

( Figs 13 & 14 )

Lasiopogon leleji Cannings, 2002:156

Medium, 9.5– 11 mm, light gray species easily recognized by the black and yellow/white mystax, and halter with a black spot (a character also shared with Lasiopogon terneicus ). Cannings (2002) described the type specimen based on a single male from the Khasanskiy District near Zanadvorovka in Russia. This current description adds new information on the female and South Korean variation.

Adult. Male.

Head: Face silver/gray tomentose; vertex black with gold/gray pollen and long black curved hair. Mystax hair black dorsally, yellow/white ventrals. Genal hair long, fine, white merging into short black occipital bristles and longer proclinate black postocular bristles. Antenna black with sliver/gray pollen; black bristles. Relative lengths of segments: 3>F2+3>2>1. Thorax: Scutum brown, tinged gray. All bristles black. Thin light brown median stripe of scutum disappearing medially; broader dark brown paramedian stripes diffused. Short black sparse acrostical hair; long sparse posterior dorsocentrals. Chaetotaxy with: 2 posthumeral, 3 presutural, 2 supraalar, and 2 postalar bristles. Scutellum gray pollinose with 1 weak row of fine apical hair; disc ringed with a thick irregular row of stronger bristles. Pleura gold/gray pollinose with black and white hair and black bristles. A short row of black katatergal bristles. Posterior margin of anepisternum with long sparse black hair. Legs: Black with gray pollen, black bristles, white hair. Posterior coxal peg absent. Femora with long dense fringes of fine white hair. All tibia with black bristles. Wings: Tinged light brown. Radial medial crossvein (rm) positioned basally to mid point above discal cell. Apical joint of basal medial cell and m3 finely narrowed. Halter knob with a distinct black spot covering most of dorsal surface. Abdomen: Male. Black and gray with white hair and black and yellow tomentum; tergites with broad gray and brown pollen bands, most gray pollen bands broader than basal brown pollinose bands. Tergite 1 with 2–4 strong yellow latero-apical bristles, tergite almost completely covered in gray pollen. Subsequent tergites with white lateral hair. Male genitalia ( Figs 13 & 14 ). Epandria integumental black covered in gray pollen. Strong setal brush. Gonostylus in ventral view rounded, bulbous; in dorsal view apex toothed.

Female. Similar to male except: Lateral hair on tergites 4–7 black, short. Medial lobes of sternite 8 separate, light brown, shorter than hypogynial valve sclerites; medial lobes apically truncate. Apical hypogynial valve sclerites elongated and excised, darker, brown/black.

Variation: Our South Korean species of Lasiopogon leleji differ from Cannings (2002) original description in the mystax hair, which is brown/black in the type specimen; black dorsally with yellow/white ventrals in South Korean specimens. In addition, the tergite bands are a lighter brown compared to the type specimen’s darker, black tergite bands.

Material examined. Kangwon Province. 8 ɗ, 4 Ψ (1 pair in cop.): 4/V/2003, Tonghae/E. coast, E. of Samcheok, 37°23’33”N, 129°13’34”E. 9 ɗ, 4 Ψ: 17/V/2006, E. coast Hamaeanbang, Maengbang Beach, 37°23’45”N, 129°13’79”E.

Field notes. Lasiopogon leleji inhabits South Korean east coast beaches backed by young pines. Mating pairs observed were in copulation for 10 to 20 seconds before separating from their tail-to-tail position. They are cannibalistic (male feeding on male), and also prey on Diptera ( Muscidae ; Bombyliidae ). See Table 1 for prey and seasonality.

Figures

FIGURES 13 – 18. 13. Lasiopogon leleji Ventral genitalia; 14. Lasiopogon leleji Dorsal gonostylus; 15. Lasiopogon rokuroi Ventral genitalia; 16. Lasiopogon rokuroi Dorsal gonostylus; 17. Lasiopogon terneicus Ventral genitalia; 18. Lasiopogon terneicus Dorsal gonostylus