Coquena Schlinger

Schlinger, Evert I., Gillung, Jessica P. & Borkent, Christopher J., 2013, New spider flies from the Neotropical Region (Diptera, Acroceridae) with a key to New World genera, ZooKeys 270, pp. 59-93 : 71-72

Coquena Schlinger gen. n. Figs 11-15

Type species.

Coquena stangei Schlinger sp. n.

Diagnosis.

Coquena is a South American genus readily distinguished from other panopine genera by the minute mouthparts, the ocellar tubercle extremely raised and the iridescent body color. It is closely related to the Neotropical genera Lasioides and Pteropexus ,the Nearctic genus Eulonchus , and the New World genus Lasia , as it shares the same wing venation. However it does not have the elongate proboscis present in these genera. Coquena and Lasioides are closely related, monotypic, genera. The mouthparts in Coquena stangei are strongly reduced, whereas they are elongate in Lasioides peruanus Gil Collado, 1928. Coquena shares some attributes with Lasia such as the presence of an alula and having the eyes separate below the antennae. It also shares several characteristics with Eulonchus , principally the extremely raised ocellar tubercle and presence of maxillary palpi.

Description.

Body shape not arched (Figs 11, 13); coloration metallic iridescent. Head width slightly narrower than thorax width (Figs 12, 14); hemispherical; ocellar tubercle shape greatly raised and irregularly shaped, 1/4 to 1/2 as high as head; two ocelli, anterior ocellus absent; postocular ridge and occiput rounded; posterior margin of eye rounded; eye densely pilose; eyes not contiguous above antennal base; palpus present; proboscis greatly reduced, without pile, or setae barely evident; antennae located on middle of frons; flagellum elongate, paddle-shaped, much larger in male, apex lacking terminal setae; scapes not fused together; postpronotal lobes not enlarged or contiguous medially; antepronotum narrow; subscutellum barely visible beneath scutellum; legs not elongate; tibial spines present apically; pulvilli present; wing markings and microtrichia absent (Fig. 15); costa circumscribing entire wing margin, costal margin straight; humeral crossvein present; radial veins straight; R1 not inflated distally; veins R4 and R5 present; crossvein 2r-m present between M1 and R4+5, bisecting cell r4+5; cell formed by 2r-m present, narrow and elongate; M1, M2 and M3 present (M3 fused with CuA1), reaching wing margin; discal cell closed completely; cell m3 present; CuA1 joining M3, and running to margin; CuA2 fused to A1 before wing margin and then running to margin; anal lobe well developed; alula well developed; abdomen greatly rounded, inflated, tergites smooth.

Etymology.

The genus epithet is derived from the Coquena legend of north-western Argentina. Coquena was the son of Mother Earth and was portrayed as a short man dressed in a hat and bright colored poncho. The iridescent coloration, hat-like ocellar tubercle and type locality in northwest Argentina of the type species led to the choice of this name for the genus.