Chaetodromia pulchra, Solórzano Kraemer & Sinclair & Cumming, 2005

Solórzano Kraemer, Mónica M., Sinclair, Bradley J. & Cumming, Jeffrey M., 2005, Five new species of Tachydromiinae (Diptera: Empididae s. l.) from New World Tertiary ambers, Zootaxa 1010, pp. 37-52 : 41-42

Chaetodromia pulchra sp. nov.

DIAGNOSIS. This species is distinguished from the other species of Chaetodromia by the eyes being narrowly separated (not contiguous) on the face and the hind tibia lacking anterodorsal bristles ( Fig. 1).

DESCRIPTION. Female ( Fig. 1A). Length 1.39 mm. Head. Ground colour dark. Eyes apparently lacking ommatrichia (pubescence); narrowly separated below antennae; facets not noticeably enlarged below antennae. Frons evenly divergent. Two pairs of ocellar bristles; anterior pair convergent, inserted between median and posterior ocelli and broadly separated; posterior pair inserted anterior to posterior ocelli. One pair of divergent and one pair of convergent vertical bristles present, the latter inserted outside divergent pair so that pair on each side appear cruciate. Antennae arising about middle of head; scape small, shorter than half length of pedicel; pedicel globose, two­thirds as long as postpedicel, lacking long ventral preapical bristle; postpedicel short­conical, with terminal arista­like style; latter subequal to height of head; antennal segments concolorous (brown). Palpus ovate with long, apical setula.

Thorax. Ground colour dark. Scutum entirely clothed in dense microtrichia. Postpronotal lobe small; 1 pprn; acr developed, but not clearly visible; at least 3 pairs of dc; 1 spal; 1 pal; 1 pair of sctl.

Wing. ( Fig. 1B) Length ca 1.2 mm. Broad with blunt­tip; hyaline; microtrichia evenly distributed; costal setulae normally developed; Rs more than one­half length of cell bm; R 2+3 slightly arched, extending to about apical quarter of wing; R 4+5 gently arched, slightly divergent from M 1+2; cell br subequal in length to cell bm; crossvein bm­cu nearly transverse; A 1 present as faint fold. Knob of halter dark.

Legs. All segments mostly straight, except hind femur slightly curved medially. Fore femur moderately thickened. Mid femur with 1 outstanding preapical anterior bristle and several preapical anteroventral bristles. Hind femur with several preapical posteroventral bristles. Hind tibia without anterodorsal bristles.

Abdomen. Segments uniformly telescopic with first 5 segments broadly inflated compared to posterior segments, lacking distinctive bristles. Terminalia: sternite 8 entire, not partially separated, dorsal margin straight; cercus short, ovate, shorter than half­length of tergite 8.

TYPE. Holotype female from Mexico: B­8425­148. Housed in UCB (type number 50025). The holotype is in a rectangular piece of dark amber measuring about 6.5 x 4 mm.

REMARKS. This is the first fossil species described in the genus Chaetodromia . The genus was originally described on the basis of two species from Mexico ( Chillcott & Teskey 1983). Although only three distinct pairs of dc bristles can be seen along the length of the scutum in the holotype of C. pulchra , a fourth pair may also be present, similar to other members of the genus.

ETYMOLOGY. From the Latin, pulcher (beautiful), in reference to the excellent preservation of this species.