Elaphropeza monacantha, Published, 2007

SHAMSHEV, IGOR V. & GROOTAERT, PATRICK, 2007, Revision of the genus Elaphropeza Macquart (Diptera: Hybotidae) from the Oriental Region, with a special attention to the fauna of Singapore, Zootaxa 1488 (1), pp. 1-164 : 39-41

Elaphropeza monacantha sp. nov.

( Figs. 49–52 )

Diagnosis. Occiput largely yellow, postpedicel about 2.0 times longer than wide, style about 4.5 times longer than postpedicel; thorax and legs entirely yellow; hind tibia with 1 black curved subapical anteroventral bristle.

Description. Male. Body length 2.2 mm, wing length 1.8 mm. Occiput largely yellow, subshining, broadly darkened above neck including ocellar tubercle and frons, with yellow to brownish yellow setation. Anterior ocellars long, proclinate and cruciate; posterior ocellars minute. Inner verticals long, outer ones hardly prominent. Frons subshining. Antenna ( Fig. 49 ) with postpedicel brownish, scape and pedicel yellow. Pedicel with circlet of almost equally short setulae, 1 dorsal somewhat longer. Postpedicel nearly 2.0 times longer than wide. Style normally pubescent, brown, nearly 4.5 times longer than postpedicel and about 2.5 times as long as scape, pedicel and postpedicel combined. Proboscis brownish yellow. Palpus yellow, small, rounded; with scattered brownish yellow setulae, bearing 1 longer and darker subapical seta.

Thorax almost entirely reddish yellow, shining, with yellow to brownish yellow bristles; metanotum brownish yellow on posterior margin. Scutellum truncate. Prothoracic episterna with 1 long upturned bristle just above fore coxa and 1 short bristle in upper part. Postpronotal bristle minute. Mesonotum with 2 notopleural, 1 very short postsutural supra-alar, 1 postalar and 4 scutellar (inner ones very long, cruciate; outer ones very short) bristles. Acrostichals and dorsocentrals multiserial, uniform (except for 1 pair of long prescutellars), extending to base of scutellum.

Legs wholly yellow, with yellow to brownish yellow setation. Coxae and trochanters with unmodified setation. Fore and hind femora and tibiae somewhat thickened. Fore femur with rows of short antero- and pos- teroventral bristles and 2 longer bristles near base. Fore tibia lacking prominent bristles (except subapicals). Mid femur with 2 rows of spinule-like, short, ventral bristles (becoming shorter in apical part of femur), 1 long thin bristle near base and 1 anterior subapical bristle. Mid tibia with 1 row of black ventral spinules in apical part, lacking prominent bristles (except subapicals). Hind femur bearing 1 row of short anteroventrals and 3–4 erect dorsal bristles near base. Hind tibia with 1 black curved subapical anteroventral bristle; apical projection short, rounded, clothed in dense brownish setulae. Hind tarsomere 1 somewhat thickened, shorter than remaining tarsomeres combined.

Wing normally developed, finely uniformly infuscate, covered with uniform microtrichia; veins yellowish to brownish yellow. Costal vein with moderately long setulae along anterior margin. Basal costal bristle long, brownish. Costal index: 35/32/28/11. Vein Rs somewhat longer than crossvein bm-cu. Veins R4+5 and M1+2 parallel near wing apex, somewhat sinuate. Vein CuA1 reaching wing margin. Vein A1 present as trace. Crossvein bm-cu oblique. Crossvein r-m near middle of cell bm. Halter darkened.

Abdomen. Tergite 1 with very narrow, hardly prominent brownish space. Tergite 2 narrow medially and broadened laterally. Tergite 3 broadest, with squamiform setae. Tergite 4 nearly as broad as tergite 2 and in middle about 2.0 times narrower than tergite 3, with squamiform setae. Tergite 5 narrowest, even somewhat narrower than tergite 2, with squamiform setae. Tergites 6–8 unmodified; tergite 6 with hardly prominent, tergite 7 with long posteromarginal bristles. Sternites 3–5 divided. Gland-like structures present between tergites 3–4 and 4–5.

Terminalia ( Figs. 50–51 ) large, brownish yellow. Cerci divided; left cercus unbranched, digitiform, rather short, with numerous moderately long bristles, lacking spines. Right cercus short, narrow, with few short bristles, lacking spines. Epandrium completely divided. Right surstylus strongly prominent, small, as in Fig. 51 , covered with short bristles, lacking spines. Left epandrial lamella fused to hypandrium, with few moderately long bristles apically. Left surstylus with upper lobe large, subglobular, somewhat prolonged at apex. Hypandrium with 1 long, spine-like and 1 short bristles apically. Phallus very long, double spiral. One rod-shaped apodeme.

Female. Unknown.

Material examined: Holotype male labelled: SINGAPORE, Nee Soon , 5 April 2005, swamp forest, Mal 3 (reg. 25048, leg. PG, E-25).

Derivatio nominis. The name monacantha (single spine) refers to the single subapical bristle on the hind tibia.

Distribution and bionomics. Singapore. Swamp forest.

Singapore. Only known from a single male so far.

Remarks. Elaphropeza monacantha sp. nov. belongs to an apparent monophyletic lineage of Elaphropeza sharing curved subapical bristles on the hind tibia. Within this lineage the new species is closely related to E. spiralis sp. nov., E. yangi sp. nov., E. murphyi sp. nov., E. flavicaput sp. nov. and E. luanae sp. nov. in having a very long phallus coiled in a peculiar double spiral. Otherwise, the relationships of E. monacantha sp. nov. have not been resolved. The main distinguishing features of E. monacantha sp. nov. are indicated in the diagnosis given above and in the key.

Figures

FIGURES 49–52. Elaphropeza monacantha sp. nov. 49. antenna. 50. epandrium with cerci. 51. right surstylus. 52. left surstylus.