Elaphropeza yangi, 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 : 27-29

Elaphropeza yangi sp. nov.

( Figs. 27–30 , 255 )

Diagnosis. Occiput yellow; thorax yellow with brown markings, scutum brownish on anterior corner, scutellum and metanotum brown; hind femur brownish on apical 2/3, hind tibia bearing 2 black curved subapical anteroventral bristles; wing brownish on basal half.

Description. Male. Body length 2.0– 2.1 mm, wing length 1.7–1.8 mm. Occiput wholly yellow, subshining, with yellow to brownish yellow setation. Frons brownish yellow, subshining. Ocellar tubercle brownish, anterior ocellars long, proclinate and cruciate; posterior ocellars minute. Inner verticals long, outer ones shorter. Antenna ( Fig. 27 ) with scape and pedicel yellow, postpedicel yellowish brown. Pedicel with circlet of subequally short setulae. Postpedicel about 2.5 times longer than wide. Style normally pubescent, brown, about 4.5 times longer than postpedicel and nearly 3.0 times as long as scape, pedicel and postpedicel combined. Proboscis brownish yellow. Palpus yellow, small, rounded.

Thorax yellow, with brown markings, shining, bearing yellow to brownish yellow bristles; scutum brownish on anterior corner, scutellum and metanotum brown, mesopleuron posteriorly, pteropleuron, sternopleuron and hypopleuron in lower part brownish yellow. Prothoracic episterna with 1 long upturned bristle just above fore coxa and 1 very short bristle in upper part. Postpronotal bristle not prominent. Mesonotum with 2 notopleural, 1 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 almost wholly yellow, hind femur brownish on apical 2/3, 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 posteroventral bristles (2 bristles near base longer). Fore tibia lacking prominent bristles (except subapicals). Mid femur slender; with 2 rows of spinule-like, short, ventral bristles (posteroventrals longer), 1 long thin bristle near base and 1 anterior subapical bristle. Mid tibia with black ventral spinules in apical part, lacking prominent bristles (except subapicals). Hind femur with 1 row of short anteroventrals and 3–4 erect dorsal bristles near base. Hind tibia bearing 2 black curved subapical anteroventral bristles; apical projection prominent, small, rounded, clothed in dense brownish setulae. Tarsi of all legs unmodified.

Wing normally developed, brownish in basal half and yellowish infuscate in apical (border between darker and paler parts distinct), covered with uniform microtrichia; veins yellowish to brownish yellow. Costal vein with short setulae along anterior margin. Basal costal bristle long, yellowish brown. Costal index: 42/ 31/32/14. Vein Rs somewhat longer than crossvein bm-cu. Vein R2+3 almost straight. Veins R4+5 and M1+2 parallel near wing apex, both slightly bowed. Vein CuA1 reaching wing margin. Vein A1 present as fold. Crossvein bm-cu oblique. Crossvein r-m near middle of cell bm. Halter with dark knob.

Abdomen. Tergite 1 entirely pale yellow. Tergite 2 narrow, brown, with unmodified setae. Tergite 3 broadest, brown, with squamiform setae. Tergite 4 nearly 1.5 times narrower than tergite 3, brown, with squamiform setae. Tergite 5 nearly as broad as tergite 2, brown, with squamiform setae. Tergites 6–8 weakly sclerotised, yellowish, with moderately long bristles. Sternites weakly sclerotised, sternites 6–8 somewhat darker, with ordinary scattered setulae. Gland-like structures between tergites 3–4 and 4–5.

Terminalia ( Figs. 28–30 ) rather large, yellow. Cerci separated, covered with bristles of different lengths, lacking spines; left cercus rather subrectangular, with apical part somewhat produced and curved inward. Epandrium completely divided. Right epandrial lamella subrectangular, covered with numerous bristles of different lengths. Right surstylus prominent, small, as in Fig. 29 , covered with very short bristles. Left epandrial lamella fused to hypandrium, with 2 long bristles apically. Left surstylus with upper lobe large, subglobular, with numerous long bristles along upper margin. Hypandrium with long slender processes at apex, bearing 1 long and 1 shorter thin bristles apically. Phallus very long, double spiral. One rod-shaped apodeme.

Female. Body length 2.1 mm, wing length 1.7 mm. Mid tibia lacking ventral spinules. Segment 8 short, brownish yellow, with sclerites fused antero-laterally; sternite 8 not folded apically. Cercus brownish yellow. Otherwise as in male.

Material examined. Holotype male labelled: SINGAPORE, Sime forest , 4 January 2006, forest, Mal 2 (reg. 26003, leg. PG, E-31).

Paratypes: SINGAPORE, 1 ♂, Nee Soon , 16 September 2005, swamp forest, Mal 3 (reg. 25351, leg. PG) ; 1 ♀, Nee Soon , 14 October 2005, swamp forest, Mal 3 (reg. 25390, leg. PG) ; 1 ♂, Nee Soon , 14 October 2005, swamp forest, Mal 4 (reg. 25391, leg. PG) ; 1 ♂, Sime forest , 7 September 2005, forest, Mal 1 (reg. 25334, leg. PG) .

Derivatio nominis. The present species is dedicated to Prof. Dr. Ding Yang from the Chinese Agricultural University in Beijing. He has described many species of Elaphropeza from China.

Distribution and bionomics. Singapore. Forest.

Singapore. A very rare species that was recorded only from the Sime forest and Nee Soon.

Remarks. Elaphropeza yangi sp. nov. apparently belongs to a 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. murphyi sp. nov., E. flavicaput sp. nov., E. monacantha sp. nov. and E. luanae sp. nov. in having a very long phallus coiled in a peculiar double spiral. Otherwise, the relationships of E. yangi sp. nov. have not been resolved. The main distinguishing features of E. yangi sp. nov. are indicated in the diagnosis given above.

Figures

FIGURES 27–30. Elaphropeza yangi sp. nov. 27. antenna. 28. epandrium with cerci. 29. right surstylus. 30. left surstylus.

FIGURES 253-259. Wings. 253. Elaphropeza singaporensis sp. nov. 254. E. pluriacantha sp. nov. 255. E. yangi sp. nov. 256. E. spiralis sp. nov. 257. E. bicaudata. 258. E. biuncinata. 259. E. hirsutitibia. 260-261. E. palpata.