Helina briaroacantha Xue and Tian, 2012

Xue, Wanqi & Tian, Xu, 2012, Thirteen new species of the genus Helina R. - D. (Diptera: Muscidae) from China, Journal of Natural History 46 (9 - 10), pp. 565-598 : 566-568

Helina briaroacantha Xue and Tian sp. nov.

( Figure 1A–C )

Type material

Holotype. One male ( IESNU), China, Mount Yulongxue , Yunnan province, 27 ◦ 40 ′ N, 100 ◦ 16 ′ E, altitude 3000 m, 22 July 2008, S.C. Bai.

Paratypes. Two males ( IESNU), same data as holotype .

Etymology

The name of this species is based on sternite 5 having two pairs of strong spinous setae, linking the Greek word briar plus acanthis.

Distribution

China, Yunnan Province, Mount Yulongxue.

Remarks

The new species is similar to Helina liupanshanensis Yang and Ma, 2000 , but differs from the latter as follows: sternite 5 with two pairs of strong spinous setae.

Description (based on holotype)

Male. Body length 7.4–7.6 mm.

Colour: Frontal vitta black, fronto-orbital plate and parafacial covered with grey pruinosity, antenna black, lunule brown, covered with grey pruinosity, genal and postgenal hairs black, palpus black. Thorax black in ground-colour, covered with grey pruinosity, anterior spiracle and posterior spiracle brown. Wing light brown and hyaline, basicosta dark brown, the margin of basicosta brown, calypters light yellowish, haltere brown. Legs all black, the basal margin of legs brown. Abdomen ground-colour black, covered with dense and dark brown pruinosity, tergite 3 and tergite 4 with a pair of dark brown rounded spots, the post half part with dark brown and small lateral patches.

Head: Eye bare; frons about twice as wide as anterior ocellus, frontal vitta narrower than fronto-orbital plate in width, seven or eight pairs of frontal setae on lower three-fifths of frons, without ors; parafacial subequal with or broader than postpedicel in width; postpedicel about 2.5–2.8 times as long as broad, arista long plumose, the longest aristal hairs about 1.2–1.4 times as wide as postpedicel; vibrissal angle situated behind frontal angle in profile; genal height about one-quarter of eye height; anterior margin of gena with two rows of upcurved subvibrissal setulae, the upper lateral area of the occiput with hairs, proboscis short, prementum about 1.5 times as long as broad, prementum covered with slight pruinosity, palpus longer than prementum, labella large, about two-thirds of prementum in length.

Thorax: Scutum with four broad vittae, the inner vitta not reaching scutoscutellar suture; the middle of the scutellum with narrow and grey brown stripes; acr 0+1, dc 2+4, ial 0+2, pra absent or hair-like, shorter than one-third of posterior notopleural seta in length; notopleuron, lateral margin and lower surface of scutellum, basisternum of prosternum, proepisternum hollow in centre, anepimeron, katepimeron and meron all bare; upper proepisternal seta 1, katepisternal setae 2+2, proepisternal seta 1, anterior anepisternal seta 1.

Wing: Costal spine subequal with or longer than cross-vein r-m in length, Sc curved as arc-shaped, radial node bare, r-m and dm-cu cross-vein clouded sometimes, the lower calypter ligule-shaped.

Legs: Fore tibia without median p; mid-femur without distinct av, in basal half with five strong pv, mid-tibia three p, hind femur with a complete and strong pv row, basal three-quarters with thin fringe-shaped pv row, subequal with or about twice as long as tibial diameter, in basal half with short fringe-shaped hairs, hind tibia with three av, three ad, in apical part with one or two short pd; the back of middle with six or seven setae, all tarsi longer than tibiae in length, claws subequal with pulvilli in length, about four-fifths lenth of fifth tarsomere.

Abdomen: Long cone-shaped in dorsal view, without shifting patches, tergite 4 with small spots, the front of tergite 5 with brown median vittae, the post-margin of tergites with a complete setal row, the discal bristles of tergite 4 and tergite 5 developed, sternite 1 bare.

Female. Unknown.

Figures

Figure 1. Helina briaroacantha sp. nov. (A) Male, sternite 5 in ventral view; (B) male, cerci in posterior view; (C) male, terminalia in profile. Scale bars: A, 0.5 mm; B,C, 0.2 mm.