Helina xinyiliia Xue, 2025

Li, Siyu, Xue, Wanqi, Nihei, Silvio S. & Zhang, Chuntian, 2025, Four new species of Helina Robineau-Desvoidy from far northwestern China (Diptera: Muscidae), Zootaxa 5719 (2), pp. 207-227 : 219-222

Helina xinyiliia Xue sp. nov.

( Figs 5–6 )

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Description. Body length 5.4–5.6 mm.

Male. Head. Eye bare. Frons about 3x as wide as anterior ocellus, and subequal to postpedicel, frontal vitta black, 5 pairs of frontal setae, situated on lower half of frons, without orbital setae; fronto-orbital plate are adjacent at the narrowest point, fronto-orbital plate slightly wider than frontal vitta, slightly narrower than anterior ocellus, fronto-orbital plate and parafacial with gray pruinosity, parafacial subequal to postpedicel width; genal setulae black, genal height about 1/5 of eye height, anterior margin of gena with one row of slightly upcurved setae. Antenna brown, postpedicel long, about 3.2x as long as broad; arista long and short-haired, the longest hairs equal in width to basal arista; epistoma not protruding, vibrissal angle situated behind frontal angle; prementum with gray pruinosity, about 2x as long as broad; palpus black, slightly longer then prementum, labellum long, slightly shorter than prementum.

Thorax. Ground-colour black and shinning, with sparse gray pruinosity; scutum with four black vittae, the inner vitta (between acr rows) not reaching scutellum; scutellum black, with gray pruinosity except for the base, lateral and ventral surfaces bare, apical scutellar setae and prebasal scutellar setae long; acr 0+1, dc 2+3, ial 0+2, pra hair-like, notopleuron without short hairs, katepimeron setulosa; prosternum, anepimeron and meron bare, anterior anepisternal seta 1, katepisternal setae 2+2; spiracles dark brown.

Wing. Wing membrane pale brown, veins brown, basicosta and tegula black, costal spine developed, subcosta bend in a bow shape, R 1 bare, M straight, Rs node bare, r-m with conspicuous dark spot; dm-cu straight, with slight dark spot; calypter white, yellow on margin; lower calypter tongue-like; halter brown.

Legs. All black; fore femur with complete rows of ad and pv; fore tibia without median p, ventral surface without dense hairs; mid femur with 1–2 long hair-like pv on basal half, a strong apical p, without av row and apical a; mid tibia with 1 p, 2 pd; hind femur with 4–5 long av on apical half, a row of ad, without developed pv; hind tibia with 1 sub-median ad, 2 short sub-median av, 1–2 short pre-apical av, shorter than tibia diameter, a apical pd, the seta was not mentioned are absent; all claws and pulvilli short, all tarsi longer than tibiae.

Abdomen. Ground colour black, long-oval in dorsal view, with dense gray pruinosity, without shifting patches, tergite 3 with a pair of triangle dark brown patches, approximately about 1/2 the length of this tergite; tergite 4 with a pair of small dark patches, about 1/4 the length of this tergite, tergites 2–5 posteriorly with 2 pairs of long setae. Sternite 5 slightly enlarged sub-apically, with 1–2 long seta rows on both sides.

Terminalia. Cerci wide, slightly shorter than its length, both inner and outer lobes exist, the outer lobe is larger than the inner lobe. Surstylus slightly thick, with a protrusion near the apex, and with several small hairs in ventral surface. Pregonite slightly shorter than the postgonite.

Female. Unknown.

Type material. Holotype ♂, CHINA: Bayinbulak-Kunes Grassland, Hejing County, Bayingolin Mongol Autonomous Prefecture , 2140– 1680 m, 43°22′18N, 84°77′34E, Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region , 1.vii.2018, Chuntian Zhang and Xinyi Li leg. ( SYNU2008322 ) . Paratypes: 2 ♂, same as holotype ( SYNU2008324 , SYNU2008357 ). The specimen SYNU2008324 was dissected for description and illustration of male terminalia .

Etymology. This new species is named after its holotype collector. It is a noun in apposition.

Distribution. China ( Xinjiang).

Remarks. The new species is similar to Helina flavipulchella , but differs from the latter as follows: postpedicel yellow basally; palpus yellow; dc 2+4; legs yellow, except tibiae black; fore tibia with 1 median p; hind tibia without a median p; tergite 3 with punctiform patch; the lateral lobe of sternite 5 about 1/2 the length of this sternite, inner lobe longer than outer lobe; cercus round, with base wide.

Figures

FIGURE 5. Helina xinyiliia Xue sp. nov., male. A–B. Dorsal and lateral habitus. C. Head in anterior view. D. Sternite 5. E. Cerci in posterior view. F. Terminalia, pregonite and postgonite. Scale bars: A–C, 1 mm; D–F, 0.1 mm.

FIGURE 6. Helina xinyiliia Xue sp. nov., male. A. Abdomen in dorsal view. B. Sternite 5. C. Cerci in posterior view. D. Epandrium, cercus and surstylus in lateral view. E. Terminalia. F. Pregonite and postgonite. Scale bars: A, 1 mm; B–F, 0.1 mm.