Protonerius opacus, Sepúlveda & Marinoni, 2021

Sepúlveda, Tatiana A. & Marinoni, Luciane, 2021, New species of Neriidae (Diptera: Schizophora): an addition to the previously monotypic genus Protonerius, Zoologia (e 21013) 38, pp. 1-4 : 2

Protonerius opacus sp. nov.

Figs 1–9

http://zoobank.org/ 2902E5EE-0AC0-40F6-A12D-C071BF53E631

Diagnosis. Wing infuscate on distal third and around veins r-m and dm-cu, with a hyaline median spot on cell r 4+5 ( Figs 1, 2 ). First flagellomere ovoid ( Fig. 5 ). Femora entirely brown. Pleuron with slightly and homogeneously distributed pruinescence.

Description. Female (holotype). Body length 6.5 mm. Wing length 5.8 mm, width 1.8 mm.

Head. First flagellomere ovoid; pedicel short, length is the same as width; outer surface of pedicel with convex distal margin on dorsal half; distal margin of pedicel with one dorsal and one ventral outstanding setae; scape short, length is the same as width. Antennal base protruding and shiny, inner margin of antennal base dorsally separated by the visible upper face; anterior margin of frons convex; parafacial narrow and brown with median yellow stripe; fronto-orbital plate brown and sub-shiny, with three long and subequal setae; anterior third of fronto-orbital plate slightly protuberant; frontal vitta brown with median yellow V-shaped stripe narrower near ocellar tubercle; vertex brown and long, with postocellar setae separated from ocellar tubercle by twice its longitudinal diameter; inner vertical seta the longest, twice the length of inner vertical seta and one third longer than postocellar seta; occiput brown; postgena horizontally curved under the occiput, with long and black patch of setae; gena narrow and yellow with gray pruinescence; genal seta as long as anterior fronto-orbital seta; vibrissa present.

Thorax. Brown with two dorsal gray pruinose stripes on presutural scutum fading posteriorly; pleuron brown and homogeneously slightly pruinose. Dorsal presutural scutum shorter than posterior scutum; scutellum brown with median dorsal gray pruinescence. Anepisternum with yellow setulae; katepisternum with one lateral seta and one ventral seta as long as anterior dorsocentral presutural seta and several ventral yellow setulae; katatergite rounded and very swollen. Coxae brown; fore coxa with two apical setae; mid coxa with two lateral setae; hind coxa with two lateral setae, ventral seta thiner and shorter. Tegula with one seta. Legs entirely brown; femora without ventral spine-like setae; mid femur with line of anterior median setae.

Abdomen. Entirely brown, sub-shiny and setose. Oviscape brown and sub-shiny; length is twice the width.

Etymology. The name Protonerius opacus refers to the mostly dark body, from the Latin word ‘opacus’ meaning shady, dark, obscure.

Type material. Holotype, female, W. MALAYSIA: Selangor, A.E. Stubbs BMNH 1974-87 / Gentig H’lands, Hotel road, forest, 3000 feet, 25.xii.1972 [ NHMUK #2933 ].

Remarks. Representatives of Protonerius are so rarely collected, that the two species known have been exceptionally described from female specimens. The morphology of the two species of Protonerius is remarkably different from other genera of Neriidae . Such differences include the number and size of setae, the shape of the distal margin of pedicel and the postgena, but mainly the position of the arista, which is apical in all other genera of Neriidae and slightly dorsal in Protonerius .

Figures

Figures 1–9. Species of Protonerius. (1–7) Protonerius opacus sp. nov., holotype: (1) habitus lateral; (2) habitus dorsal; (3) head lateral; (4) head dorsal; (5) antenna outer surface; (6) antenna inner surface; (7) thorax dorsal. (8–9) Protonerius guttipennis, holotype: (8) habitus lateral; (9) habitus dorsal. Scale bars: 1 mm.