Protypusia argentata, Gibbs, 2023

Gibbs, David, 2023, A world review of the bee fly tribe Usiini (Diptera, Bombyliidae) - Part 3: Parageron Paramonov s. lat., European Journal of Taxonomy 863 (1), pp. 1-162 : 52-55

Protypusia argentata gen. et sp. nov.

urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:930472B2-293B-460D-8AA6-0318EBC9D4C9

Figs 25 , 39

Etymology

From Latin ‘ argentum ’ meaning ‘silver’, refers to the silver-grey dusting and white hairs covering much of the bodies of both sexes.

Type material

Holotype

MOROCCO • ♂; “ 21 March 2006, Tiznit, Arbaa-sahel 320 m, N29°39′26.5″ W09°52′11.4″ Leg, Dils, J.- Faes, J.”; NHMUK.

Paratypes

MOROCCO • 1 ♀; “ 21 March 2006, Tiznit , Arbaa-sahel 320 m, N29°39′26.5″ W09°52′11.4″ ”; NHMUK • 1 ♂, 7 ♀♀; “ 21 March 2006, Tiznit , Arbaa-sahel 320 m, N29°39′26.5″ W09°52′11.4″ ”; PCJD • 1 ♀; “ 22 March 2006, Tiznit , Arbaa-sahel 330 m, N29°409′19.7″ W09°51′18.5″”; PCJD • 2 ♂♂, 3 ♀♀; “ 25 March 2009, Ouarzazate , Amerzgane 1350 m, N31°01′02.9″ W07°13′45.9″ ”; PCDG • 1 ♀; “ 16 March 2009, Tiznit 330 m, Arbaa sahel N29°39′26.4″ W09°52′11.5″ Leg, Dils, J.-Faes, J.”; PCJD .

Description

MEASUREMENTS. Body length: 4.0– 5.6 mm. Wing length: 4.1–6.0 mm.

Male

HEAD. Gena broad, wider than width of proboscis at base, broadening out above into frons, and somewhat inflated, all silvery-grey dusted except for a very narrow, blackish border to the oral opening level with proboscis. Frons covered with long, dark-brown to blackish hairs, the longest equalling the length of the postpedicel, these hairs, after a glabrous area laterally, continuing down to level with proboscis, leaving a narrow, glabrous gap before the silvery occiput hairs start. Holoptic, but eyes only touching for about three facets, the frons drawn out to a fine point. Ocellar tubercle black, subshining but with grey dusting apparent from some angles, a small silvery-grey triangle in front of anterior ocellus, the hind ocelli almost in contact with hind corners of eyes; ocelli form an equilateral triangle. Silvery hairs on ocellar tubercle about as long as scape and pedicel combined. Eye facets clearly enlarged in upper two thirds, about twice the size of lower facets. Occiput densely coated with silver-grey dust except for a triangular patch behind ocellar tubercle which is more thinly dusted. Either side of this triangular area, above neck, are darker brown dusted areas, the occipital callosities almost black. The whole occiput with a long, silvery vestiture, the hairs becoming longer below forming a ‘beard’ below the eye. Post occipital hairs dorsally not differentiated, not over-topping hairs on ocellar tubercle, from front extending above eyes hardly more than height of ocellar tubercle. Antennae blackish, grey dusted, especially on the scape, postpedicel significantly longer than scape and pedicel together, the sensilla in the apical sulcus contrastingly white. Scape and pedicel clothed with silvery hairs, the longest on the scape longer than its diameter; silvery hairs on postpedicel confined to dorsum and usually shorter, longest just before the sulcus. Palps short, claviform, black, thickly clothed with long silvery hairs. Proboscis long, about equal to the head and mesonotum combined, black, including basal membrane, laterally with short brown hairs along its base.

THORAX. Mesonotum with blackish ground-colour variably obscured by pale silver-grey dust covering postpronotal lobe, notopleuron, above wing bases, and thinly in front of scutellum (smaller specimens from higher altitude) to densely covered with yellow-grey dust, more thinly on paramedian and antehumeral vittae (larger specimens from lower altitude). Hairs of mesonotum silvery, almost as long as antennae, relatively dense, especially anteriorly, sparser on paramedian vittae and close to scutellum. Scutellum varying from subshining blackish, dusted grey laterally, to densely yellow-grey dusted, with darker, more brownish disc, covered with long silvery hairs dorsally as long, peripherally longer than those on mesonotum. Pleura densely pale grey dusted, pronotum and anepisternum with long, silvery hairs, katepisternum with long silvery hairs ventrally and on anterior half.

WING. Membrane hyaline, very faintly yellowish basally, the veins yellowish-brown, paler basally, the subcosta entirely yellow. Crossvein r-m between basal third and middle of the discal cell, clearly beyond m-cu, a little variable.Anal lobe well developed with conspicuously convex margin, broader than anal cell.

HALTERE. Pale yellowish-white, base of stem infuscated.

LEGS. Coxae concolourous with pleura and with the same long, silvery hairs. Femora and tibia silverygrey dusted, from some angles appearing darker on apices of tibia and tarsi. Femora covered with white hairs, long and dense on fore and mid-femora posteriorly, even longer but less dense on hind-femora. Tibia and tarsi covered with short, silver hairs, the tibia also with longer hairs in proximal halves, especially dorsally.

ABDOMEN. Tergites subshining blackish on disc, more or less dusted silvery-grey apically and laterally, Extent of dusting varies from complete on apical segment to a narrow apical rim and on reflexed sites basally in smaller examples from higher altitude. Some specimens have very narrow, sharply defined yellow posterior margins, disappearing laterally. All tergites with long silvery hairs up to about twice as long as the length of each tergite. Sternites densely silver-grey dusted, pale apical margins distinct, becoming broader distally, hairs as long as those on tergites.

GENITALIA. Small, similar to Pro. grata , somewhat ventrally deflected, dark ground colour completely obscured by silver-grey dust, slightly less so on tips of gonocoxite, cerci brown, gonostyli black. Hypopygium clothed with silvery hairs, longest on gonocoxite.

Female

Differs from the male in its broadly separated eyes, frons about one third head width, densely grey dusted, slightly less so on ocellar tubercle. Hairs on frons rather shorter, extending back to level of hind ocelli, the hairs extending down the gena silvery to yellowish-brown rather than black. Silvery post ocellar hairs a little shorter but still exhibits the ‘bearded’ effect below eyes. Hairs on mesonotum, tergites and legs a little shorter, especially dorsally. Mesonotum more densely grey dusted with paramedian and antehumeral vittae vaguely indicated in some specimens. Scutellum uniformly grey dusted. Tergite similar but with broader, more conspicuous apical yellow margins.

Remarks

Very similar to the sympatric Pro. grata , including the male and female genitalia, and the two species have been collected together at the same site in Morocco. Males are distinctive due to the coating of silvery dusting and largely very long silvery hairs. Females can be very similar to female Pro. grata , but are more uniformly grey dusted on mesonotum and abdomen, hardly showing the darker mesonotal vittae of female Pro. grata .

Distribution

Morocco.

Figures

Fig. 25. Protypusia argentata gen. et sp. nov., ♀.

Fig. 39. Protypusia argentata gen. et sp. nov. a. Epiphallic complex ventral. b. Epiphallic complex lateral. c. Gonocoxite ventral. d. Gonocoxite lateral. e. Epandrium dorsal. f. Female genitalia ventral. g. Female genitalia lateral.