Scatella (Synhoplos) Lamb, 1917

Costa, Daniel N. R., Mathis, Wayne N., Marinoni, Luciane & Sepúlveda, Tatiana A., 2024, Phylogeny and taxonomy of the shore-fly tribe Scatellini (Diptera: Ephydridae: Ephydrinae), Zoologia (e 23100) 41, pp. 1-35 : 23

Scatella (Synhoplos) Lamb, 1917

Figs 54, 55 , 82, 83

Synhoplos Lamb 1917: 390 (as a genus; masculine). Type species: Synhoplos sturdeeanus Lamb 1917 , designated by Wirth 1968: 27. – Mathis 1980: 29 [revised status]. – Mathis and Zatwarnicki 1995: 279–280 [world catalog].

Diagnosis. Specimens of Scatella (Synhoplos) are most similar to Teichomyza and some brachypterous Scatophila and Scatella (Scatella) , but may be distinguished following combination of characters: arista shorter than basal flagellomere; frons as wide as long; setulae along anterior margin of frontal vitta present; genal to eye ratio>0.50; one pair of postsutural dorsocentral setae; macropterous wing.

Description. Small to medium-sized shore flies, body length 1.80–3.10 mm; brown to cinereous species; only micropterous species known.

Head ( Fig. 54 ): Frons as long as wide, usually dull with distinct, subshiny frontal vitta; lateroclinate fronto-orbital seta 2. Antenna short, concolorous with head; pedicel with one long seta dorsally, subequal to length of arista; arista shorter than basal flagellomere, macropubescent. Face conspicuously protruding, interfoveal dorsal hump of face high, between antennae; facial setae conspicuous, 2 lateral facial setae curved laterodorsally. Eye subglobose-quadrate, ob1iquely oriented to general plane of head; gena high (gena to eye ratio> 0.6), one strong genal seta.

Thorax ( Fig. 55 ): Generally reduced; mesonotum flat; two rows of acrostichal setae, extending to scutellum, size of setae uniform; a row of small dorsocentral setulae plus 1 pair of presutural and 1 postsutural dorsocentral setae; scutellum short; basal scutellar setae smaller than apical setae; postsutural supra-alar setae small, much smaller than postalar. Legs typical, without distinct setae; femur stronger than tibiae and tarsi; tibia and tarsi light brown; halteres reduced; wing micropterous.

Abdomen: Tergites gray to brown, microtomentose, densely setose; Male Terminalia ( Figs 82, 83 ): sternite 5 present, formed by two sclerites; sternite 6 absent; Epandrium and internal structures typical of Scatella ; ventral projections of epandrium well-developed. Female terminalia typical of Scatella ; sternite 7 as a rectangular sclerite. Female ventral receptacle tubular shaped, as long as wide.

Distribution. Neotropical (Tierra del Fuego region).

Remarks. Both species of Synhoplos are micropterous and occur along the coasts of continental islands within the Tierra del Fuego region of South America. Immature stages are unknown.

Figures

Figures 48–62. Scatella fusca: (48) head, anterior; (49) head, lateral; (50) thorax, dorsal; (51) male mid leg, posterior; (52) epandrium and cerci posterior; (53) male internal terminalia, lateral.Scatella (Synhoplos) sturdeeanus: (54) head, lateral; (55) thorax, dorsal; (56) epandrium and cerci, posterior; (57) male terminalia, lateral. Scatella (Scatella) curtipennis: (58) head, anterior; 59, head, lateral; (60) thorax, dorsal; (61) epandrium and cerci, posterior; (62) male terminalia, lateral.

Figures 63-85. Male terminalia: (63–65) Notiocoenia acutella; (66–67) Halmopota mediterranea; (68–70)Limnellia huachuca; (71–73) Limnellia itatiaia; (74-77) Philotelma nigripenne; (78–81) Philotelma rossii; (82–83) Scatella (Synhoplos) neglectus; (84–85) Lamproscatella occidentalis.