Platypalpus tanbarkiensis Shamshev & Grootaert

Shamshev, Igor & Grootaert, Patrick, 2012, Proposed change in status of the Nearctic genus Charadrodromia Melander (Diptera: Hybotidae, Tachydromiinae), with description of four new species, Zootaxa 3525, pp. 35-50 : 46-47

Platypalpus tanbarkiensis Shamshev & Grootaert sp. nov.

( Figs. 21–23 )

Type material. HOLOTYPE, 3 labelled: USA. Tanbark Flat / Los Angeles Co. / Calif., vi–23–50; Eriogonum; R. Schuster / Collection; Holotype [pink]; Holotype / Platypalpus tanbarkiensis / Shamshev et Grootaert sp. nov. ( CNC). PARATYPES: 3 3, 2 Ƥ, same data as in holotype ( CNC).

Recognition. This species is distinguished by palpus and antenna brown; postpedicel nearly as long as wide; tarsomere 5 brownish; acrostichals and dorsocentrals undifferentiated; halter with pale yellow stem and darkened knob.

Description. Body length 1.3–1.4 mm; wing length 1.4 mm. Male. Head black in ground-colour. Frons broad, finely brownish grey pollinose, rather subshining, widened toward ocellar tubercle. Face narrow, concolorous with frons, denser pollinose. Ocellar tubercle with 2 long brownish proclinate anterior and 2 short lateroclinate posterior bristles. Two pairs of long brownish verticals. Occiput densely greyish pollinose, with numerous brownish yellow to pale setae of different lengths. Antenna brown; postpedicel, short, nearly as long as wide (1.3X in holotype); stylus 2.0X as long as postpedicel. Proboscis brown. Palpus small, brown, with several fine setae of different lengths.

Thorax black in ground-colour, entirely finely greyish pollinose, somewhat denser on pleurae, katepisternum without shining spot; with brownish yellow setation. Postpronotal lobe with 1 long inclinate bristle and several short setae. Mesonotum with 1 short presutural supra-alar, 2 notopleurals, 1 postalar and 4 scutellar bristles (apical pair very long and cruciate, lateral pair short); acrostichals and dorsocentrals undifferentiated, scutum almost uniformly covered with very short setulae (in some specimens at most multiserial acrostichals barely separated from dorsocentrals anteriorly), 2 pairs long prescutellars.

Legs yellow to dusky yellow, tarsomeres 5 brownish. Fore femur thickened, mostly covered with short setae, bearing rows of yellow anteroventral and posteroventral setae becoming longer basally. Fore tibia slightly thickened. Mid femur somewhat narrower than fore femur; with short black spinule-like anteroventral and longer posteroventral setae. Mid tibia without apical spur, with several stronger black setulae subapically. Hind femur with short anteroventral setae. Hind tibia unmodified, bearing 1 short anterodorsal subapical seta, otherwise covered with short setulae.

Wing hyaline, with brownish yellow to pale yellow veins. One long brown costal bristle. Veins R4+5 and M straight, somewhat divergent near wing margin; CuA2 straight; cells br and bm contiguous, rather short, bm broader than br. Squama yellow, with pale setae. Halter with pale yellow stem and darkened knob.

Abdomen brown in ground-colour, finely greyish pollinose, viewed dorsally rather subshining; covered with short pale setae. Terminalia ( Figs. 21–23 ) rather large, concolorous with abdomen; left cercus dilated apically, broadly elongate oval viewed laterally, with several short unmodified setae; right cercus digitiform, somewhat longer than left cercus, with several short unmodified setae; right epandrial lamella elongate oval, with moderately long setae along ventral margin and several long setae on apical part; right surstylus barely differentiated from epandrium; left epandrial lamella as in Figure 23 , pointed apically, with several unmodified setae of different lengths on apical part.

Female. Similar to male. Abdominal segment 8 subshining; cercus elongate, brownish, with scattered setulae.

Etymology. The new species is named after its type locality, Tanbark Flat.

Distribution. USA (California).

Remarks. Platypalpus tanbarkiensis sp. nov. is similar to P. microphona , P. layiaphilus sp. nov. and P. cummingi sp. nov. The main differences between these species are given below in the key.

Figures

FIGURES 21 – 23. Platypalpus tanbarkiensis sp. nov., male. 21. right epandrial lamella, lateral view. 22. cerci and epandrium, dorsal view. 23. left epandrial lamella and left cercus, lateral view.