Trichosepedon Krek, 1999 stat.nov.

Philosepedon (Trichosepedon) Krek, 1999 - Krek 1999, Omelková & Ježek 2012b

Type species. Philosepedon balkanicus Krek, 1970, by original designation of Krek (1999).

Other included species. Trichosepedon atschitaricum Vaillant & Joost, 1983 comb.nov., T. clouense (Ježek, 1994) comb.nov., T. mayeri (Satchell, 1955) comb.nov., T. memnonium (Quate, 1966) comb.nov., T. sakhalinum (Wagner, 1994) comb.nov.

Diagnosis. Eyebridge separated by distance of less than one facet diameter (e.g. figure 1A). Antennae with 14 flagellomeres, all separated, ascoids Y-shaped. Wing (figure 1B) with both forks complete and membrane usually with macrotrichia. Male genitalia (figure 2A) symmetrical with aedeagus developed as elongate sclerite; parameres developed as parameral dorsal bridge (morphologically ventral) carrying sickleshaped, symmetrical appendages; gonostyle with subapical setiform sensilla and longitudinal groove carrying row of stout setae. Male surstylus with two tenacula. Female genitalia with cerci well-developed, elongate (figure 2B).

Remarks. The females of Philosepedon Eaton, 1904 s.str. (sensu Omelková & Ježek 2012b) and Eurygarka Quate, 1959 share the synapomorphy of having the cerci reduced, hardly projecting behind apex of abdomen (Vaillant 1974, Curler & Moulton 2012). This is most likely an adaptation to them giving birth to first instar larvae rather than laying eggs. The evidence placing Trichosepedon within Philosepedon by Vaillant (1974) and Omelková & Ježek (2012b) appears solely to be the presence of two tenacula on the male surstylus, however tenacula numbers by themselves are likely not to be very phylogenetically conserved (e.g. Cordeiro 2013). In the absence of clear apomorphies linking Trichosepedon to Philosepedon s.str. therefore suggests to me that Trichosepedon should be treated as a separate genus. Other taxa considered by Omelková & Ježek (2012b) to be subgenera of Philosepedon are Philothreticus Krek, 1999 and Bahisepedon Omelková & Ježek, 2012; the validity and status of these taxa are beyond the scope of this paper. However, as argued by Kvifte (2015), Cordeiro et al. (2015), Ježek & Le Pont (2016) and Kvifte et al. (2018) it is clear that much more taxonomic work is necessary to achieve an apomorphy-based, phylogenetically robust genuslevel classification of world Psychodini .

In my list of included species I have been more conservative than Omelková & Ježek (2012b), leaving out Psychoda distyla Quate, 1957 due to an insufficiently detailed original description, and Philosepedon monstruosum Ježek & Mogi, 1955 and Philosepedon torosum Quate & Quate, 1967 due to apomorphic differences in their wing and surstylus (radial fork incomplete, tenacula inserted on distinct tubercles). For the latter two species, a new genus may be warranted, also including Psychoda biretinacula Wagner, 1978 from North Korea (see figures in Wagner 1978a).

The grammatical gender of Trichosepedon is neuter, following the gender of the stem -sepedon (Ježek 1999). The grammatical gender of Philosepedon is, however, masculine following the stem Philos .