Robustagramma angusticauda Cui and Marshall, 2005

Marshall, Stephen A. & Cui, Yongsheng, 2005, Systematics of Robustagramma, a new genus of New World Sphaeroceridae (Diptera), Zootaxa 1026 (1), pp. 1-122 : 96

Robustagramma angusticauda Cui and Marshall , new species

( Figs. 294–301 )

As described for Robustagramma flavistylum except as follows.

Body length 1.8–2.5 mm. Ocellar, inner occipital and posterior orbital bristle similar in length. Postvertical bristle conspicuously weak, shorter than half of length of inner occipital. Postocellar bristle slightly shorter than postvertical bristle. Eye height ca. 2.3–2.6 times genal height. Aristal hairs ca. 2.5 times basal width of arista. Two pairs of postsutural dorsocentral bristles, anterior pair similar in length to middle prescutellar acrostichal bristles. Presutural dorsocentral setulae slightly longer than acrostichal setulae. Two pairs of setulae between prescutellar acrostichal and dorsocentral bristles. Apical scutellar bristle over 1.5 times length of scutellum. Posterodorsal katepisternal bristle ca. 2/3–3/4 as long as distance between bristle base and wing base. Length of second costal sector ca. 0.52–0.58X length of third. Discal cell with a short stump vein CuA 1, not longer than 1.5 times vein width. Mid tibia with a large posterodorsal proximal bristle, an anterodorsal bristle between basal1/3–2/5, and two anterodorsal, one dorsal and posterodorsal bristles distally. Mid femur with a row of 4–6 anterior preapical bristles and one small posterodorsal apical bristle. Mid tibia of male with an apicoventral bristle and two rows of short, stout ventral bristles on distal half. Mid femur of male with 2 or 3 irregular rows of 17 ventral bristles, and a row of small anteroventral bristles on basal half.

Male terminalia: Sternite 5 over twice as long as sternite 4, with two patches of small black scales on posteromedial margin. Dorsomedial length of epandrium ca. 0.4X length of sternite 8. Cercus subtriangular, distinctly shorter than surstylus. Distal half of cercus very narrow in lateral view. Postgonite with a tapering apex.

Female terminalia: Sternite 10 relatively long, with a setose posterior half. Spermatheca with several wrinkles on distal portion, and a few small spicules on basal portion.

Holotype (♂, DEBU): VENEZUELA: Mérida. Santa Rosa Trail , dung, 23–30.iv.1988, S.A. Marshall.

Paratypes: VENEZUELA: Mérida. Jaji , dung traps, 27.iv–3.v.1988, S.A. Marshall (4 ♀, DEBU) .

Etymology: The specific epithet refers to the narrow distal half of the male cercus.

Figures

FIGURES 294–301. Robustagramma angusticauda sp. nov.: 294, posterior view of male terminalia; 295, lateral view of male terminalia; 296, lateral view of male cercus; 297, lateral view of male internal genitalia; 298, male sternite 5; 299, dorsal view of part of female terminalia; 300, ventral view of female terminalia; 301, spermathecae.