Procanace amnoni, Munari, 2022

Munari, Lorenzo, 2022, A new species of Procanace Hendel from the Philippines (Diptera: Canacidae: Canacinae), Zootaxa 5168 (4), pp. 479-484 : 480-482

Procanace amnoni sp. nov.

Figs 1-6

Etymology. The species epithet, amnoni , is a genitive first name to recognize the immense contribution made to Dipterology by the late Dr. Amnon Freidberg, who also collected the type specimens described here.

Description.

Measurements: body length (measurements carried out on two paratypes ♀, since the holotype ♂ and the other paratype ♀ had the abdomen previously detached for dissection) 2.58–2.89 mm, wing length 2.24–2.72 mm.

Habitus. A small fly with glossy dark brown thorax, dull brown abdomen, and yellow legs; wing moderately infuscated; setal vestiture black.

Head ( Fig. 1 ). Subquadrangular, sharp-cornered in lateral view; frons progressively inclined toward the front half; head about as high as or slightly higher than long; frons (including mesofrons of authors) and ocellar area pale brown, sometimes with olivaceous shades anteriorly; occipital area dark brown to black; fronto-orbital plate pale olivaceous to concolorous with frons; face pale cinereous yellow, with very weak carina medially; gena yellow, with postero-dorsal surface narrowly triangular, velvety black; postgena microscopically raspy, dark brown to black; parafacial yellowish, narrower than half the height of postpedicel (basal flagellomere); postocellar setae lacking, or at least not visible; medial and lateral setae subequal in length; postocular setae inconspicuous; gena bearing thin vibrissa and two strong anaclinate setae arising just above peristomal margin (fig. 1); ocellar setae long; ocellar tubercle with 2 divergent thin setulae just behind posterior ocelli; 3 large lateroclinate fronto-orbital setae intermixed with small setulae; frons bare, without interfrontal setae, with sparse, minute setulae only on anterior portion; antenna porrect (both antennae lacking in holotype (♂) and in a paratype (♀ )), with postpedicel (= basal flagellomere) densely pubescent, dark brown to blackish; arista dark grey, with dorsal and ventral rows of short branches (rays), tip sector bare; eye bare, without interfacetal ommatrichia, its anterior corner with distinctly larger ommatidia; eye large, oblique, its vertical diameter 2.45–2.85 times as long as genal height; clypeus moderately large, dark brown, invested with golden microtomentum, especially obvious on ventral margin; palpus yellow, long, rod-like; ventral and buccal cavities wide; mouthparts strongly sclerotised ventrally (prementum).

Thorax. Dark brown, smooth, rather glossy; mesonotum with major setae only, lacking obvious setulae, invested with thin grey microtomentum; 1 + 3 large dorsocentral setae; acrostichal setulae, including prescutellars, absent; 1 postpronotal seta along with a few weak small setulae on median surface of postpronotal lobe; 1 anterior, 1 posterior notopleural setae; 1 supra-alar seta; 1 lateral postalar seta (medial postalar seta lacking); postalar callus poorly developed; scutellum concolorous with scutum, bearing 2 pairs of setae, one apical pair, one latero-basal pair; both proepisternal and proepimeral setae not visible, apparently lacking; pleura dark brown, subshiny, densely micropubescent (especially on anepisternum); anepisternum with strong seta backwardly orientated on posterior margin; katepisternum lacking setae; anepimeron and meron matt, mostly entirely microtomentose.

Legs. Entirely yellow, excepting dark grey to brown coxae and dark brown to blackish distal 2 tarsomeres; forecoxa dark grey, bearing long yellow villosity on antero-distal surface; forefemur with row of 3–5 long dorsal setae on distal half, bearing dense, long, fine villosity ventrally; foretibia (fig. 2) with posterior and postero-dorsal rows of fine setae, very characteristic comb of 8–14 (14 in holotype) antero-ventral strong spine-like setae present in both sexes, distinctly stronger in holotype (♂); foretarsus with rows of setulae; mid femur with numerous anteroventral and anterior fine setae, 5 strong postero-ventral distal setae present in male, mid tibia with long row of 7–10 fine postero-dorsal setae; rest of tibia evenly setulose; setulation of mid tarsus similar to that of foretarsus; hind leg evenly setulose, with longer antero-dorsal, fine setae on tibia; setulation of hind tarsus like that of the other legs.

Wing. Membrane infuscated; venation dark brown to blackish; Costal vein ratio = 0.17–0.20; M vein ratio = 1.07–1.58; haltere yellow, with distinctly triangular knob, tapered apically.

Abdomen. Dark brown, dull, sparsely setulose; syntergite 1+2 large, about as long as total length of tergites 3–5 as a whole; pregenital tergite of female (tergite 8) bearing very long marginal setae (fig. 6).

Male terminalia. ( Figs 3‒4 ). Epandrium large, bearing numerous, moderately long to short setae; surstylus rather complex, made up of two large parts, lateral one roughly bilobed apically, with antero-ventral half (finely punctuated in fig. 3) extended almost the full length of posterior half, densely setulose apically, posterior half elongate, lobe-shaped, bearing thin setulae on mesial margin, medial part of surstylus elongate, rounded apically, bearing numerous long setae on mesial margin; epandrium, just below anal membrane, with very strong, black, mesial spine-like setae conspicuously tapered apically, forming a very thin apex (4 of these setae present on left margin, 2 others on right margin); cercus inconspicuous; surstylus lateral view very peculiar, strongly composite as illustrated in fig. 4.

The genitalia of the sole available male (holotype) show a deep laceration of the left epandrial margin due to an accident that occurred during the dissection procedure. The line drawings presented in figs 3‒4 show the genital structure as it appears under the microscope.

Female terminalia. ( Figs 5‒6 ). Pregenital tergite (tergite 8) with long, strong setae backwards orientated; cercus (fig.6) long, narrow, bearing strong, apical spine curved upward and a distinctly smaller dorsal spine arising anteriorly at some distance from apical spine; sternite 8 undivided, without clusters of curved to hooked spine-like setae (fig. 5), but with few extremely minute spiculae hidden behind posterior margin (not visible in fig. 5); atrial sclerotisation broadly oval in shape; 2 discoid-shaped spermathecae, depressed on upper surface.

Differential diagnosis. This species is distinguished from congeners mainly by the following combination of characters: dark brown fly, with thorax smooth, mesonotum and pleura shiny to subshiny, without obvious setulae; legs entirely yellow, excepting coxae (dark grey) and distal two tarsomeres (dark brown to blackish); body length 2.58‒2.89 mm; head without postocellar setae; gena yellow, with postero-dorsal surface narrowly triangular, velvety black; vertical diameter of eye 2.45–2.85 times as long as genal height; proepisternal and proepimeral setae (apparently) lacking; katepisternal seta absent; membrane of wing infuscated; venation dark brown to blackish; Costal vein ratio = 0.17–0.20; M vein ratio = 1.07–1.58; haltere yellow, distinctly triangular, tapered apically; surstylus of male terminalia (fig. 3) divided in two parts, lateral part roughly bilobed apically in caudal view, medial part long, relatively simple, strongly setulose on mesial margin; very strong, black spine-like setae arising from mesial margin of epandrium, just below the anal membrane; cercus of male genitalia rudimentary, barely visible; female postabdomen (fig. 5) with sternite 8 undivided, without typical clusters of curved to hooked spine-like setae, although a few extremely minute spiculae, hidden behind the posterior edge (not visible in fig. 5), can be observed at high magnification after flattening the sternite by gentle pressure. These microscopic spiculae could presumably be rudiments of the clusters of recurved bristles that are commonly observed in many species of canacine flies.

The new species appears to be related to two species with disjointed distributions, Procanace townesi Wirth, 1951 ( Marshall Islands) and P. cogani Mathis, 1988 ( Seychelles) in that it shares a similar morphological pattern of the bipartite surstylus (with semidetached lateral and mesial parts), as well as the same strong spine-like setae on mesial margin of epandrium, just below the anal membrane. The latter peculiar feature is in all respect a synapomorphic character state with respect to the groundplan of the genus. Obviously, the shape of the surstylus of the new species is quite dissimilar to that of both P. townesi and P. cogani .

Type material. PHILIPPINES: holotype ♂ ″ Panay / Aklan Province / Boracay Island / Laguna de Boracay [printed] // 11°57.5′ N 121°55.8′ E / 0‒5m 9‒14.x.2006 / A. Freidberg [printed] // 365281 [digitalised record number], Philippines: / Laguna de Boracay / 11°57.5′ N 121°55.8′ E / 9.ix ‒ 14.x.2006 / A. Freidberg [printed] // [plastic microtube, with stopper, including terminalia stored in glycerine] // HOLOTYPUS / Procanace amnoni / sp. nov. ♂ / L. Munari des. 2022 [printed red label]″ ( SMNH). The holotype is side-pinned by micropin and doublemounted in small block of Plastazote®. In rather poor condition (setal vestiture of frons strongly depauperate, left compound eye and left postocular region largely devoured by Anthrenus , antennae lost, right side of scutellum deeply lacerated, halteres devoured, right mid leg and tarsus of right hind leg missing, left hind leg with tibia, tarsus and apical part of femur missing). Abdomen removed and terminalia dissected and stored in genitalia vial in glycerine pinned beneath specimen . PHILIPPINES: 3 paratype ♀, same label data as holotype, digitalised record numbers 365288, 365287, 365282 ( SMNH, LMC). The paratypes are side-pinned by micropin and double-mounted in small block of Plastazote®. One paratype with abdomen removed and stored in genitalia vial in glycerine pinned beneath specimen .

Distribution. Philippines.

Bionomics. In all probability maritime habitat; specifics unknown.

Figures

FIGURES 1‒2. Procanace amnoni sp. nov., 1. Head lateral view of a paratype ♀ 2. Left foretibia posterior view of the holotype (♂). Scale bars: = 0.3 mm.

FIGURES 3‒6. Procanace amnoni sp. nov., 3. ♂ terminalia caudal view of the holotype; 4. Ditto, left lateral view; 5. Postabdomen ventral view of a paratype ♀ (with spermatheca slightly magnified); 6. Postabdomen lateral view of a paratype ♀. Scale bars: = 0.2 mm.