Mesoconius rufipleuron, Marshall, 2019

Marshall, Stephen A., 2019, A revision of the genus Mesoconius Enderlein (Diptera, Micropezidae, Taeniapterinae), European Journal of Taxonomy 548, pp. 1-126 : 45-47

Mesoconius rufipleuron sp. nov.

urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:F3F5DC0C-BB03-4530-969D-E8141A748C07

Fig. 16

Etymology

The specific name refers to the strikingly reddish-pink abdominal pleuron.

Material examined

Holotype

ECUADOR • ♀; Pichincha, Bellavista Cloud Forest Reserve ; 00°01ʹ13ʺ S, 78°40ʹ30ʺ W; 2200 m a.s.l.; 9–13 May 2009; S.A. Marshall leg.; QCAZ.

Paratype

ECUADOR • 1 ♀; Pichincha, Mindo, trail to Bellavista Reserve ; 00°03ʹ29ʺ S, 78°46ʹ06ʺ W; 1 May 2011; S.A. Marshall leg.; DEBU304–17 sequenced for CO1; DEBU .

Description (female only)

LENGTH. 16 mm.

COLOUR. Head dark reddish brown to black, except as follows: parafacial, postgena and most of gena silvery microtrichose. Legs mostly reddish, fore tibia and distal part of fore femur black, fore tarsomeres bright yellow, except for black basal part of tarsomere 1. Femora reddish with a faint orange band near mid length. Wing uniformly brownish-yellow infuscated, without clear spots or bands. Metapleuron and abdominal T1–2 orange, T 3–5 pale, abdominal pleuron pink basally, fading to white distally; oviscape orange basally, black distally.

HEAD. Epicephalon and paracephalon very finely striate, microtrichose; frontal vitta matt black, sharply tapered posterior to ocelli, broad anterior to ocelli with an inconspicuous anteromedial point, widely separated from anterior margin of frons; inner vertical bristle strong, with four–five setulae near base. One strong fronto-orbital bristle at level of anterior ocellus, at junction of orbital plate and epicephalon. Lunule bare; upper face broadly raised, white microtrichosity of lower face extending dorsally as a parallel-sided band almost to lunule, subantennal areas shiny.

THORAX. Cervical sclerite with a vertical groove separating a large microtrichose subquadrate posterior portion from a small, shiny anterior portion. Notum finely and densely microtrichose, acrostichal and dorsocentral setulae minute and indistinct, in loose rows; acrostichal row on a faint linear microtrichose strip. Postpronotal lobe dull, densely microtrichose, with several scattered small, pale setae, anterior margin bare, shiny and almost vertical, posterior margin microtrichose and sloped. Dorsocentral bristle absent. Scutellum with a reddish median strip, four small discal setulae and long, closely spaced black apical bristles (longer than scutellum). Katatergite very prominent, with a long, nipple-like microtrichose pointed process. Notopleuron with two widely spaced black bristles. Vertical row of katepisternal bristles golden. All coxae with golden anteroventral setae. Postscutellum with a central bare band. Mid and hind femora mostly bare and shiny proximal to yellow band, darker, setulose and slightly swollen distally.

ABDOMEN. Abdominal segment 1 and base of segment 2 petiolate; length of 1+2 slightly more than double that of tergite 3. T1 setose, with preapical long, thin lateral setae, T2 almost bare. Oviscape bare except for scattered setulae; microtrichose laterally; dorsal and apical parts shiny. Bursa conspicuously rugose, ventral receptacle with a differentiated tapered and bent apical part, common spermathecal duct grading evenly into paired spermathecal duct. Single spermatheca small, tuberculate, on a very short duct arising lateraly from base of common duct. Paired duct divided into distinct parts, basal third membraneous and amorphous, distal ⅔ cylindrical and weakly striate, branching into strongly convoluted short ducts that run to distally invaginated, striate, cup-shaped spermathecae.

Remarks

Although this species is known from only two females, the unique colour pattern of the mostly pink to red abdomen and the bright yellow distal fore tarsomeres are diagnostic.

Figures

Fig. 16. Mesoconius rufipleuron sp. nov. A, D. Living ♀♀ in nature. B. Pleuron, to show katatergite. C. Head of paratype. E–F. Spermathecae and associated structures, lateral and dorsal views.