Limnophora atra Robineau-Desvoidy, 1830 : 522

Couri, Márcia & Pont, Adrian, 2017, Afrotropical Limnophora Robineau-Desvoidy (Diptera, Muscidae) with the description of four new species, Zootaxa 4216 (6), pp. 501-536 : 504-505

Limnophora atra Robineau-Desvoidy, 1830: 522 .

Diagnosis. Fronto-orbital plate silvery-white pruinose, more dull above; parafacial matt, dark brown from almost all angles; arista almost bare; scutum black, light grey only on postpronotum, notopleuron, postalar callus and postalar wall; presutural acrostichal setulae 3- to 4-serial; dorsocentrals 2+4; lower katepisternal seta much closer to posterior than to anterior seta; haltere yellow; fore tibia with a posterior seta; mid femur with 2 posterior preapical setae; mid tibia with 1 posterior seta; hind femur without posteroventral setae, with 3 anteroventrals in apical third; abdomen black and without a grey median vitta separating the spots so that syntergite 1+2 and tergites 3–5 have black transverse bands covering the dorsum except for some light grey dust in the antero-lateral corners of tergites 3–5.

Notes. This species was described from Mauritius from a single female specimen which is no longer in existence (not in MNHNP), and the species has remained unrecognised since it was first described. However, Robineau-Desvoidy’s brief description appears to refer to one of the species related to L. setalis Emden , which has a very dark body colour and virtually bare arista. There is a male in the BMNH ( Mauritius, Macabé, 7.iii.1962, J. Vinson), which we identify as this species, and it is the only species related to L. setalis with Robineau-Desvoidy’s “optiques argentés” as the other species have the fronto-orbital plates mainly or entirely brown pruinose.

L. atra runs in Emden’s (1951) key to L. setalis , from which it differs by the absence of posteroventral setae on hind femur.