Claraeola colossus (Hardy, 1972) Kehlmaier, 2005

Kehlmaier, Christian, 2005, Taxonomic studies on Palaearctic and Oriental Eudorylini (Diptera: Pipunculidae), with the description of three new species, Zootaxa 1030 (1), pp. 1-48 : 5-8

Claraeola colossus (Hardy, 1972) comb. nov. ( Figs 2a–h )

Pipunculus (Eudorylas) colossus Hardy, 1972a: 133 .

Material studied

Myanmar 1♂ (holotype), NE Burma, Washang , 16.III.1934, leg. R. Malaise, coll. NHM ; Thailand 2♂♂, Phuket, Khao Phra Thaew National Park , 98°21,707’E 08°01,672’N, 14.IV.2001, leg. J.­H. Stuke, coll. C. Kehlmaier ; 2♂♂, Phuket, Khao Phra Thaew National Park , 98°21,707’E 08°01,672’N, 15.IV.2001, leg. J.­H. Stuke, coll. C. Kehlmaier.

Redescription

Male

Body length. 7.1–7.4mm.

Head. Face dark, silver­grey pollinose. Scape dark, with one or two upper bristles. Pedicel slightly paler, with up to ten long dark upper and up to ten dark lower bristles, the longer ones exceeding the tip of the flagellum, which is pale, small and rather roundish (LF:WF=1.3–1.4). Arista dark and flattened, with thickened and slightly paler base. Eyes meeting or only narrowly separated (by less than diameter of ocellus) for 19 to 20 times diameter of ocellus. F:EM:V=1:0.8:0.6. Frons dark, at least lower half with pale brown pollinosity, otherwise silver­grey pollinose. Vertex dark, anterior half grey pollinose, otherwise shining, bearing an hardly elevated equilateral or slightly isosceles ocellar triangle. Occiput dark, grey pollinose, changing to brown in upper half to third.

Thorax. Prescutum, scutum, scutellum and pleura dark. Pleura silver­grey pollinose. Postpronotal lobe dark, along upper margin brown otherwise grey pollinose, in upper and lower half with up to seven long, dark postpronotal hairs respectively (up to 0.2mm). Prescutum and scutum with two anterior spots (next to postpronotal lobes), two lateral spots (anterior to wing base) and two small posterolateral spots of grey pollinosity, otherwise weakly brown pollinose, with two uniseriate dorsocentral rows of hair and some supra­alar hair (up to 0.16mm). Scutellum with posterior margin weakly grey pollinose, otherwise weakly brown pollinose, with about 22 short hairs along posterior margin (up to 0.07mm).

Wing. Length: 8.0– 8.4mm. LW:MWW=3.7–4.1. Upper calypter very well developed, very conspicuous. Wing almost entirely covered with microtrichia, except entire cell c, large parts of br, cup and upper calypter as well as the beginning of r 1, cua 1 and anal lobe. Cell sc entirely brownish tinged, apically darkest, thus pterostigma dark and complete (LS:LTC=1.0). LTC:LFC=1.7–2.5. r­m reaches dm slightly after one third of the cells length. M 1 strongly undulating, without additional vein M 2, meeting (not fusing) with R 4+5 right at wing margin.

Halter . Length: 0.8mm. Base and knob dark. Stem somewhat paler but generally dark.

Legs. Coxae predominantly pale, grey pollinose. Mid coxa with six to eight strong dark anterior bristles at inner apical corner, followed by some shorter bristly hairs. Trochanters pale, almost entirely grey pollinose. Femora pale but considerably darkened posterodorsally. Posteroventrally silver­grey and anterodorsally brownish­grey pollinose, except hind femur shining posteroventrally. Mid femur bearing two ventral rows of dark peg­like spines. Front and hind femora with two rows of ventral spines restricted to apical two thirds to half. All femora with longer posterodorsal rows of hair. Tibiae predominantly pale but darkened ventrally in apical half, greyish pollinose. Hind tibia with four to five very weak wrinkles midanteriorly. Tarsi predominantly dark but basal segments can be pale, weakly brownish­grey pollinose. Pulvilli shorter than distitarsi.

Abdomen. Ground colour dark. Tergite 1 with up to 20 long lateral hairs, situated in two to three rows (up to 0.18mm). Tergite 2 to 5 evenly covered with short hair (0.06mm). Tergite 1 laterally, tergite 2 to 5 posterolaterally grey pollinose, extending onto dorsal surface along posterior margin almost towards the middle, largest on tergite 5, otherwise weakly brown pollinose. Viewed dorsally, tergite 5 almost symmetrical (T5R:T5L=1.0–1.1). Sternite 1 to 7 dark, predominantly grey pollinose. Syntergosternite 8 dark, laterally greyish, otherwise brownish pollinose. Viewed dorsally, without dorsal depression on side of outer surstylus. LT35:WS8=1.2–1.3. Viewed laterally, higher than long (LS8:HS8=0.7). Viewed caudally, membranous area large, centrally placed, roundish and caudally directed ( Fig. 2e ).

Genitalia.

Genital capsule dorsal view: Epandrium pale, predominantly greyish pollinose, small, wider than long (MLE:MWE=0.5). Surstyli pale, greyish pollinose and almost symmetrical, outer one slightly larger. Both rectangular, longer than wide and pointed at apex towards inner side ( Fig. 2d ).

Genital capsule ventral view: Gonopods unequal, outer one clearly larger ( Fig. 2a ). Phallus with a strong and rather straight base from which a large, transparent membranous sheet emerges that bears a sclerotized ridge or projection with many distinct spines ( Fig. 2f ). The phallus itself is trifid with rather long, wavy ejaculatory ducts. Phallic guide short, thin in apical half, straight and pointed ( Fig. 2a ).

Genital capsule lateral view: Epandrium without a projecting lobe on either side. Surstyli distinctly triangularly broadened ventrally in apical half ( Figs 2g –h ). Phallic guide rather deep and gently bent towards surstyli ( Fig. 2c ).

Ejaculatory apodeme small and linear ( Fig. 2b ).

Female unknown.

Discussion

Due to the shape of the inner male genitalia and the very setose abdomen, P. (E.) colossus is hereby transferred to the genus Claraeola ( Cla. colossus (Hardy, 1972) comb. nov.). In the original description, Hardy (1972a) points out various features of the wing and head, the most prominent being the closed cell r 5, shape of flagellum and the weakly separated compound eyes. Having additional material at hand, it proved that most aspects mentioned in Hardy (1972a) fit very well. However, the compound eyes normally seem to meet each other (in three out of four specimens) and tergites 1 to 5 do show a fasciated pattern of brown and grey pollinosity to some extent (though not so obvious as in other species of Claraeola ). In the case of cell r 5, the veins R 4+5 and M 1 do meet/touch right at the wing margin; they neither meet before the wing margin nor fuse to become one. Therefore, one might argue that cell r 5 is still open.

Cla. colossus is closely allied to Cla. adventitia ( Kertész, 1912) , Cla. gigantea (Hardy, 1972) , Cla. gigas ( Kertész, 1912) , Claraeola robusta ( Kozánek, Suh & Kwon 2003) and Cla. spinosa (Kozánek & Kwon, 1991) and is presently recorded from Myanmar and Thailand. A reliable separation from these closely allied species can be achieved by studying the lateral shape of both surstyli which are roughly triangular ( Figs 2 g­h) and the arrangement of the rather long teeth or spines, situated on a large membranous sheet connected to the phallus ( Fig. 2f ).

Figures

FIGURE 2. Claraeola colossus (Hardy, 1972). (a) Phallic guide, gonopods and hypandrium ventral view. (b) Ejaculatory apodeme. (c) Phallic guide lateral view. (d) Surstyli strictly dorsal view. (e) Syntergosternite 8 caudal view. (f) Phallus ventral view. (g) Outer surstylus lateral view. (h) Inner surstylus lateral view. Scale bars = 0.1 mm.