Aliasutra, Korneyev, 2012

Korneyev, Valery A., 2012, A New Genus and Species of the Subfamily Tachiniscinae (Diptera, Tephritidae) from Australia, Records of the Australian Museum 64 (3), pp. 159-166 : 160-163

Aliasutra n.gen.

Type species: Aliasutra australica n.sp.

Diagnosis. Medium-sized flies ( Figs 1–3 ), which can be recognized from other Tachiniscinae by the combination of: arista bare; costal vein not reaching apex of vein M; head and thorax uniformly brownish yellow; frontal and ocellar setae absent; 2 pairs of lateroclinate orbital setae; postvertical seta short, only 2× as long as occipital setulae; proepisternal ridge with 5–6 long biseriate setae; 2 postpronotal and 1–2 postsutural supra-alar setae; 1 dorsocentral seta aligned with intraalar setae; 3 pairs of scutellar setae; wing hyaline without pattern.

Description. Head ( Figs 4–7 ) slightly higher than long. Frons slightly longer than wide, setulose. Frontal setae absent. Orbital plates short, only slightly extending anterior to ocellar triangle, with 2 short, lateroclinate and slightly reclinate setae. Face receding, slightly convex in profile, with distinct antennal grooves extending ventrally to 0.4 height of face, and with sharply margined medial carina, very broad on ventral 0.6; fronto-facial sutures reaching bases of antennal grooves ( Fig. 5 ). Facial ridge as wide as antennal groove, with supravibrissal setulae in 3–5 rows, but no prominent vibrissae: lowermost setulae only twice as long as other setulae. Ptilinal fissure ending slightly below level of ventral margin of eye. Ocellar seta lacking; medial vertical seta half as long as horizontal diameter of eye and 1.8× as long as lateral vertical seta; postvertical seta small, at most twice as long as occipital setulae. Postocellar seta 1.5× as long as orbital setae. Postocular setulae acuminate, weak, not differentiated from occipital setulae. No genal setae. Postgenal groove very long, reaching upper half of compound eye. Antenna attached at level of upper 0.6 of eye height; scape ( Fig. 8 ) very short, anteriorly directed, setose in apicodorsal half; pedicel ( Fig. 10 ) as long as wide, with dorsal cleft and pedicellar button ( Fig. 11 ) well developed; margins of pedicel setulose, ventromedial surface sparsely microtrichose, but not setulose; 1st flagellomere ( Fig. 9 ) oval, densely microtrichose, with laterobasal sacculus ( Fig. 12 ); arista 2-segmented (antennal segments 4 and 5 partly fused), very short pubescent at base. Palp ( Fig. 13 ) elongate ovoid, dorsal margin slightly concave, setulose. Prementum small, not strongly convex; labella shorter and narrower than flagellomere 1, linear.

Thorax. Proepisternum less than twice as high as long, convex, with 5–6 subequal setae. Postpronotal lobe with 2–3 strong setae. Scutum with 1 presutural and 1 or 2 postsutural supra-alar, 1 intrapostalar, 1 postalar and 1–2 intra-alar setae; 1 acrostichal seta aligned slightly anterior or posterior to intra-alar and postalar setae; 1–2 dorsocentral setae (sometimes setula-like) aligned slightly anterior to intra-alar and postalar setae. Scutellum slightly convex, setulose, with 3, rarely 2 pairs of strong subequal setae. Anepisternum not produced laterally, setulose medially and posteriorly; 2 strong postsutural anepisternal setae. Anepimeron with 2(1) setae, sometimes weak (not mounted on projection). Katepisternum with 1 moderately strong lateroclinate posterodorsal seta and 10–14 reclinate setae anterior to midcoxa. Katepimeron not modified. Postnotum at most sparsely and short microtrichose or bare. Metathoracic postcoxal area unsclerotized. Legs ( Figs 14–21 ). Fore coxa with 4–5 setae at anteroventral margin; fore trochanter with a few short setulae; fore femur with two postero-dorsal rows and one postero-ventral row of setae. Mid tibia ( Fig. 17 ) with 1 anterodorsal seta and 1 posterodorsal setae on apical half, and with 2 long and 2 short spur-like ventroapical setae ( Fig. 19 ); hind tibia ( Fig. 20 ) with anterodorsal row of 4–7, and dorsal row of 7–11 setulae. Wing ( Fig. 24 ) hyaline, without dark pattern. Subcostal vein distally curved to meet costa at right angle, but not broken apically. Vein R 4+5 with 5–7 setulae to level of r-m (or slightly beyond it) on dorsal side, bare on ventral side. Costal vein with many equally short spinules (sensu Hackman & Väisänen, 1985) on anterodorsal margin to the mid-distance between R 2+3 and R 4+5 apices and sparse fine setulae along ventral and dorsal surface, but no differentiated costal spines proximal to costal break. Abdomen. Tergites 3–5 of female of equal length, tergite 6 half as long as tergite 5. Sternites ( Figs 27, 29 ) broad, trapezoid; sternite 1 poorly sclerotized, separated from sternite 2.

Male terminalia ( Figs 27–28 , 32–37 ). Cerci ( Fig. 32–33 ) mostly membranous, with very short setulae, ventrobasally with subtriangular, dorsally curved sclerotized portion (subepandrial sclerite). Epandrium suboval, dorsally with very long setae; with moderately short and wide lateral (outer) surstylus and 2 prensisetae on mesal (inner) surstylus. Hypandrium with posteriorly expanded phallapodeme connected to two gonites by widely separated vanes. Phallus ( Figs 28 , 35–36 ) with short bare stipe and narrow, non-sclerotized glans (half as long as stipe) and laterally projected, serrate lobe of preglans ( Fig. 36 ); membrane posterior to basiphallus with postero-dorsally directed microtrichia (similarly to most examined Tephritidae ).

Female terminalia. Oviscape short, with large dorsoapical opening, setae on dorsal side along opening ( Figs 25–26 , 29 ) 2× as long as setulae on ventral side. Eversible membrane with large ventral area of dark scales ( Figs 25–26 , 30 ); aculeus with nonsetulose anterodorsal dilation, slightly narrowed in medial half, and dilated apical portion with smooth edges; ventral lobes (8th sternite) indistinct; in dissected paratype, 4 spermathecae elongate and wrinkled, spermathecal ducts separate to vagina, much shorter than

spermatheca itself; ventral receptacle unrecognizable or absent.

Etymology. The genus name is an anagram of “ Australia ”.

Figures

Figs 1–3. Aliasutra australica n.sp., paratype female, photographs. (1) dorsal view; (2) lateral left view; (3) head, anterior view.

Figs 4–7. Aliasutra australica n.sp., head, SEM. (4) left; (5) anterior; (6) dorsal; (7) posterior. Scale = 0.2 mm.

Figs 8–13. Aliasutra australica n.sp., head appendages, SEM. (8) antennae (flagellomeres detached); (9) flagellomere 1 and arista (a, base of arista, enlarged); (10) pedicel after removal of flagellomeres, apical, pedicellar button indicated; (11) pedicellar button; (12) base of flagellomere 3, sacculus indicated; (13) subcranial area and mouthparts, anteroventral view. Scale = 0.1 mm (8, 9, 10, 13) and 0.05 mm (9a, 11, 12).

Figs 14–21. Aliasutra australica n.sp., left fore (14–16), mid (17–19) and hind (20–21) legs, SEM.(14) total, posterior view; (15) tarsus, ventral; (16) apex of fore tibia and base of tarsus, posterior, comb of apicoventral setulae indicated; (17) total, posterior view, apical tarsomere broken off; (18) mid coxa; (19) apex of mid tibia, ventral view; (20) total, anterior view; (21) last tarsomere, apical view, empodium indicated. Scale = 0.5 mm (14–15, 17, 20), 0.1 mm (16, 18–19, 21).

Figs 22–26. Aliasutra australica n.sp. (22–23 and 25–26, SEM). (22) prosternal region, anterior view (head detached); (23) postpronotal lobe, proepisternum and anterior thoracic spiracle; (24) wing; 25–26, tergite 6 and ovipositor, dorsal (25) and laterodorsal view (26). Scale = 0.5 mm (22–23, 25–26) and 1 mm (24).

Figs 27–31. Aliasutra australica n.sp., male (27–28) and female (29–31). (27, 29) abdomen, ventral view; (28) phallus glans, enlarged; (30) ovipositor, partly everted and compressed, ventral view; (31) spermathecae and vagina.

Figs 32–37. Aliasutra australica n.sp., male postabdomen. (32) epandrium, posterior view; (33) epandrium and hypandrium, right view (phallus detached); (34) hypandrium, ventral view; (35) phallus glans; (36) same, basal part, showing lobe of preglans; (37) ejaculatory apodeme.