Physocephala herrerai, Stuke, Jens-Hermann & Skevington, Jeffrey H., 2007

Stuke, Jens-Hermann & Skevington, Jeffrey H., 2007, The Conopidae of Costa Rica (Diptera) (Part 1: Conopinae – Conopini & Tropidomyiini), Zootaxa 1528, pp. 1-40 : 8-10

Physocephala herrerai spec. nov. (figures 16–21)

Holotype Ψ: "Sect. San Ramón de dos Rios, Prov. / Alaju, COSTA RICA, 620m. 18 / MAR –13 ABR 1995. F. A. Quesada, / L_N_318100_381900 #5274"; (2) " COSTA RICA INBIO / CRI 002 / 246242" [label with barcode]; (3) " Holotypus / Physocephala herrerai / spec. nov. / det. Stuke & Skevington, 2005" ( INBC).

Description of the holotype (female)

Head 3.5 mm high. Eye brown, facets a little bit larger in the centre near the face. Hind margin of eye slightly concave in the middle. Antenna completely orange, with black bristles at the top of the scape and mainly dorsally on the pedicel. Ventral flagellum membrane-like. Second segment of the style as long as the third segment, the third segment slightly blackish at the tip. Head mainly yellow, gena black with clear yellow centre, upper parts of frons black, vertex and ptilinal fissure light brown. Obvious pubescence only bordering the eyes with the exception of the frons, pubescence golden at the postcranium and grey at the gena. A less obvious pubescence can be seen when looking at a suitable angle at the gena and the postcranium. Vertex and postcranium (with the exception of the postgena) with long black hairs. Proboscis orange.

Thorax black. Only a few hard-to-find black hairs at the dorsal posterior part of the katepisternum and the whole mesoscutum with scutellum and postpronotum covered with short black hairs. Thorax completely covered with a less obvious grey pubescence, the dorsal posterior part of the katepisternum with more obvious silver pubescence.

Legs orange brown with the exception of the hind femur, the apical part of the hind tibia and the top of the claws that are all blackish. Legs covered with black hairs with these exceptions: anteroventral side of fore tibia with short dense golden hairs, fore and middle tibia posterior at the apical part with dense golden pubescence, hind tibia apically covered with dense golden hairs, ventral and posterior part of the femora without hairs. Coxa densely silver to golden pubescent, femora less obvious silver dusted.

Length of wing 12 mm (measured from the top of the wing to the tegula). Wing completely covered with microtrichia with the exception of the alula, the anal lobe and the basal part of the posterior cubital cell cup. Venation and colouration as shown on figure 21. Haltere yellow with a black basis and a black apex; 5–6 black bristles at the stem. Calypters yellow brown with a slightly darker border and small golden hairs on the thicker border.

Abdomen completely black to dark brown; covered with silver grey pubescence with the exception of tergite 5, syntergite 6, and partly the lateral margins of tergite 2. Abdomen completely covered with black hairs that are smaller and less dense at the base of tergite 1. Form of the tergites as shown in figures 16 and 18. The elongated syntergite 6 and the rounded tergite 5 are distinctive. Theca very broad and completely covered with black bristles that are arranged in small regular lines with about 6–12 bristles in each line.

Etymology

The species is named after Alvaro Herrera (INBIO; Santo Domingo, Heredia) who was very helpful when we visited the INBIO collection in Costa Rica.

Diagnosis

The first couplet in Camras (1996) doesn’t work when identifying this species because the frons is about half black and yellow. Following couplet 1 "Frons mainly or entirely dark" will lead to couplet 14 with the species Physocephala carbonaria and Physocephala aurifrons . The distinction of Physocephala herrerai and Physocephala carbonaria is given in our key. As stated above, the status of Physocephala aurifrons remains doubtful and cannot be separated. Following couplet 1' "Frons mainly or entirely pale" will lead to couplet 30 where both species offered don´t fit Physocephala herrerai (i.e. it is not a rufous species and does not have a pollinose pleural stripe).