Tephritis theryi Séguy 1930

Korneyev, Severyn V. & Korneyev, Valery A., 2019, Revision of the Old World species of the genus Tephritis (Diptera, Tephritidae) with a pair of isolated apical spots, Zootaxa 4584 (1), pp. 1-73 : 56-57

Tephritis theryi Séguy 1930

( Figs 1h ; 32a )

Tephritis theryi Séguy 1930: 176 ; Foote 1984: 134; Norrbom et al. 1999: 220.

Type material: Holotype ♀: Morocco: Marrakech (Theryi) ( MNHNP) . Paratype: 1♀: Morocco: Asni , 1.06.1928 ( MNHNP) .

Diagnosis. Tephritis theryi is a medium-sized species, which can be easily separated from other Tephritis species by the following combination of characters: wing with extensively developed dark brown pattern extending into anal cell and anal lobe, 2 dark spots at the apices of R 4+5 and M veins isolated from the remaining wing pattern;

cell r 1 with 3 hyaline or brownish spots distal of apex of vein R 1, no large hyaline spots in cell r 2+3 basal and distal of r-m level, hyaline spots proximal and distal of crossvein r-m small, isolated, yellow or inconspicuous; cells dm and cua mostly brown, with dark pattern reaching vein Cu 2 +A 1; abdominal tergites dark brown, white setulose and setose; oviscape brown setose without white setae.

Tephritis theryi is very similar to T. formosa in having widely developed dark pattern extending into anal lobe, differing from it by having a few smaller and darker dots instead of numerous hyaline spots, and in particular the cell r 2+3 almost uniformly brown except the very base and apex, without either hyaline spots or dots (hyaline spots in cell r 2+3 anterior of crossvein r-m in T. formosa ).

Description ( Fig. 3 2a ). ♀. Head: Shape as in T. formosa , yellow, except black ocellar triangle and occiput, length: height: width ratio 1: 1.1: 1.4. Frons as wide as long. Eye 1.4 × as high as long. First flagellomere of antenna 1.5 × as long as wide. Gena 0.5 × as high as length of first flagellomere. Ocellar, medial vertical, anterior orbital and frontal setae pale brown. Remaining setae including posterior orbital white to yellowish white. Postocular and genal setulae mixed black and white, setulae on distal part of palpus and on pedicel black.

Thorax: Ground colour black, densely grey microtrichose. Scutellum black medially, yellow laterally and ventrolaterally, sparsely ochreous-grey microtrichose. Setulae white and acuminate; posterior notopleural seta whitish and lanceolate; posterior anepisternal seta and anepimeral seta brown. Apical scutellar setae 1/3 as long as basal scutellar setae. Calypteres white, with whitish fringe; upper one conspicuously lobate; almost as long as wide, lower one narrow.

Legs: As described for T. bardanae .

Wing ( Fig. 1h ): Cell bc hyaline; cell c hyaline, with brown base and small brown spot at middle. Pterostigma brown, with yellowish subapical spot. Cell r 1 brown, 2 trapeziform hyaline spots separated by a narrow dark band and aligned with vein C half or less as high as cell; apex of r 1 with small hyaline spot. Base of r 2+3 hyaline, rest of cell dark almost uniformly brown, with a few brownish or yellow dots and 1 small hyaline spot posterior of R 2+3 apex; holotype with single small spot distally of r-m level; apex of cell r 2+3 hyaline, with very small dark spot at R 4+5 apex (holotype with entirely hyaline apex of cell r 2+3).

Cell br hyaline in basal half and dark in apical 2/3, with 1–4 yellow dots. Crossvein r-m surrounded by tiny partly fused yellow dots. Cell r 4+5 at dm-cu level with small hyaline spot; medium third of cell r 4+5 brown, with 5–10 very small, round hyaline spots, subapical hyaline spot in cell r 4+5 rectangular, apex hyaline.

Cell dm hyaline at very base, in distal 7/8 of its length dark with numerous small hyaline spots and dots of various sizes. Cell m with dark base, 5–6 entirely isolated hyaline spots and dots of various size in medium portion, 2 or 3 triangular hyaline spots at poterior margin; apex of cell m hyaline with small dark trianular spot on M vein. Cell cua dark, with very wide, entirely brown bar aligned to vein CuA 1 in antero-basal half (except very basee of the cell and 3–5 dark spots in posterior half confluent with this dark bar; 2 hyaline spots in apical half, including 1 large spot at r-m level. Anal cell and lobe widely dark brown. Halter yellow.

Abdomen: Abdominal tergites black, at posterior margins narrowly yellowish brown, sparsely grey microtrichose, white setulose and setose; female tergites 5 and 6 with brown marginal setae. Sternites black, white setulose, moderately wide. Abdominal pleura matt black or grey.

Terminalia: Male. unknown. Female. Oviscape as long as abdominal tergites 5 and 6 combined, dark red to brown, brown setulose. Aculeus, eversible membrane and spermathecae not dissected for study.

Measurements: Female. WL = 3.8; BL = 4.8 mm.

Host plants: Unknown.

Distribution: Morocco (Séguy 1930).

Remarks: Tephritis theryi is a rare species with wing pattern uncommon for the genus, but it is unclear if it does not represent specimens of T. formosa and it is necessary to collect fresh material for more detailed morphological studies and study of its biology. Possible phylogenetic relationships of T. theryi with Tephritis species breeding in Sonchus needs confirmation. The paratype female from MNHNP has aculeus tip broken off, and its shape has not been studied.

Figures

FIGURES 1a–h. Tephritis, spp. wings: a—T. bardanae; b—T. zernyi; c—T. ghissarica; d—T. kyrghyzica; e—T. hyoscyami; f—T. hendeliana; g—T. postica; h—T. theryi. Scale bar = 1 mm.

FIGURES 3a–h. Tephritis, spp. wings: a—T. truncata; b—T. stictica; c—T. arsenii; d—T. arsenii (paratype); e—T. ruralis; f— T. tridentata; g—T. conyzifoliae; h—T. crepidis. Scale bar = 1 mm.

FIGURE 32. Tephritis theryi—habitus, paratype♀. Scale bar = 1 mm.