Lispe angustipalpis Stein

Pont, Adrian C., 2019, Studies on the Australian Muscidae (Diptera). VIII. The genus Lispe Latreille, 1797, Zootaxa 4557 (1), pp. 1-232 : 226-229

Lispe angustipalpis Stein

( Figs 472–480 )

Lispa angustipalpis Stein, 1920: 60 .

Type-material. L. angustipalpis was described from the Indonesian island of Java, and a lectotype ♂, from Batavia [now = Jakarta], was designated by Pont (1970: 78). It is in ZMHU. See also Pont (2013: 55).

Diagnosis. L. angustipalpis and L. pumila can be separated from other species by having mid femur with a strong submedian seta between the a and av surfaces ( Fig. 462 ) and from each other by the characters given in the key above (couplet 39, page 18).

Material Examined. AUSTRALIA: Northern Territory: Batten Point , 30 km NE by E of Borroloola, at light, 18.iv.1976, D.H. Colless, 1♀ ( ANIC) ; 1 km NE of Cahills Crossing (E. Alligator River ), 11.xi.1972, D.H. Colless, 1♂ ( ANIC) ; Howard Springs , 16 miles E of Darwin, 6–8.ix.1972, H.E. Evans & R.W. Matthews, 3♂ 1♀ ( ANIC) & 1♂ 1♀ ( BMNH) ; 14 miles W of Humpty Doo , 10.vi.1964, K.R. Norris, 1♀ ( ANIC) ; Koongarra , 15 km E of Mt Cahill, at light, 6–9.iii.1973, D.H. Colless, 2♀ ( ANIC, OUMNH) ; Mudginberri , 22.ix.1971, H.A. Standfast & A.L. Dyce, 1♀ ( ANIC) . Torres Strait: Prince of Wales I., 27–30.v.1969, A. Neboiss, 1♀ ( MV) . Queensland: Annan River, 3 km W by S of Black Mt., Malaise trap, 28.ix.1980, D.H. Colless, 1♀ ( ANIC) ; Archer River Crossing, 13.25S 142.56E, 10.iv.1989, G. & A. Daniels, 1♀ ( QMBA) ; Claudie River near Mt. Lamond , 4.vi.1966, D.K. McAlpine, 1♀ ( AMS) ; 14 km W by N of Hope Vale Mission , 15.16S, 144.59E, at light, 7.v.1981, D.H. Colless, 1♀ ( ANIC) ; 3 km NE of Mt Webb , 15.03S, 145.09E, at light, 30.iv.1981, D.H. Colless, 1♂ 1♀ ( ANIC) ; same locality, at light, 2.v.1981, 1♀ ( ANIC) ; same locality, Malaise trap, 1.v.1981, 1♀ ( BMNH) ; Sue (Warraber) Island , 10.12S, 145.49E, at light, 5.ii.1978, R. Lewis, 1♀ ( ANIC) ; West Claudie River , 4 km SW road junction, 12.44S 143.15E, m. v. lamp , 27.xi.1986, G. Daniels & M.A. Schneider, 1♀ ( QMBA) .

Additional material. PAPUA NEW GUINEA: Central Province: Aroana Estate, Aroa River , 29.xi.1963, D.K. McAlpine, 4♂ 4♀ ( AMS) & 2♂ 2♀ ( BMNH & OUMNH) ; East Sepik Province: Imbia, near Maprik , 18.xii.1963, D.K. McAlpine, 1♀ ( AMS) ; Western Province: Lake Murray , 15.xi.1963, D.K. McAlpine, 1♀ ( AMS) .

Description ♂ ♀. Head. Ground-colour black. Frons at broadest point 0.36–0.38, at lunula 0.3 (♂) to 0.34 (♀), of maximum head-width (frontal view). Fronto-orbital plate yellowish-white pruinose, almost golden in ♂, thinly so above and almost subshining at vertex, tinged with brown from some angles; parafacial and face yellowishwhite pruinose, parafacial sometimes partly silvery, gena silvery, occiput almost wholly grey. Frontal triangle narrow, when viewed from below brownish pruinose. Parafacial narrow, half (♂) or a little over half (♀) as broad as postpedicel, with short setulae along entire length. Antenna black, at most the juncture between pedicel and postpedicel orange; postpedicel long, 3.5–3.8 times as long as broad, falling short of mouth-margin by 0.17 (♂) or 0.08 (♀) its length. Arista long-plumose, the hairing at widest point 3.2 (♂) or 2.9 (♀) times width of postpedicel. Vibrissa strong, with few adjacent setulae. Gena narrow, 0.08–0.09 of vertical eye-length; genal setae short but strong. Palpus dark brown, the stem (up to basal 2/3) sometimes orange, moderately swollen in apical part.

Thorax. Ground-colour black. Scutum and scutellum yellowish-grey to grey dusted, pleura grey. Scutum with three conspicuous broad brown vittae running along mid-line and the dc lines, beginning at neck, the acr the broadest and almost coalescing with the dc vittae at level of prsc dc, continuing on to tip of scutellum and covering just over median third of scutellum; outside these vittae with a pair of broad shining vittae covering the entire area between ia and sa rows, running from neck to post-alar callus. Anterior spiracle brown. Acr setulae in 4–5 irregular rows at suture. Dc 2+4–5, the anterior 2–3 post setae only twice as long as the ground-setulae. 2 pprn. 1+2 ia. 1+1 sa, both strong. 1 strong and 1 weaker proepisternal setae. 1 strong proepimeral, equal to the strong proepisternal, with 1 adjacent setula. Anepisternum with a short seta in upper anterior corner; posterior row with 3 setae and 3 setulae. 3 strong kepst, lower seta equidistant from the upper two setae or slightly closer to posterior one. Meron bare below spiracle, setulose above hind coxa. Scutellum with disc densely setulose, but relatively few (up to 7) setulae extending on to sides; ventral surface bare.

Legs. Mainly black, but knees, fore tibia in basal half, mid tibia, and hind tibia except tip yellow. Fore coxa in ♂ with long dense curled setae on anterior and posterior apical edges. Fore femur with only setulae on av surface; pv row complete, the setae strong and slightly longer than femoral depth; pd row complete. Fore tibia without submedian seta; with d, pd, p and pv apical setae. Fore tarsomere without modifications. Mid femur in ♂ with only setulae on av surface, on pv surface with 3 short setae in basal half, much shorter than femoral depth; without any ventral setae in ♀ except for 1 fine seta at base; with a row of a setae in basal half, and with a strong seta at middle between the submedian a and the av row (as in L. pumila , Fig. 462 ); 2 p preapicals. Mid tibia with 1 submedian p seta; with strong d, av, v and pv apicals, and with short a and p apicals. Mid tarsomere without modifications. Hind coxa without a seta on posterior apical margin. Hind femur in ♂ on pv surface with 3 very short fine setae near base, 1 seta at middle longer than femoral depth, and 1 short seta just before apex; av surface in ♂ with 3 setae, one near base, one at middle and one before apex, all subequal to femoral depth; in ♀ without ventral setae, except for 1 av before apex; ad row complete; 1 d preapical. Hind tibia with 1 ad and 1 av seta; ad and d preapical setae strong, and with a short a too; av apical seta strong, pv absent. Hind tarsomere without modifications.

Wing. Clear. Tegula black, basicosta yellow. Crossvein r-m placed below the point where vein R1 enters costa; dm-cu almost straight, longer than apical section of vein CuA1. Vein M running straight to wing-margin. Calypters creamy. Haltere yellow.

Abdomen. Ground-colour black, hind-margins of tergites often pale, especially on tergite 5. Dust on tergites light grey. Syntergite 1+2 mostly dark, tergites 3–5 each with a pair of large subtriangular black spots occupying much of disc ( Fig. 474 ), broadly coalescing in anterior part of each tergite in ♂, with rather more grey dust between the spots in ♀, those on tergite 5 and sometimes also those on tergite 4 fully separated; these spots not continuing down on to sides of tergites, but tergites 4 and 5 each with a spot of dark dust on sides. ♂ epandrium mainly grey dusted. ♀ ovipositor with exposed tergites dusted grey. Sternites 1–5 grey dusted. Tergites without strong erect setae except on tergite 5 which has 1 pair of lateral discals and 2 pairs of marginals. ♂ sternites 2–4 sparsely setulose, shaped as in L. pumila ( Fig. 464 ) but sternite 5 as in Figs 473–474 .

Ƌ terminalia. Epandrium separated from tergite 5 by a broad syntergosternite 8, which has 2 spiracles; not produced ventrally ( Fig. 475 ). Tergite 6 absent; sternite 6 present as a pair of weak plates. Surstylus absent, i.e. fused to epandrium without trace ( Fig. 475 ). Cercal plate deeply divided dorsally and ventrally ( Fig. 476 ). Hypandrium attached at two points: to a rod originating from wall of epandrium close to upper outer edge of cercal plate; and via an apparent praegonite to lower anterior corner of epandrium. Phallic complex ( Fig. 477 ): hypandrium short and broad, not closing posteriorly over base of postgonite and phallapodeme; praegonite and postgonite present, the former very weak (its position in the dissection/drawing is an artefact), the latter short; phallapodeme connected baso-medially to hypandrium by a very weak bridge, and forked posteriorly to meet base of postgonites; phallus short and membraneous, the juxta without spinules, with a pair of flanking processes basally, extreme basal part (?epiphallus) developed as a large sheath.

♀ ovipositor ( Figs 478–480 ). Tergites 6 and 7 complete; tergite 8 divided dorsally, each half displaced laterally. Sternite 6 present as a pair of small plates; sternite 7 absent, suppressed by the ventral parts of tergite 7; sternite 8 present as 2 plates, scarcely sclerotised but densely microtrichiose. Epiproct V-shaped, with 1 pair of strong setae and several setulae, connected to the cercus. Hypoproct large, extended posteriorly, with several stout setae at apex but without spines. Cercus small, plate-shaped, without spines at apex. 3 spermathecae.

Measurements. Wing-length, 3.5 mm (♂), 4.0– 4.5 mm (♀). Body-length, 5.0 mm (♂), 5.5–6.0 mm (♀).

Biology. Not known.

Distribution. Known from Australia (NT, Q) and Prince of Wales Island in Torres Strait. Distributed in the Oriental and Australasian/Oceanian regions.

Figures

FIGURES 472–477. Lispe angustipalpis Stein, ♂. 472. Abdomen, dorsal view. 473. Sternite 5, dorsal view. 474. Sternite 5, lateral view. 475. Hypoygium, lateral view. 476. Cercal plate, dorsal view. 477. Phallic complex, lateral view. pr—praegonite. (NT, 1 km NE of Cahills Crossing, E Alligator River.)

FIGURES 478–480. Lispe angustipalpis Stein, ♀ ovipositor. 478. Dorsal view. 479. Ventral view. 480. Lateral view. (NT, Batten Point.)

FIGURES 460–465. Lispe pumila (Wiedemann). 460. ♂ head, lateral view. 461. ♀ palpus. 462. ♂ mid femur, anterior view. 463. ♂ abdomen, dorsal view. 464. ♂ sternites 2–6. 465. ♂ sternite 5. s6—sternite 6. (460–461, Q, Townsville; 462–463, 465, NSW, Newport; 464, NSW, Brunswick Heads.)