Megaselia zonuzensis, Khameneh & Khaghaninia & Disney & Maleki-Ravasan, 2019

Khameneh, Roya Namaki, Khaghaninia, Samad, Disney, R. Henry L. & Maleki-Ravasan, Naseh, 2019, Twenty one new species of Megaselia Rondani (Diptera: Phoridae) from Iran, Zootaxa 4711 (1), pp. 1-50 : 13-16

Megaselia zonuzensis n. sp.

( Figs 79–93 )

Material examined. Holotype male, East Azerbaijan province, Zonuz city, Zonuzaq region, 38°35.369’ N, 45°50.684’ E, 1758 m, grassland, 21.vii.2010, S. Khaghaninia (24, CUMZ—13-86) . Paratypes: 22 males, locality data as the holotype (2 UCZM, 20 ICHMM) .

Description. Male. Whole fly as Fig. 79 . Frons as Fig. 80 , the microtrichia restricted to edges ( Fig. 81 ). Cheek with 4 bristles and jowl with 2 that are longer and more robust. Antennae, palps and proboscis as Fig. 82 ; the postpedicels being without SPS vesicles. Thorax brown, with 3 notopleural bristles and no cleft in front of these, and mesopleuron with 4 to 9 hairs and 1 to 2 small bristles (0.04–0.06 mm long) ( Figs 83 & 84 ). Scutellum with an anterior pair of hairs and a posterior pair of bristles ( Fig. 85 ). Abdominal tergites brown with small hairs including those at rear of T6 ( Fig. 86 ). Hypopygium as Figs 86 to 89, with hairs on segments 3–6 of venter. Legs with brown femora and the rest yellowish brown to yellow. Fore tarsus with posterodorsal hair palisade on segments 1–4 and 5 clearly longer than 4 ( Fig. 90 ). Mid femur as Fig. 91 . Dorsal hair palisade of mid tibia extends about 0.43 its length. Hairs below basal half of hind femur shorter than those of anteroventral row of outer half ( Fig. 92 ). Hind tibia with a dozen moderately differentiated posterodorsal hairs, without anterodorsals, and spinules of apical combs simple. Wings very pale with vein 7 obscure ( Fig. 93 ) and only 1.04 mm long. Costal index 0.39. Costal ratios 6.3: 1.6: 1. Costal cilia (of section 3) 0.03 mm long. No hair at base of vein. With 2 unequal axillary bristles, the outer being 0.04 mm long. Sc not reaching R1. Haltere knob pale.

Recognition. The modified mid femur ( Fig. 91 ) excludes most species. A problem with this species is that the mesopleuron has hairs plus 1 to 2 weakly differentiated bristles. In the keys to the British species ( Disney 1989) it runs to couplets 41 or 126, but apart from its different hypopygium its mid femur excludes the species of these couplets. In the keys of Schmitz (1958) for Abteilung III it runs to couplet 10, lead 1 to M. deltomera Schmitz ; to Abteilung V by ignoring the haltere colour to the same species at couplet 11 lead 1. This species is included in a key of further Old World species with a similar modified mid femur ( Disney 2004). A further European species was added by Disney & Withers (2011). Nearctic species with a similar mid femur were keyed by Borgmeir (1964), with an addition by Hartop, Brown & Disney (2015). The new species is immediately distinguished by its hypopygium.

Etymology. Named after Zonuz city.

Figures

FIGURES 79–87. Megaselia zonuzensis n. sp. male. 79, whole fly; 80, frons; 81, part of frons; 82, antennae, palps and proboscis; 83–84, sides of thorax; 85, scutellum; 86, abdomen; 87, left face of epandrium. Scale bars 20 μm.

FIGURES 88–93. Megaselia zonuzensis n. sp. male. 88, left face of hypopygium; 89, right face of hypopygium; 90, front tarsus; 91, mid femur; 92, hind femur; 93, wing. Scale bars 20 μm.