Afroestricus morani, Scarbrough Table Of Contents, 2005

Scarbrough Table Of Contents, Aubrey G., 2005, Afroestricus, a new Afrotropical Ommatine (Diptera: Asilidae) genus with twenty species and two species groups, Zootaxa 1041 (1), pp. 1-76 : 39-41

Afroestricus morani , sp. n.

Figs. 91–100 , 194

Male. Brown. Body 7.6–9.7 mm; wing 5.7–6.3 mm. Head: Face yellowish­gray tomentose, vestiture mostly yellow, 6–8 long, black bristles and sparse, dorsal setae present; FHWR 1.0:3.9–1.0:4.4. Antenna brown, longest ventral seta longer than scape and pedicel combined; flagellum longer than scape; FWLR 1.0:2.0–1.0:2.8. Frons yellow tomentose; setae longer than scape. Occiput gray tomentose, slightly yellow dorsally, black setae scattered dorsally, setae otherwise white or yellow; six to nine black postocular bristles present, longest with apex at or just behind ocellar tubercle.

Thorax: Pronotum brown to brownish­yellow tomentose, yellow or black bristles present. Mesonotum often with two brown spots laterally and narrow tomentose stripes medially, yellow to yellowish­gray tomentose elsewhere; setae mostly black, sparse yellow setae posteriorly between rows of dorsocentral bristles; anterior dorsocentral setae as long as scape; four lateral and four to five dorsocentral bristles present, first long dorsocentral bristle at or just behind transverse suture, anterior bristle thin and short, about 1/2 as long as bristles. Scutellum gray tomentose with scattered yellow setae, two black marginal bristles, and prominent preapical groove. Pleuron yellow to yellowish­gray tomentose; sparse setae and katatergal bristles white to yellow; anepimeral bristle black; halter yellow to light red.

Wing: As Fig. 3b except as follows: Cell r 4 with apex of cell d. Crossvein r­m longer than CuA 1 +M 3 when present, cu+m crossvein sometimes present. Cell m 1 1.0:1.9:1.7– 1.0:2.1:1.9.

Leg: Coxae and trochanters brown; coxae gray tomentose; white to yellowish vestiture present. Femora yellow with small brown spots anteriorly and posteriorly or narrow apex brown; bristles mostly black. Fore femur with row of four to five long, black setae ventrally. Middle femur with long, posteroventral setae, usually few white to yellow, rarely all black. Hind femur with anterior and posteroventral bristles on basal 1/3 yellow, these bristles longer than anteroventral bristles, remaining anterior bristles black; posteroventral row of bristles curved posteriorly medially; HFWLR 1.0:5.0–1.0:5.8. Tibiae yellow, hind tibia with narrow apex brown to black; bristles mostly black. Basal tarsomeres mostly and bases of tarsomeres two to three yellow, otherwise black; bristles mostly black except three or four yellow bristles present on fore and middle tarsi.

Abdomen: Brown with narrow apical margin of segments slight lighter; tomentum mostly yellow to yellowish­gray with yellow setae; terga 2 to 8 dorsally mostly brown tomentose with brown setae; sternum 7 with yellow and brown setae.

Terminalia ( Figs. 91–96 ): Blackish to brown, apical margins narrowly yellow.

Epandrium wide apically, oval, dorsoapical notch present with two flat bristles along inner surface. Gonostylus distinctive. Distiphallus sigmoid anteriorly, apex exposed laterally, prominent carina present ventrally; epiphallus wide, flat apically, median apical notch present. Gonocoxite long laterally, anterior corner at or just before apical margin of epandrium. Hypandrium broadly rounded apically.

Female. Differs as follows: Body 9.0 mm; wing 6.7 mm; FHWR 1.0:3.8; FWLR 1.0:2.0; m 1 WR 1.0:3.0:3.0; HFWLR 1.0:5.5. Thorax: Three dorsocentral bristles present. Wing: Vein R 4 basally moderately arched; r­m crossvein just before or at middle of cell d. Leg: Femora with only black bristles and long setae. Narrow apex of middle and hind tibiae black; yellow bristles as follow: two and one on fore and middle tibiae and fore and middle tarsus, respectively. Abdomen: Apical margin of terga 6 to 8 with thick black bristles, those on tergum 8 longest and thickest; sterna 6 to 7 apically with sparse to several black setae. Terminalia ( Figs. 97–100 ): Tergum 9 narrow dorsally, straplike. Sternum 8 narrow apically, four to five black bristles laterally. Spermatheca only slightly enlarged apically, surface with minute annuli; duct at or just before base. Genital fork distinctive.

Type material. Holotype M, UGANDA: nr Cholol , 8.viii.1958, J. Bowden, ( BMNH) . Paratypes: 1 F, 10 miles south of Kaabora [3°36’54”N 34°08’10”E], 16.viii.58, J. Bowden, ( BMNH) ; 1 M, Karamoja, Katida [= Kotido 2°56’16”N 34°08’10”E], 12.vii.58, J. Bowden ( BMNH) . TANZANIA: 1 M, Old Shinyanga [03°34’S 33°23’E], 21.ii.56, E. Burtt, ( BMNH) ; 1 M, Mwanza [02°31’S 32°54’E], 18 and 19.i.1968, D. Gillissen, L. Bloomers ( ZMAN) .

Etymology. Maasi morani , noun in apposition, for warrior.

Distribution ( Tables 1, 2; Fig. 194 ). Known from a few localities in Uganda and Tanzania; collected in February, July, and August.

Remark. Afroestricus morani is distinguished from congeners by the characters in the key and distinctive terminalia ( Figs. 91–100 ). Long black setae below the two anterior femora, mostly black bristles below the hind femur, and slender, recurved spermathecae further separate it from A. minutus .

Figures

FIGURE 194. Distribution of six species of Afroestricus in Africa and Madagascar.

FIGURES 91–100. Afroestricus morani, sp. n. Male terminalia: 91–93. Lateral, dorsal, and ventral views. 94. Gonostylus. 95–96. Aedeagus, dorsal and lateral views. Female terminalia: 97–98. Dorsal and ventral views. 99. Spermatheca. 100. Genital fork.

FIGURES 3–4. Character states of the wing and postocular bristles of the subgenus Afroestricus Scarbrough. 3a–b. Wing venation of the macroscelis and the minutus species groups. 4a–b. Short, erect and long, thin, postocular bristles bristles. Abbrevations: First radial cell=r1; fourth radial cell=r4; discal cell=d; radial­medial crossvein=r­m; first medial cell=m1; third medial cell=m3.