Chelipoda biancistroides, Zhang & Lin & Gao & Yang, 2024

Zhang, Leyou, Lin, Chen, Gao, Shang & Yang, Ding, 2024, Six new species of Chelipoda (Diptera: Empididae) from Shennongjia, China, Zootaxa 5523 (4), pp. 448-458 : 449-450

1. Chelipoda biancistroides sp. nov.

( Fig. 1 )

Diagnosis. Thorax blackish. Antenna wholly dark brown, arista brownish yellow; postpedicel 1.5–1.6 times longer than wide. Male cercus with two spine-like processes.

Description. Male. Body length 2.5–2.9 mm, wing length 3.1–3.4 mm.

Head black with pale gray pollen. Eyes dull black, tinged metallic purple, separated widely on frons but very narrowly on face; face much narrower than frons. Hairs and bristles on head blackish; two long vt. Ocellar tubercle weak, with pair of long oc nearly as long as vt. Antenna wholly dark brown, arista brownish yellow; postpedicel 1.5–1.6 times longer than wide, arista 2.9–3.0 times longer than postpedicel. Proboscis brown to dark brown, with blackish hairs; palpus brown or dark brown with blackish hairs and one blackish apical bristle.

Thorax blackish with pale gray pollen. Setae and setulae on thorax blackish; one anterior dc, one npl and one sa very long strong; one middle dc, one ppt, one psa and one prsc small hair-like; sc long and strong. Legs dark yellow, but mid and hind femora tinged brownish and all tarsomeres 4–5 brown. Setae and setulae on legs blackish. Fore coxa 0.9 times as long as fore femur. Fore femur rather thick, 3.9 times longer than wide, 3.1 times as thick as fore tibia, with two rows of black ventral denticles and one row of 5 long thick blackish outer av and 4–5 long thick blackish outer pv. Fore tibia 0.7 times as long as fore femur, with row of very short black v recumbent. Wing nearly hyaline; veins brownish. Squama brownish with dark brown hairs. Halter brownish yellow.

Abdomen nearly straight, dark brown with pale gray pollen. Hairs and bristles on abdomen dark brown.

Male genitalia: Epandrium rather small, subtriangular, widely separated from hypandrium. Hypandrium very large, somewhat trapezoid, about three times higher than long. Cercus basally thick, apically with two spine-like processes (anterior process short and weakly curved apically, posterior process long and distinctly curved apically). Subepandrial process short spine-like, nearly invisible through epandrium and cercus. Phallus very long, curved forward.

Female. Body length 3.4–3.8 mm, wing length 3.4–3.5 mm.

Type material. HOLOTYPE ♂, China: Hubei, Shennongjia, Shennongding , sample line 3–1 [31°34'01"N, 110°30'53"E, 2885 m], 2022.VIII.26, Siqi Wang & Bintao Du ( CAU) . PARATYPES: China: Hubei, 7♂, 5♀, same data as holotype ( CAU) ; 2♂, same data except, sample line 3–5, 1558 m ( CAU) .

Distribution. China (Hubei).

Remarks. This species is similar to C. lyneborgi Yang et Yang from Hubei of China but may be separated from the latter by the antenna wholly dark brown. In C. lyneborgi , the antenna is yellow with a darker yellow postpedicel ( Yang & Yang 2004).

Etymology. The specific name refers to the cercus being apically divided into two spine-like processes.

Figures

FIGURE 1. Chelipoda biancistroides sp. nov. a. Male habitus, lateral view; b. Male genitalia, lateral view. Abbreviations: cer—cercus; epan—epandrium; hyp—hypandrium; ph—phallus; subep—subepandrial.