Leptopyrgota definienda Bernardi, 1991: 334

Mello, Ramon Luciano, 2024, First record of Pyrgotidae (Diptera, Tephritoidea) from Uruguay with two new synonyms in the genus Leptopyrgota Hendel, Papéis Avulsos de Zoologia 64, pp. 1-4 : 2-3

Leptopyrgota albitarsis Aczél, 1956 ( Figs. 1A - F )

Leptopyrgota albitarsis Aczél, 1956: 42 . Type locality: Brazil, São Paulo, Campos do Jordão.

Leptopyrgota definienda Bernardi, 1991: 334 , new synonym.

Leptopyrgota liae Bernardi, 1991: 341 , new synonym.

Diagnosis: Orbital seta present; antennal groove with a black rounded spot in the middle of upper margin, and with a black triangular spot in the middle of lower margin; 1 notopleural seta; three basal hind tarsomeres, sometimes five, strongly whitish; wing with apical brownish spot, sometimes with hyaline triangular pattern in the apex of cell r₄ ₊ ₅; dm-cu sinuous, sometimes with a spur vein in the middle of cell dm; r-m with a black rounded spot; syntergite 1+2 three times longer than tergite 3.

Type material examined: Leptopyrgota albitarsis holotype female* ( Fig. 1 ): Brazil, São Paulo,Campos do Jordão, 18/X/1952, d′Almeida & L. Travassos-Filho col. ( MZUSP). Paratypes: labels as in the holotype, 2 males and 2 females ( MZUSP) and 1 male and 1 female ( IFML).

Leptopyrgota definienda holotype male ( Fig. 2 ): Brazil, Rio de Janeiro, Itatiaia, 01/XII/1947, J. Zikán col. ( MZUSP).

Leptopyrgota liae holotype female ( Fig. 3 ): Brazil, Santa Catarina, Nova Teutônia, IX/1971, F. Plaumann col. ( MZUSP).

* Comments: Although, in the original description of L. albitarsis the holotype was indicated to be female ( Aczél, 1956: 46), the specimen labeled as holotype in MZUSP is a male.

CONFLICT OF INTEREST:Author declare there are no conflicts of interest.

FUNDING INFORMATION: To Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvi-

mento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq) for the PhD fellowship (Proc.No.481024/2008-5).

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS: I am very grateful to the curators Dr. Guillermo Claps ( IFML), and Dr. Carlos Lamas ( MZUSP) for the kind reception when visiting their collections and to Dr. Keith Bayless (ANIC) for a first review on the manuscript.

Additional material examined: Uruguay, Treinta y Tres, Quebrada de los Cuervos, 30/X/1970, M. Monné, M. Moratório, G.Wilmar, & R. Carbalho col., 1 male and 2 females ( MZUSP).

Distribution: Brazil (Bahia, Minas Gerais, Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo); Uruguay (Treinta y tres).

Pyrgotid specimens, as observed by Malloch (1933) and Aczél (1956), are rare in collections, mainly because of their specific biological habits. Most Pyrgotidae species were described based on a few specimens and, at least in the Neotropical Region, more than half of the holotypes are females. Holotypes of 32 species out of the 59 are females (sex of the three primary types is undetermined). In contrast to other families of flies, the morphology of the male and female terminalia does not have enough morphological plasticity to be used for the segregation of species. The main characters to separate genera and species of Neotropical pyrgotids are as follows: presence of carina between antennal grooves,spot pattern of medial occipital sclerite and wing; presence of postscutellum, number of notopleural setae, presence of spur vein at apex of vein R₂ ₊ ₃, presence of setulae on dorsal surface of vein R₄ ₊ ₅, presence of femoral organ on female fore femur ( Carrerapyrgota ) or mid femur ( Idiopyrgota ), presence of falciform projection on mid coxa ( Neopyrgota ); presence of dorsal concavity at base of hind tibia, and presence and shape of the female ventroapical hook ( Mello & Lamas, 2008, 2014; Mello et al., 2010).

The three nominal species are considered here as being synonyms based on the shared presence of the following morphological features: frons without spot; mesofacial plate with a rounded dark spot in the middle of upper margin and a triangular dark spot in the middle of lower margin; arista at the apical third of postpedicel; mosonotum shining brown; presence of one notopleural seta; one supra-alar seta; one postalar seta; one intra-alar seta; one dorsocentral seta; 2-3 scutelar setae; hind tarsi whitish covered by shining white setulae; wing hyaline with a dark apical spot, between the cells r1, r₂ ₊ ₃, and r₄ ₊ ₅, despite the variable size and shape of the apical spot among specimens.

It is time to reevaluate how understudied is the Diptera fauna of Uruguay. This study is recording, for the first time in literature, the presence of an important Diptera family in the country, based on three specimens collected more than fifty years ago. It is time to seek public policies that can induce sampling efforts, as governmental strategy, in order to pursue a better knowledge of the diversity, distribution and biology of Diptera not only in Uruguay, but also in in other South American countries.

Figures

Figure 1.Holotype male of Leptopyrgota albitarsis Aczél,1956,habitus lateral view.Scale:1.0 mm.Modified from Mello (2011b).

Figure 2. Holotype male of Leptopyrgota definienda Bernardi, 1991 (= L.albitarsis), habitus lateral view.Scale:1.0 mm.

Figure3.HolotypefemaleofLeptopyrgotaliaeBernardi,1991(=L.albitarsis), habitus lateral view.Scale:1.0 mm.