Blagorrhina, Hippa, Heikki, Mattsson, Ingegerd & Vilkamaa, Pekka, 2005

Hippa, Heikki, Mattsson, Ingegerd & Vilkamaa, Pekka, 2005, New taxa of the Lygistorrhinidae (Diptera: Sciaroidea) and their implications for a phylogenetic analysis of the family, Zootaxa 960, pp. 1-34 : 14-16

Genus Blagorrhina gen. n.

Description. Small­sized Lygistorrhinidae , total length about 2.5 mm, wing length about 1.5 mm.

Head. Number of ocelli 2, no rudiment of the medial ocellus discernible. Dichoptic, the facets becoming larger dorsally and posteriorly. Interommatidial setae as long as diameter of the larger facets. Frons without dorsolateral setae. Prefrons/face non­setose. Clypeus with two setae. Labella about one­and­a­half times the height of head. Palpi about half the length of labella, apically pointed, with a few low dorsal pits with from one to a few hyaline sensilla each. Hypopharynx approximately as long as labella. Antenna as long as or slightly longer than height of head. Flagellum with 12 flagellomeres, these subglobular, from slightly longer to slightly shorter than the numerous, scattered, broad, seta­like sensilla.

Thorax. Scutum roundedly dome­shaped, extending more anteriorly than base of coxa 1, wholly setose. The suture between anepisternum and katepisternum complete or anteriorly indistinct or absent. Pleural pit indistinct. Laterotergite produced lobe­like posteroventrally, setose. Anterior margins of episternum 3 and laterotergite at the same vertical level. Legs. Long, tibia1/ length of scutum + scutellum 0.96–0.99. Coxa 2 longer than coxa 3, its apex not reaching apex of coxa 3. Coxa 3 without a basolateral depression. Femur 1 and 2 slender, femur 1 broader than femur 2, femur 3 stout, twice as broad as femur 1. Tibia 1 with two dorsal and two ventral stripes of socketed setae and a medial stripe of such setae on both pro­ and retrolateral sides, all setae subequal in size, trichia half the length of socketed setae, placed prolaterally in a few stripes that change basally into one ventral and one dorsal stripe towards apex before vanishing at apical third, retrolaterally in a couple of ventral stripes and with a few scattered ones on distal half, with microtrichia throughout the whole length on all sides except distally and distoventrally, tibial organ subapically on the prolateral side not differentiated, dot­like sensilla present in a row on distal half of retrolateral surface; the spur absent. Tibia 2 similar to tibia 1, one spur present, 2.5–3.0 times the width of tibial apex. Tibia 3 club­shaped, greatest width of the enlarged apical part 3 times the subbasal with of tibia, widened apical part extending well into basal half of tibia; whole of tibia 3 microtrichose on all sides, trichia absent except for a scattered pro­ and retrolateral stripe on apical fourth, these about half the length of the setae on lateral sides, scattered setae of equal size on all sides, dorsal setae conspicuously longer than the others especially towards apex, apex without a transverse row of several strong setae on retrolateral side; dot­like sensilla scattered in a stripe on apical half of tibia only on retrolateral side; two spurs present, the longer retrolateral one about two­and­a­half times the width of tibial apex, the shorter retrolateral one about oneand­a­half times the width of tibial apex. Length of basitarsomere 1 / length of tibia 1 0.6– 0.7, basitarsomere 3 about 3–4 times as broad as basitarsomere 1. Claws of leg 1 blunt, of legs 2 and 3 pointed. Wing. Costa without a swelling at junction with R1. Humeral cross vein weak. Sc vestigial, ending free, but directed towards R1. R1 short, meeting C well basal from the middle of wing, setose. R5 setose. M1 straight, slightly curved at the visible part of its base. M2 straight. Distance between apices of M1 and M2 smaller than that between M2 and CuA1. CuA1 and CuA2 separate. Haltere shorter than thorax.

Abdomen. Sternite 8 with roundly angulate posterior margin but without a distinct process. Gonostylus narrow, about 3 times longer than broad, with a long apical tooth, with a long straight subbasal mesial seta. Parameres sigmoid, the apices not reaching posteriorly behind the apical margin of tegmen.

Etymology. The generic name is a combination of parts of the names Lygistorrhina and Blagoderov (see under Blagorrhina blagoderovi ). The name is feminine.

Discussion. Blagorrhina is similar to Loyugesa and Matileola , but differs from the former, for example, by being dichoptic and from both by having the scutum entirely setose, not with a lateral non­setose stripe, by having a well­developed flap­like protruding posteroventral margin of the laterotergite, by lacking the conspicuously inflated basitarsomere, and by having CuA1 and CuA2 separate. From Seguyola , which is the sister group of Loyugesa + Matileola , Blagorrhina differs by the longer proboscis, as long as the height of the head, instead of a very short one, one­tenth the head; by the roundedly domeshaped scutum, instead of angularly dome­shaped; by lacking the spur on front tibia; by having slender, not tumid, hind basitarsomere; by lacking a costal swelling at the apex of R1; by having R1 shorter, ending well in the basal half of the wing instead of extending well into the apical half; by its normal, not usually broad wing shape. Blagorrhina is also similar to Gracilorrhina . All the genera discussed differ from other Lygistorrhinidae by having only two ocelli. Blagorrhina is distinguished from Gracilorrhina by, for example, having the proboscis as long as the height of the head, not only about half of it; by having 12 flagellomeres instead of 14; by having a normal, not serrated antennal flagellum; by the lack of a non­setose lateral stripe on the scutum; by separate CuA1 and CuA2; and by having the anterior part of the wing dark.