Rhabdomastix (Rhabdomastix) ponticulus Theischinger & Billingham, 2019

Theischinger, Günther, Billingham, Zacariah D., Martin, John & Growns, Ivor, 2019, The genus Rhabdomastix Skuse in Australia (Diptera: Tipuloidea: Limoniidae), Zootaxa 4661 (1), pp. 65-100 : 85

publication ID	https://doi.org/ 10.11646/zootaxa.4661.1.3
publication LSID	lsid:zoobank.org:pub:215A5F6C-53C2-41EE-A217-3951E2EDB555
DOI	https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.5627989
persistent identifier	https://treatment.plazi.org/id/03848B2B-4F22-2C28-F7B5-35F0F720BA7E
treatment provided by	Plazi
scientific name	Rhabdomastix (Rhabdomastix) ponticulus Theischinger & Billingham
status	sp. nov.

Treatment

Rhabdomastix (Rhabdomastix) ponticulus Theischinger & Billingham View in CoL , sp. nov.

( Figs. 36–38 View FIGURES 36–38 )

Material examined. Holotype ♂: Australia, Queensland, Coombabah Creek off Pitcairn Way , 27.947002°S / 153.325096°E, 28–iv–2017, Z. Billingham ( ANIC); specimen in 70% ethanol, terminalia preserved (glycerol) in microvial in glass vial together with specimen. GoogleMaps

Description. Male ( Figs. 36–38 View FIGURES 36–38 ). Head. Largely yellowish grey to dark greyish brown; palpus dark greyish brown. Antenna broken, brownish grey, estimated ca 1.7 mm long; pedicel shorter than flagellomeres; f1 subconical, f3 about four times as long as wide; verticils shorter than flagellomeres; some rather long pubescence.

Thorax. Largely dark greyish brown with some yellowish grey. Coxae and trochanters greyish yellow, no other leg segments available.

Wing. Membrane hyaline, slightly suffused with pale grey, distinctly darkened in pterostigma area, slightly darkened along cord. Veins R 4 and R 5 apically diverging; vein R 3 slightly oblique; vein A 2 short, ends well before level origin of Rs; cross-vein m-m missing, thus cell dm not developed. Halter with stem off white and knob pale grey.

Abdomen. Medium brown to blackish brown; tergites slightly darker than sternites.

Terminalia. Segment 9 a closed ring (with narrow dorsal bridge). Gonocoxite about three times as long as wide. Outer gonostylus slightly curved, without distinct apical spine, about one third as long as gonocoxite and about as long and largely about half as thick as inner gonostylus that is largely conical and bears two rather distinct setae, one apical and one subapical. Interbase pointed, only slightly and evenly arched, very slightly widened subapically. Aedeagus rather wide and apically rounded; vesica almost spherical with apodeme short and narrow, rod-like.

Dimensions. Wing length 3.5 mm.

Female unknown.

Distribution. Eastern: Queensland ( Map 1 View MAP 1 ).

Etymology. Ponticulus (=Latin for small bridge) refers to the sclerotized dorsal bridge in abdominal segment 9; a noun in apposition to the generic name.

Discussion. The male of R. (R.) ponticulus stands out from all consubgeneric species known from Australia by cell dm open, by a sclerotized bridge across the mid-dorsal interruption of the sclerotization of segment 9 and by the particulars of the antenna as given above. The antennae closely agree with R. dooragana sp. nov., a species with very different terminalia. The terminalia of R. ponticulus are similar to R. dobrotworskyi sp. nov. and R. hirsuta sp. nov. both of which have quite different antennae.

Rhabdomastix (Rhabdomastix) tonnoirana group ( Figs. 39–52 View FIGURES 39–41 View FIGURES 42–44 View FIGURES 45–47 View FIGURE 48 View FIGURES 49–51 View FIGURE 52 , Map 2 View MAP 2 ) including the species R. collessiana , R. rosae , R. tonnoirana , R. wilsoniana

Diagnosis. Antenna short; pedicel at least as long as or longer than flagellomeres; at least verticils of some flagellomeres longer than them; f3 about twice as long as wide. Veins R 4 and R 5 apically distinctly diverging; vein A 2 very distinctly sinuous and short, ending well before level origin of Rs. Wing membrane largely hyaline with distinct dark (brown/black) pattern/patches in costal, subcostal, radial and anal cells. Outer and inner gonostylus subequal in length and maximal width. Inner gonostylus conical as a whole, with mesal fringe of setae. Female with cerci and hypogynial valves very short and bulky, the cerci shorter than 0.3 mm, hairy/setose.