Terellia ermolenkoi Korneyev, 1985

Zarghani, E., Khaghaninia, S., Namin, S. Mohamadzade, Karimpour, Y. & Korneyev, V. A., 2016, First Records Of The Friut Flies (Diptera, Tephritidae) In The Fauna Of Iran, Vestnik Zoologii 50 (2), pp. 123-134 : 127-131

Terellia ermolenkoi Korneyev, 1985 ( fig. 9–33 )

Korneyev, 1985.

M a t e r i a l e x a m i n e d. Type. Holotype Ơ: Azerbaijan: Alty-Agac [40.92 N, 49.03 E], 1200 m, 30.05.1981

(Ermolenko) (ZISP).

Non-type. Russian Federation: Stavropolskiy Kray: Beshtau, Lermontov [44.095371 N, 43.004620 E], h = 810–900 m, ex Psephellus dealbatus , 30.05.2013 — exit 2.12.2013 – 1.01.2014; Teberda: Jamagat Valley [43.467632 N, 41.790394 E], h = 1600 m, ex flower heads of Ps. cf. vvedenskyi , 26.06.2013 — exit 5.12.2013 – 22.03.2014 (S. & V. Korneyev) (SIZK). Armenia: Lichk [40.14 N, 45.22 E], h = 1900 m, 9.06.1982, 1 ♀ (M. Nesterov); Khosrov Forest State Reserve [40.03N, 44.88E], h = 1400 m, 8.05.1985, 1 Ơ (Ermolenko) (SIZK); “Kizildash Kafanskiy distr.” [Karmravan, 41.01 N, 43.87 E], 17.06.1955, 1 ♀ (Zagulyaev) (ZISP). Iran: East Azerbaijan Province, Varzaghan, Dizmar Protected Area, Chichakli Valley [38.679917 N, 46.534763 E], 2215 m, swept from Psephellus sp. , 26.06.2014, 10 Ơ, 15 ♀; Alburz Province: [Ebrahimabad E of] Khoznan,[36.114901 N, 50.655783 E, 2140 m], swept from Psephellus sp. , 3, 5.06.2014, 12 Ơ, 3 ♀ (S. & V. Korneyev) (SIZK, SMNC).

D e s c r i p t i o n. Head ( fig. 10, 13 ): higher than long; HR = 1: 1.2–1.25: 1.5–1.52; frontofacial angle blunt; frontal ratio 1.05–1.1; first flagellomere ratio 1.4–1.5; ratio of genal height/length of first flagellomere 1.0–1.1; genal height/height of eye ratio 0.32–0.5; haustellum-antennal ratio 1.2. Frontal plates with black setulae. Postocular setae mostly white; 2–3 vestralmost ones black. Peristomal setulae dense, moderately strong, 3–5 of them antero-dorsally of vibrissal edge, shorter than 0.5 of distance between genal groove and lower margin of gena; genal seta strong, black; setulae anteriorly of genal seta stout, black, subequal to peristomal; occipital setae white. Flagellomere 1 oval, brownish yellow. Scape and pedicel with dense black setulae. Palp pale yellow, moderately long, narrow, with white and 2–3 black setae at apex; not extending beyond oral cavity.

Thorax greenish or brownish yellow ( fig. 9, 13 ): scutum with black lyrate pattern, with all vittae widely consolidated into one patch with posterior incision, sparsely white microtrichose; central mark usually reaching acrostichal setae; one postsutural dorsocentral seta aligned with postsutural supra-alar setae, presutural dorsocentral setae not developed; black shining spots at bases of dorsocentral and acrostichal setae small but clearly expressed; pleura dark greenish to brown yellow with wide black marks on katepisternum and meron; pleura sparsely microtrichose; postpronotum and dorsal portion of anepisternum densely and moderately long white setulose; scutellum bright shining yellow, without black spots, with 2 pairs of subequal setae and 7–9 white marginal setulae; bases of scutellar setae in yellow field; mediotergum black, tomentose laterally.

Legs orange-yellow, fore femur with two rows of posterodorsal brownish-white setae (apically with 2–3 short black setae in row) and one row of black posteroventral setae.

Wing: with dark basicostal cell and four wide brown or yellow-brown crossbands separated by hyaline, whitish microtrichose interspaces and also with greyish posterior margin ( fig. 9, 12, 15 ); costal cell widely grey or brown in basal one-quarter and apical half, pterostigma yellow, with brown apex, discal crossband sometimes broken into spots or fused to subapical crossband along posterior margin; apical crossband (spot) very large anteriorly not extending into cell r 1, but strongly widened posteriorly and sometimes connected to subapical crossband along vein M; distal section of vein M 2–2.5 times longer than section between crossveins r-m and dm-cu; cell bcu (=cup) with short posteroapical lobe not reaching level of bm-cu crossvein. WL Ơ = 4.5–5.7 (mean 5.1), WL ♀ = 4.5–6.0 (mean 5.3) mm.

Abdomen: dark greenish (in live or fresh specimens — fig. 11 ) yellow; all tergites white setulose, with strong black marginal setae; male tergite 5 very large, half of abdomen length, sparsely microtrichose laterally, densely black setulose in postero-medial sector, with elongated triangular submedial and very long (half as long as tergite 5) triangular sublateral black spots, but without lateroapical black marks ( fig. 11 , 16 ); tergites 3–4 of male and 3–6 of female with 2 pairs of short black spots ( fig. 14 , 16 ).

Male terminalia: epandrium oval, yellow, without black spots; cerci or lateral surstylus neither papillose nor wrinkled ( fig. 16 ); phallus with large juxta, well sclerotized apicodorsal rod and paired, short filaments of acrophallus ( fig. 18–20 ).

Female terminalia: oviscape as long as tergites 1–6 combined, red to reddish yellow, with large antero-dorsal black spot ( fig. 12, 14 ); eversible membrane widely black, with strongly melanised taeniae and scales; aculeus subparallel, apically widely pointed ( fig. 7 , 12 ); AL = 2.4–2.6 mm, AL/C2 = 25/11 = 1.7–2.1; spermathecae with short and narrow apical portion of duct ( fig. 6 ).

H o s t p l a n t ( fig. 16–17 ). The larvae develop in flower heads of various species of the cornweeds Psephellus spp. ( Asteraceae : Asteroideae: Cardueae: Centaureinae ), previously considered a part of the genus Centaurea , but currently accepted as a separated genus ( Wagenitz & Hellwig, 2000) among them Ps. dealbatus (Boiss.) ; the latter plant is a common cultivated decorative species of the cornweeds, which can be affected by this pest beyond its natural area of distribution. Another plants these flies are associated, are provisionally identified Ps. cf. vvedenskyi Sosn. growing on semidry mountain slopes in Teberda (Russian Caucasus) at altitude 1600 m. The species of Psephellus , from which these flies were swept in Iran, still need identification, but it is clear that T. ermolenkoi can feed on several different species of the genus. Brownish-yellow larvae ( fig. 27 ) feed in flower heads inducing no galls and overwintering in cocoons made of pappi remainders inside dry seed heads ( fig. 26, 30 ). One generation per year.

D i s c u s s i o n. T. ermolenkoi was hitherto known only from the holotype male. The new material including previously unknown females, is sufficiently completed by the new characters.

D i s t r i b u t i o n. Azerbaijan ( Korneyev, 1985). First records from Russian Federation (North Caucasus), Armenia, and Iran (East Azerbaijan and Alburz Provinces).

Figures

Fig. 9–15. Terellia ermolenkoi,Ơ (9–11) and ♀ (12–16): 9, 12 — habitus, left; 10 — head, left; 11, 14 — abdomen (11, intact of a fresh male specimen; 14, dissected female with everted ovipositor); 13 — head and mesonotum, dorsal view; 15 — wing.

Fig. 16–22. Terellia ermolenkoi, Ơ (15–20) and ♀ (21–22): 16 — dissected abdomen, dorsal view, showing dark pattern; 17 — epandrium and hypandrium, right; 18–20 — glans (18, holotype, from Korneyev (1985); 19, 20 — male from Chichakli Valley, photograph); 21 — aculeus, dorsal view; 22 — spermathecae.

Fig. 23–33. Terellia ermolenkoi, host plants (23–25, 28–29, 31–34) and larvae damaging flower heads (26–27, 30): 23–27 — Psephellus dealbatus, Russian Federation, Pyatigorsk, Beshtau; 28–30 — Ps. cf. vvedenskyi, Russian Federation, Teberda; 31–32 — Ps. sp. indet., Iran, Khoznan.

Fig. 7–8. Flies of the tribes Noeetini and Tephritini, habitus, left: 7 — Noeeta pupillata; 8 — Oxyna flavipennis.

Fig. 1–6. Flies of the tribe Myopitini (1–2, 4–6): (1, 2, 4 — habitus, left; 5 — head, left, enlarged; 6 — wing): 1 — Eurasimona stigma, ♀; 2 — Inuromaesa maura, ♀, 3 — its host plant, Inula salicina, ♀; 4–6 — Myopites inulaedyssentericae.