Mythenteles signifera Evenhuis & Kettani, 2018

Evenhuis, Neal L. & Kettani, Kawtar, 2018, Genera of Mythicomyiidae (Insecta, Diptera) new to the fauna of Morocco, with descriptions of new species, Zootaxa 4429 (2), pp. 348-356 : 352-355

Mythenteles signifera Evenhuis & Kettani , n. sp.

( Figs. 5–9 )

Diagnosis. Using the key in Gibbs (2009), this species is stymied at couplet 5. It has a scutellum that is brown basally and yellow posteriorly, which does not fit either M. infrequens Evenhuis & Blasco-Zumeta (scutellum all black) or M. wadimurri Evenhuis & Theodor (scutellum all yellow). It is similar to M. hispanicola Evenhuis but can be separated from it by the brown color basally on the scutellum (scutellum all yellow in M. hispanicola ), the straight vein A1 to the wing margin (with distinct bend in M. hispanicola ) and shorter antennal second flagellomere (much longer in M. hispanicola ).

Description. Male. Length: 0.95–1.25 mm. Head. Black; eyes dichoptic, separated at vertex by distance between lateral ocelli; frons depressed, white, with brown spot medially just below median ocellus; face yellow, tip of oral margin brown; antennae ( Fig. 7 ) dark brown; scape minute; pedicel cylindrical, slightly wider than long; first flagellomere ovoid, length about 1.5 x greatest width; second flagellomere about 1/5 length of first flagellomere, with apical sensillum; occiput and mentum subshining dark brown; proboscis yellowish brown, thin, produced slightly beyond oral margin; labrum sclerotized, stiff, pointed apically; palpus not evident.

Thorax ( Figs. 5, 6 ). Mesonotum subshining dark brown to black, with scattered dark hairs; scutellum brown basally, yellowish distally; humeral callus, broad notopleural line to wing base, broad line along postalar callus yellow; pleura yellow except brown on anepisternum, katepisternum, anepimeron, and meron.

Legs. Coxae and femora brown except for yellowish tips; tibiae and tarsi yellow; halter stem dark brown, knob white.

Wing. Hyaline; veins brown; costa ends slightly more than one-third way between end of R4+5 and M1; vein Sc incomplete, ending at level about halfway between origin of Rs and end of vein R2+3; Rs connected to R1; R4+5 slightly arched to wing margin; vein M1 straight to wing margin after proximal curve at end of M1+2; M2 slightly sinuous to wing margin; cell dm open apically; CuA1 well developed to wing margin; A1 straight to wing margin, not distinctly curved or sinuous; fringe of hair on posterior margin of wing normal in length.

Abdomen (Figs, 5, 6). Dorsum brown, with scattered dark hairs; yellow fasciae on posterior margin of tergites; venter yellow.

Genitalia ( Fig. 8 ). Gonocoxa thin, bow-shaped in lateral view, L-shaped in ventral view ( Fig. 8c ), fused basally; gonostylus large, subtrapezoidal with darkly sclerotized posterior border; phallic complex long, thin, sinuous in lateral view, aedeagus bifid apically, parameral sheath with epiphallus diverging from aedeagus, tip ( Fig 8d ) flared; aedeagal apodeme small, peanut-shaped; parameral apodemes long, thin, slightly bowed in ventral view, lateral apodemes short, foliar; epandrium in lateral view subtrapezoidal, with small darkly sclerotized pseudosurstylus posterolaterally, cerci minute, not exerted.

Female. As in male. Genitalia (damaged during dissection) ( Fig. 9 ) with furca U-shaped, very thin; spermathecal reservoir spherical, sclerotized brown with horizontal striations; apical spermathecal duct with minute canaliculi near spermathecal reservoir.

Types. Holotype male and 1 male, 9 female paratypes from Morocco: Rif , Chefchaouen , Talassemtane, Maison forestière ( NPT), 35.131983°N, 5.136967°W, 1699 m, 7 Jun 2014 – 17 Oct 2014, Malaise trap in fir forest of Abies maroccana (Fig. 12), K. Kettani . Holotype deposited in MNHNR. Paratypes in BPBM and MNHNR.

Remarks. Mythenteles is a Holarctic genus with most species found in the Mediterranean and Middle East. This marks the first record of the genus from Morocco, but we expect with further collecting, it should also be found in adjacent countries in northern Africa.

Distribution. Known only from the type locality in Morocco.

Figures

FIGURES 5–7. Mythenteles signifera, female paratype. 5, left lateral view; 6, right oblique dorsolateral view; 7, detail of antennae.

FIGURES 8–9. Mythenteles signifera, genitalia. 8, male genitalia; a, genitalic complex, lateral view; b, phallic complex, ventral view; c, gonostylus, dorsal view; d, detail of epiphallus tip. 9, female genitalia. Abbreviations: aed = aedeagus; apd = apical duct; apo = aedeagal apodeme; cer = cercus; epa = epandrium; epi = epiphallus; fur = furca; gcx = gonocoxa; gns = gonostylus; pap = parameral apodeme; par = parameral sheath; spp = sperm pump; spr = spermathecal reservoir.