Ceratophya argentinensis, Reemer, Menno, 2013

Reemer, Menno, 2013, Taxonomic exploration of Neotropical Microdontinae (Diptera: Syrphidae) mimicking stingless bees, Zootaxa 3697 (1), pp. 1-88 : 15-17

Ceratophya argentinensis spec. nov.

Figs 24–28 .

Studied type specimens. HOLOTYPE. Female. ARGENTINA. Label 1: " Argentina, Tucuman / Rio Potrerillo / S26.80674° / W65.46934°, 969 m ", other side of label: " 01.XI.2008 / leg. T. Ekrem"; label 2: "309 / Y 1008 / DNA voucher". Coll. RMNH.

Description (based on holotype)

Adult female. Body size: 7 mm.

Head. Face occupying 1/3 of head width in frontal view; sides converging ventrad; laterally depressed; pale yellow, with vague, narrow, brown median vitta; black pilose on dorsal half and along eye margins, yellow pilose on ventral half. Face in profile slightly convex, slightly produced downward at anterior oral margin. Gena yellow. Frons anteriorly yellow, black pilose; posteriorly black, yellow pilose. Vertex blackish brown, yellow pilose. Occiput blackish; white pilose. Eye bare. Antennal fossa about as wide as high. Antenna: scape and pedicel blackish, basoflagellomere pale brown; antennal ratio approximately 4:1:5.

Thorax. Scutum blackish, except narrowly yellow along anterior margin; short appressed golden yellow pilose, except short black pilose posteriad of transverse suture on lateral 1/3. Postpronotum yellow; yellow pilose. Postalar callus yellow; black pilose. Scutellum yellow, short yellow pilose; semicircular, without sulcus or calcars. Anepisternum not differentiated by sulcus; anterior half black, posterior half yellow; mixed black and golden pilose anterodorsally. Anepimeron black; black pilose on dorsal 3/4. Katepisternum blackish brown, except yellow along dorsal and ventral margins; black pilose dorsally and ventrally, widely bare in between. Katatergum and anatergum blackish brown; short microtrichose. Calypter grey. Halter yellow.

Wing: hyaline; microtrichose, except bare on 1st costal cell, basal 1/4 of cell r1, most of cell br except microtrichose along vena spuria , entirely on cell bm, basal 1/2 of cell cup, basal 1/10 of cell dm.

Legs: Front and hind legs yellow, slightly infuscated on basal 1/4 of femora and tarsi; pilosity short, mixed yellow and black. Coxae and trochanters blackish brown; yellow pilose.

Abdomen. Tergite 1 yellow anteriorly, dark brown posteriorly; yellow pilose laterally. Tergite 2 blackish brown with large, triangular marking posteromedially, which extends to anterior margin by narrow vitta; short black pilose, except bare on yellow parts; coarsely punctured over entire surface. Tergites 3 and 4 with colouration as tergite 2; bare, except tergite 4 short black pilose along lateral margin. Tergite 5 blackish, except narrowly yellow along lateral margin; short black pilose. In profile with tergite 4 almost perpendicular to tergite 2, so apex of abdomen curved downward. Sternites blackish anteriorly, yellow posteriorly; bare, except sternite 4 posteriorly and sternite 5 short black pilose.

Male. Unknown.

Diagnosis. Recognizable by the black posteromedian part of tergite 2 in combination with the unsulcate scutellum.

Distribution. Only known from northern Argentina (prov. Tucuman).

Figures

FIGURES 22 – 31. 22. Carreramyia tigrina (holotype), scutellum. 23. Carreramyia megacephalus male (Costa Rica, coll. RMNH), genitalia lateral. 24 – 28. Ceratophya argentinensis female (holotype). 24. habitus dorsal; 25. habitus lateral; 26. head frontal; 27. head lateral; 28. wing. 29 – 31. Ceratophya carinifacies female (holotype). 29. habitus dorsal; 30. abdomen dorsal; 31. abdomen lateral.