Houghia pallida Fleming & Wood

Fleming, Alan J., Wood, Monty, Smith, Alex, Hallwachs, Winnie & Janzen, Daniel H., 2014, Revision of the New World species of Houghia Coquillett (Diptera, Tachinidae) reared from caterpillars in Area de Conservación Guanacaste, Costa Rica, Zootaxa 3858 (1), pp. 1-90 : 75-77

Houghia pallida Fleming & Wood , sp. nov.

Fig. 38 a–f

Diagnosis. A distinctive species with ground colour of abdominal tergites 1+2 and 3 translucent yellow to pale orange except for a black mid-dorsal stripe; tergites 1 to 3 with little pale tomentosity dorsally, but entirely yellow ventrally; tergites 4 and 5 mostly black dorsally with silver tomentosity laterally, but pale yellow below; hair on ventral surface of tergite 3 sparse, and could be mistaken for a sex patch (as is present in H. gracilis and H. graciloides ) but hairs sparser and more erect than on tergite 4; pedicel and most of first flagellomere orange; scutal stripes on each side of scutum enclosing brown tomentosity, thus appearing as a single broad stripe (as in H. bivittata and H. biseriata ).

Description. Male. Pedicel and most of first flagellomere pale orange. When viewed in profile, antenna arises distinctly above middle of eye. Length of first flagellomere extending to facial margin. Facial ridge bare except for a few (usually 3–5) decumbent small setae above vibrissa. Palpus pale, usually distinctly yellowish. Postgena behind postoccipital row, above level of lower facial margin, without black setae. Parafacial silver. Colour of fronto-orbital plate gold on upper half, from vertex to midway down face (up to 50% coverage). Surface of frontoorbital plate almost bare. Ocellar triangle, when viewed from above appearing to be sharply pointed anteriorly. Diameter of anterior ocellus equal to, or greater than, diameter of base of adjacent ocellar seta. Ocellar setae arising distinctly behind anterior ocellus, approximately midway between anterior and posterior ocelli. Eye bare. Postpronotum restricted to the three main postpronotal setae. Dark stripes on either side of dorsocentral row of setae, separated from one another with brownish or gray tomentosity, appearing paler than stripes, but darker than remainder of scutum. Median and lateral stripes on either side of scutum separate from each other posteriorly. Postsutural dorsocentral setae 3, with a gap between first and third seta, middle seta usually reduced in size. Anterior quadrant of anepisternum covered with short setae except for usually 3 to 5 distinctly larger setae. Katepisternum bearing three setae, the middle one always the smallest. Vein R1 bare dorsally. Legs ranging from reddish brown to yellow tinged but overall dark. Coxae distinctly yellow tinged, usually contrasting with darker remainder of legs. Ground colour of dorsal surface of abdominal tergite 3, and in some specimens parts of other tergites as well, dark medially but reddish laterally. Ground colour of ventral surface of abdomen partially or entirely reddish or yellowish. Sex patches present on tergite 3, as well as on tergites 4 and 5 (though sometimes small or absent on 5). Ground colour of sex patches not distinctly shiny. Terminalia: surstylus equilaterally oblong shaped, posterodorsal half haired, apex devoid of apical spines, tip straight. Cerci blunted apically in dorsal view (boxlike), apex with straight tip, ventral surface bare, separation between cerci straight, about as long as surstylus. Lobe of sternite 5 oversized and rounded apically, inner margin covered in dense tomentosity appearing darker than surrounding cuticle, internal edge straight, multiple apical setae emanating from lobe.

Hosts. Houghia pallida has been reared 22 times in ACG rain forest from a sample of 219 caterpillars of Aroma aroma (Hewiston) (10X) and A. henricus (Staudinger) (12X) ( Hesperiinae , Hesperiidae ) feeding on leaves of Cyclanthus bipartatus Poiteau (Cyclanthaceae) , a perennial large herb in the shaded understory.

Holotype. ♂, CNC. Type locality: Costa Rica, Area de Conservación Guanacaste, Prov. Alajuela, Sector San Cristobal, Sendero Colegio (10.89296°, -85.37880°), 520 m, 02/12/2005, Carolina Cano , DHJPAR0008432.

Paratypes. 35 ♂, 27 ♀ ( CNC) Costa Rica, Guanacaste, ACG database codes: DHJPAR0008520, DHJPAR0024600, DHJPAR0019529, DHJPAR0023636, DHJPAR0034502, DHJPAR0008523, DHJPAR0008373, DHJPAR0008522, DHJPAR0016151, DHJPAR0008514, DHJPAR0008510, DHJPAR0021009, DHJPAR0008511, DHJPAR0017164, DHJPAR0008518, DHJPAR0007128, DHJPAR0017044, DHJPAR0008521, DHJPAR0008515, DHJPAR0008519, DHJPAR0040659, 08-SRNP-30621, 08-SRNP-20624, 07-SRNP-32167, 09-SRNP-65479, 05- SRNP-41817, 02-SRNP-19383, 05-SRNP-20768, 04-SRNP-60636, 04-SRNP-30821, 05-SRNP-65825, 07-SRNP- 41525, 04-SRNP-4593, 07-SRNP-40540, 02-SRNP-21562, 04-SRNP-31064, 10-SRNP-32015.

Etymology. From Latin, referring to the orange antenna and extensively pale abdomen, in which tergites 1+2, most of tergite 3, anterolateral corners of tergite 4, and entire ventral surface are pale orange, a pattern not yet known in other members of the genus.

Distribution. Costa Rica, ACG, Prov. Guanacaste, rain forest, 320–740 m elevation.

Figures

FIGURE 38. General morphology of Houghia pallida sp. nov. a. Dorsal habitus. b. Frontal view of head. c. Lateral habitus. d. Posterior view of male terminalia. e. Lateral view of male terminalia. f. Ventral view of sternite 5 + segments 7 + 8.