Meomyia kochae, Li & Yeates, 2020

Li, Xuankun & Yeates, David K., 2020, Revision of the Australian bee fly genus Meomyia Evenhuis, 1983, with description of three new species (Bombyliidae, Bombyliinae, Bombyliini), Zootaxa 4810 (2), pp. 201-243 : 219-222

5. Meomyia kochae sp. nov.

( Figs 11 , 12 )

urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:925ECE0A-F65C-4870-9BDA-058A7E9109E0

Type specimens. Holotype ♂ Australia, Qld., Dunwich , Sep 1926, Mackerras ( ANIC) . Paratypes ♂ (1) ♀ (1), Australia, Qld., Dunwich , Sep 1926, Mackerras ( ANIC) .

Other specimens examined. Australia, NSW, ♂ (3) ♀ (1), Broadwater Nat [ional] Park, 6 Sep 1981, D Yeates ( QM) . ♂ Broadwater , 22 Dec 1981, D Yeates ( QM) . Qld ., ♂ (4), North Stradbroke Is [land], Brown Lake, 16 Sep 1981, MA Schneider ( QM) . ♂ North Stradbroke Island , Brown Lake, 16 Sep 1981, G Daniels ( QM) . ♂ (3) ♀ (1), N Stradbroke Is [land], Brown Lake , 21-24 Sep 1984, DK Yeates ( QM) . ♂ (2), Bribie Is [lan]d, 29 Aug 1920. H Hacker ( QM) . ♂ Tibrogargan C [ree]k, 24 Aug 1959. FH Perkins ( QM) . ♂ Caloundra , 23 Sep 1929 ( QM) . ♂ Caloundra , 17 Aug 1934, FA Perkins ( QM) . ♂ (10) ♀ (20), 26°02’19”S 153° 04’57”E, Great Sandy Nat [ional] P[ar]k, Cooloola Section, 1-5 Oct 1996, DK Yeates, C Lambkin, S Winterton ( QM) . ♀ (2), 24°52’26”S 148°01’19”E, Carnarvon Nat [ional] Park , Mt Moffatt Section, Kenniffs Cave, 840m, 22 Nov 1995, DK Yeates ( QM) . ♂ Carnarvon Nat [ional] P[ar]k, Mt Moffatt sect[ion], Marlong Plain, 25 Sep 1986, DK Yeates ( QM) . ♂ (1) ♀ (1), 7.6km N Dunwich , 16 Sep 1981, MA Schneider ( QM) .

Diagnosis. Posterior margin of scutum without black band. Posterior margin of scutellum with brownish yellow setae. Lateral margin of male gonocoxite nearly straight. Apex of epiphallus bifid, branch slender and acute apically.

Description. Male. Body length 7.1–8.6 mm, wing length 7.5–9.0 mm.

Head. Head about 1.8 x wider than long, mostly black with thick pale pruinescence and covered in white hairs and scales, and admixed with brown hairs. Eye holoptic. Frons long, 4.3 x length of ocellar tubercle, upper narrow and black; lower half triangular, 1.1 x length of upper half, with thick pale pruinescence and white scales, admixed with few brown hairs. Ocellar tubercle slightly raised, blackish brown to black with sparse grey pruinescence, with brown hairs admixed with few white scales. Face with thick pale pruinescence and long white hairs. Gena with thick pale pruinescence and sparse white hairs. Clypeus with thick pale pruinescence and otherwise bare. Occiput with thick pale pruinescence and long white hairs. Posterior eye margin slightly concave. Antennal scape and pedicel brown with thick pale pruinescence, scape with long black hairs on dorsal half, and white hairs on ventral half, pedicel with short black hairs on dorsal half, and with short white hairs on ventral half; flagellum black without pruinescence, bare. Scape 2.8 x as long as wide, and 2.7 x as long as pedicel, uniform from base to apex. Pedicel 1.1 x as long as wide. Flagellum 9.2 x as long as wide, 2.2 x as long as scape + pedicel, 3.0 x as long as scape, conical and slightly laterally compressed, one-segmented with apical stylus ( Fig. 11c ). Palpus not extending beyond oral cavity, black with short brown hairs, one-segmented, without palpal pit. Mouthparts slender, 3.7 x as long as eye length, 2.1 x as long as head length, labellum large and fleshy ( Fig. 11h ).

Thorax. Integumental colour of scutum mostly black with sparse grey pruinescence. Scutum covered with white hairs admixed with some black hairs, hairs denser on anterior half, posterior half with more black hairs, postalar callus with five brownish yellow setae and with admixed white and black hairs. Five brownish yellow notopleural setae present. Scutellum black with thick grey pruinescence, pruinescence denser on the margin, covered with admixed white and black hairs, posterior margin with brownish yellow setae. Pleura black with thick pale pruinescence, mostly covered in long white hairs, except anterodorsal area of anepisternum with some pale yellow setae, anepimeron, meron, laterotergite and mediotergite bare.

Legs. Legs mostly yellow, except tarsi dark brown; femora mostly covered in white scales and hairs, except anterior face of fore and mid femora admixed with black scales; tibia mostly covered in black scales, except posterior face of fore and mid tibia with white scales. Fore femur with one anterior bristle on median area; mid femur with one row of anterior bristles; hind femur with one row of anteroventral bristles, and more separate bristles on apical half. Bristles and other hairs on legs brown. Fore tibia 2.0 x longer than fore basitarsus, mid tibia 2.4 x longer than mid basitarsus, hind tibia 2.3 x longer than hind basitarsus.

Wings. Wing membrane hyaline. Cell r 5 closed; cell br shorter than cell bm, crossvein r-m arising from base of cell dm; crossvein m-m 0.6 x as long as crossvein r-m; cell cua open ( Fig. 11d ). Haltere stem and knob blackish brownish yellow.

Abdomen. Integumental colour of tergites black mostly with thick grey pruinescence [hairs largely lost in examined specimens]. Tergite 1 with dense white hairs; tergite 2 with white hairs on anterior half and black hairs on posterior half; tergite 4 with white hairs; tergites 5–6 with dense black hairs; tergite 7 with dense white hairs; tergite 8 with dense white hairs. Sternites black except posterior brown, with thick pale pruinescence, and with white hairs.

Genitalia. Epandrium anterior margin strongly concave, posterior margin nearly straight ( Fig. 12d ). Lateral margin of gonocoxite nearly straight ( Figs 12 a–b); apex of epiphallus bifid, branch slender and acute apically ( Fig. 12c ).

Female. Body length 11.3 mm, wing length 11.8 mm. Very similar to male, except frons black with thick pale pruinescence, 4.3 x as wide as ocellar tubercle, frons with short white scales admixed with brownish yellow setae ( Fig. 11k ). Occiput covered in white hairs admixed with brownish yellow setae. Eight acanthophorite spines present on each side of tergite 9+10 ( Fig. 12g ).

Remarks. Meomyia kochae sp. nov. is similar to Meomyia penicillata , but the posterior margin of scutellum with brownish yellow setae, the lateral margin of male gonocoxite nearly straight, and the male epiphallus with acute dorsal branch.

Distribution. Australia (Qld.).

Etymology. This species is named after Karin Koch, who is a Collection Manager for QM, working with Christine Lambkin.

Figures

FIGURE 11. Meomyia kochae sp. nov. External (a–h (♂); i–n (♀)): (a, i) dorsal; (b, j) lateral; (c) antenna, lateral; (d) wing; (e, k) head, dorsal; (f, l) head, frontal; (g, m) head, profile; (h, n) head, lateral. Scale bars = 1 mm (a, b, d–n); = 0.1 mm (c).

FIGURE 12. Meomyia kochae sp. nov. Genitalia (a–e (♂); f, g (♀)): (a) genital capsule, dorsal; (b) genital capsule, ventral; (c) genital capsule, lateral; (d) epandrium, dorsal; (e) epandrium, lateral; (f) sternite 8, ventral; (g) genitalia and spermathecae. Scale bars = 0.1 mm.