Meoneura artoodetoo, Stuke & Barták, 2019

Stuke, Jens-Hermann & Barták, Miroslav, 2019, Records of Carnidae from the collection of Miroslav Barták (Diptera: Carnidae), with the description of five new species, Zootaxa 4567 (2), pp. 326-346 : 328-331

Meoneura artoodetoo spec. nov.

( Figs. 2–6 )

Holotype ♂: (1) „ SU: Chimgan / alpine meadow / 41.38N / 70.06E 1800 m / Barták, 18.v.1989 “; (2) „ Holotypus / Meoneura / artoodetoo / spec. nov. ♂ / det. Stuke 2018“.

The holotype is deposited in the collection of the Czech University of Life Sciences, Czech Republic, Prague (CULSP). The specimen is glued on a card point. The right wing is missing and the left wing is incomplete. Otherwise the specimen is in good condition. The posterior part of abdomen is dissected, macerated and stored in a glycerine microvial pinned underneath the specimen.

Description of holotype (male). Length about 1.8 mm. Wing length about 1.6 mm. Head height 0.4 mm.

Head black with anterior half of frons black brown. Antenna black to dark brown. Arista without pubescence. Maximum eye length: maximum eye height = 1.0. Posteroventral margin of gena closest to eye margin: maximum eye height = 0.5. Frons microtomentose, frontal triangle shining. Frontal triangle indistinct and short, hardly reaching further than anterior ocellus. Face microtomentose. Carina narrow. Postcranium microtomentose. Prementum longer and wider than labellum. Palpus brown, about 1/4 as long as the haustellum. 1 distinct ocellar seta; supralunular setae only slightly convergent; 4 fronto-orbital setae (2 anterior mesoclinate, 2 posterior lateroclinate); 2 vertical setae; 2 mesoclinate postorbital setae; postocellar setae parallel; 1 strong vibrissal seta; 2 supravibrissal setae, the ventral one much smaller; 4 genal setae, the anterior one strongest.

Scutum shining to subshining, anterior 2/3 covered with black setulae. Scutellum microtomentose. Pleurae shining to slightly microtomentose. Scutum with only 1 long posterior and 2 smaller anterior dorsocentral setae. 2 postpronotal setae; 1 praesutural seta; 2 notopleural setae; 1 supraalar seta; 2 postalar setae; 1 praescutellar seta; 1 apical and 1 lateral scutellar seta. 1 seta at posterior margin of anepisternum. 1 dorsal seta and 1 ventral seta on katepisternum. Costa with no obvious setae beyond radial vein R 1. Wing hyaline, veins white to light yellow. Knob of haltere whitish yellow, base of haltere brown. Legs black to brown. Fore femur apically with 2 and basally with 1 strong posteroventral setae. Hind femur apically with 1 strong anteroventral seta. All coxae with single black setae. Hind metatarsus ventrally with dense yellow golden setae. Length metatarsus 2: length tibia 2 = 0.6.

Tergites with no obvious depressions or tufts of setulae. Abdominal pleura with scattered setae on abdominal segment 5 only. Abdominal segments 1–5 narrow, width of tergite 3: length of tergite 3 = 2.6. Tergites 2–5 each with 1 distinct lateral seta at the posterior margin, and with 4 indistinct setae at the posterior margin. Sternite 5 almost rectangular, slightly longer than broad, with 2 anterior setae and few additional setulae ( Fig. 5 ). Midventral tergite 7 not recognized. Protandrium very small, shorter than epandrium and about 0.3 of length of tergite 5. Epandrium with two strong lateral setae and several smaller setae ( Fig. 2 , 6 ). Maximum length dorsally in the middle of epandrium: maximum width of epandrium = 0.4. Cerci indistinct, not projecting, and with a few setulae only. Subepandrial plate distinctly sclerotised with a pair of strongly sclerotized dark brown bars. Subepandrial plate with scattered, hardly visible fine setulae. Obvious proceeding of hypoproct with 10–11 large and obvious flat setae on the projecting part. No tooth on subepandrial plate. Surstylus as in Fig. 3 : with an obviously broadened base due to a ventral expansion, concave dorsally, and a slightly rounded tip. Surstylus with several inconspicuous setae apically and 1 inconspicuous but longer medially directed setae at the tip. The ventral expansion at base of surstylus is lamella-like and has several distinct setae. Postgonite as in Fig. 4 : distinctly sclerotised, with a broad base, slightly elongated, pointed, apically bent like a hook. Distiphallus slightly longer than epandrium and surstylus, covered with setulae that form dorsobasally a field of dense setulae ( Fig. 6 ). Basiphallus not recognized.

Diagnosis. Meoneura artoodetoo belongs to the Meoneura obscurella -group that is characterised by a distinct process of hypoproct that has long distinct setae ( Fig. 2 ). From all species of this group—with the exception of M. merzi Ozerov & Krivosheina, 2013 — M. artoodetoo is easily distinguished by the shape and setation of the surstylus as shown in Fig. 3 . Especially the characteristic base of surstylus largely expanded ventrally to a lamellalike structure that bears several setulae ( Fig. 3 : ves) distinguishes this species easily. Meoneura artoodetoo will run in the key of the Meoneura obscurella -group of Stuke & Freidberg (2017) to couplet 4 where Meoneura paraseducta Papp, 1976 is identified. However M. artoodetoo has a completely black brown frons and no long seta on sternite 5 nor fits the shape of the surstylus. Later M. artoodetoo will run to couplet 9 where a decision to one of the keys alternatives is not possible anymore.

M. merzi has been overlooked by Stuke & Freidberg (2017) and is very similar to M. artoodetoo . Compared with the original description of M. merzi , M. artoodetoo is distinguished by these characters: (i) postocellar setae parallel ("slightly diverging" in M. merzi ); (ii) process of hypoproct with 10–11 obvious flattened setae distally (more setae that are not obvious flattened and that are not restricted to distal part of process of hypoproct in M. merzi ), (iii) base of surstylus dorsally expanded and therefore dorsal margin of surstylus concave (base of surstylus less broad and therefore dorsal margin of surstylus almost straight in M. merzi ); (iv) dull angle between surstylus and ventral expansion of surstylus (right angle between surstylus and ventral expansion of surstylus in M. merzi ); (v) ventral expansion almost square (ventral expansion oblong in M. merzi ); (vi) epandrium with two strong lateral setae (epandrium without strong setae in M. merzi ).

Etymology. This species is dedicated—as noun in apposition—to the fictional robot R2-D2 from George Lucas Star Wars movies. R2-D2 is a small and inconspicuous robot but saved the world.

Distribution. Meoneura artoodetoo is hitherto only known from the locus typicus Chimgan ( Uzbekistan).

Meoneura atoma PAPP (1981)

Material: Material: AUSTRIA: 2♂♂, 31.vii.1988, Heiligenblut [47.00°N 12.46°E], 1700 m, on Compositae, leg. M. Barták, coll. CULSP, PJHS ; 2♂♂, 6.viii.1995, Niedere Tauern , Sölker Pass [47.16°N 14.04°E], 1900 m, leg. M. Barták, coll. CULSP, PJHS ; CZECH REPUBLIC: 2♂♂, 10.vi.–16.vii.2015, Českolipsko, Provodín, pískovna pod hřbitovem, Malaise trap, leg. L. Blažej, coll. CULSP ; 1♂, 3.–4.vii.2005, Krkonoše , Luční hora (maringotka) [50°43’14.4’’N 15°41’00.9’’E], 1450 m, leg. M. Barták, coll. CULSP ; ITALY: 1♂, 8.viii.1988, Passo Rolle , alpine meadow [46.13°N 11.42°E], 1900 m, leg. M. Barták, coll. CULSP ; 1♂, 6.viii.1988, Staggia, oak wood, leg. M. Barták, coll. CULSP .

Diagnosis: Papp (1981).

Figures

FIGURE 6. Postabdomen of Meoneura artoodetoo spec. nov. dp—distiphallus; ep—epandrium; ph—process of hypoproct; sep—subepandrial plate with hypoproct und subepandrial sclerite; su—surstylus

FIGURES 2–5. Meoneura artoodetoo spec. nov. (drawn from holotype). 2. Lateral view of epandrium and surstylus. 3. Lateral view of surstylus. 4. Lateral view of postgonite. 5. Ventral view of sternite 3 (left)—sternite 5 (right). ep—epandrium; ph—process of hypoproct; S3, S5—sternite 3, 5; su—surstylus; ves—ventrally expanded base of surstylus.