Lispe nigrimana (Malloch)

Pont, Adrian C., 2019, Studies on the Australian Muscidae (Diptera). VIII. The genus Lispe Latreille, 1797, Zootaxa 4557 (1), pp. 1-232 : 35-41

Lispe nigrimana (Malloch)

Figs 57–76

Xenolispa nigrimana Malloch, 1923: 611 .

Xenolispa nigrimana .— Séguy, 1937: 187; Lee, Crust & Sabrosky, 1956: 326; Daniels, 1978: 443.

Lispe nigrimana .— Pont, 1989: 693; Vikhrev, 2015: 246, fig. 44.

Type-material. I have studied the holotype ♂, which is in AMS, no. K.50119. It is pinned with its puparium. It is not fully hardened, and the body and legs are rather shrivelled and twisted. As noted by Lee, Crust & Sabrosky (1956) and Daniels (1978), the head is missing; right fore leg and right mid tibia+tarsomeres are also missing. It is labelled Burnett River, bred from pupa found in mud at edge of river, 4.i.1920, and also as type by Malloch. The allotype and paratype from Burnett River have not been found. The 2♀ paratypes from Eidsvold and Fish River are in USNM.

Diagnosis. In the ♂ of this species the armature of the mid tarsomeres ( Fig. 61 ) and of the hind leg ( Figs 62– 63 ) is unique.

Material Examined. AUSTRALIA: Western Australia: Carson Escarpment, 14.49S 126.49E, site B1, 9– 15.viii.1975, I.F.B. Common & M.S. Upton, 1♂ ( ANIC); 25 miles E of Hall 's Creek , 25.vii.1969, P. Ferrar, 2♂ 6♀ ( ANIC) . Northern Territory: Alice Springs , 5.x.1972, Z. Liepa, 2♀ ( ANIC) ; 32 km WNW of Alice Springs , 8– 9.x.1978, D.H. Colless, 15♂ 9♀ ( ANIC, BMNH)) ; 53 km E by N of Alice Springs, Malaise trap, 6.x.1978, D.H. Colless, 1♂ 1♀ ( ANIC) ; Amadeus Basin , 20.vi.1962, P. Ranford, 1♀ ( ANIC) ; MacDonnell N.P., Glen Helen , 23.41.166S, 132.40.415, 13.x.2003, D. Werner, 1♂ 4♀ ( BMNH, ZMHU) ; Standley Chasm , NW of Jay Creek, 4.x.1972, Z. Liepa, 6♂ 8♀ ( ANIC, BMNH)) ; Todd River, 9 km N by E of Alice Springs, Malaise trap, 10– 11.x.1978, D.H. Colless, 6♂ 9♀ ( ANIC, BMNH)) ; Waterhouse Range, 39 km SW by S of Alice Springs, Malaise trap, 12.x.1978, D.H. Colless, 1♂ 1♀ ( ANIC) . Queensland: Amphitheatre waterhole area, 27 km N of Musselbrook Resource Centre, Lawn Hill Nat. Park , 18.21.08S, 138.09.43E, 200 m, 18.iv.1995, M.A. Schneider, 1♀ ( QMBA) ; same locality, 4.v.1995, G. Daniels & M.A. Schneider, 1♀ ( QMBA) ; Colless Creek, 16 km ESE of Musselbrook Resource Centre, Lawn Hill Nat. Park , 18.40.15S, 138.22.15E, 180 m, 12.v.1995, G. Daniels & M.A. Schneider, 1♂ ( QMBA) ; Eidsvold , xii.1922, paratype 1♀ ( USNM) ; Gregory Downs, south of Burketown , river bank, 31.x.1969, P. Ferrar, 1♀ ( ANIC) ; Little Forks, Annan River , 15.49S 145.14E, Malaise trap, 19.x.1980, D.H. Colless, 1♀ ( ANIC) ; Little Kennedy River, 1 km NE ' Fairlight ', 15.45S, 144.02E, 4.v.1989, G.A. Daniels, 2♀ ( QMBA) ; Ridgepole Waterhole, 24 km ESE of Musselbrook Resource Centre, Lawn Hill Nat. Park , 18.40.15S, 138.22.15E, 180 m, 5.v.1995, G. Daniels & M.A. Schneider, 1♀ ( QMBA) ; Youngs Crossing, Petrie , 2.x.1959, I.C. Yeo, 1♀ ( QMBA) . New South Wales: Bullawa Creek, Mt. Kaputar Nat. Park , c 560 m, 26.iii.1978, G. Daniels, 1♀ ( QMBA) ; Castlereagh River, Mendooran , 24.iii.1971, D.K. McAlpine, 1♂ ( AMS) ; Fish River , 25.iii.1923, paratype 1♀ ( USNM) ; Mendooran , 2.iv.1972, G. & A. Daniels, 1♂ ( AMS) ; Upper Allyn, near Eccleston , 4.v.1967, D.K. McAlpine, 1♀ ( AMS) ; Warabah Nat. Park , 40 km E of Manilla, 24.ii.1985, K.C.Khoo, 1♀ ( AMS) . Australian Capital Territory: Uriarra Crossing , 30.i.1964, D.H. Colless, 2♂ 1♀ ( ANIC) . South Australia: Flinders Ranges, Nooldanooldana , 30.viii.1977, A.N. Clements, 1♀ ( BMNH) .

Vikhrev (2016: 246) listed specimens that he collected at localities in Northern Territory, Queensland and New South Wales.

Description ♂ ♀. Head ( Figs 57–58 ). Ground-colour black. Frons at broadest point 0.38 (♂) or 0.41 (♀), at lunula 0.3 (♂) or 0.36 (♀), of maximum head-width (frontal view). Eye with an area of facets alongside lunula conspicuously enlarged. Ocellar setae very short and fine. Fronto-orbital plate with upper half (♂) to third (♀) subshining, lower part together with parafacial, face and gena yellowish-white pruinose, almost golden; lower 2/3 of occiput white pruinose, upper 1/3 thinly so but not shining, except weakly so at vertex. Lower reclinate orbital seta usually absent, present but very small in some ♀♀. Frontal triangle slender (♂, Fig. 58 ) to moderate (♀), shining black. Parafacial moderate, at middle 1/2 (♂), or equal to (♀), width of postpedicel; setulae short, fine, in 1 row. Antenna black, except tip of pedicel which is orange; some ♀♀ with most of pedicel orange; postpedicel 2.4 times as long as broad, falling short of mouth-margin by almost its length. Arista plumose, the hairing at widest point 1.5-1.7 times width of postpedicel. Vibrissa strong but short, only just crossing, set high above mouth-margin ( Fig. 57 ), vibrissal area otherwise with few setulae. Gena moderate, 0.14 (♂) to 0.23 (♀) of vertical eye-length; genal setae weak. Palpus yellow, swollen at tip ( Fig. 59 ).

Thorax. Ground-colour black. Scutum brownish-grey dusted, in ♂ with 3 inconspicuous darker brown vittae along the dc and acr lines, and a broader dark brown post patch on each side outside the ia lines; in ♀ appearing mainly brown dusted; scutellum dark brown dusted on disc and at tip, the sides yellowish-grey in basal half; all pleura (including notopleuron) light grey dusted. Anterior spiracle brown. Scutal ground-setulae rather long and erect. Acr setulae in 4–5 irregular rows at suture. Dc 0+1, with a few prst and post ground-setulae slightly longer than the others. 1 pprn. 0+0 ia. 0+1 sa, a short weak prst seta sometimes present. 1 proepisternal seta, with an adjacent setula. 1 proepimeral seta, with 8–11 tiny adjacent setulae. Anepisternum without a short seta in upper anterior corner; posterior row with 1 strong and 4 weak setae. 3 kepst, lower one closer to posterior than to anterior one, only the posterior one strong. Meron bare below spiracle, with a few tiny setulae above hind coxa. Scutellum with disc sparsely setulose, bare on sides; with some soft pale hairs on ventral surface at tip.

Legs. Coxae black; trochanters mostly reddish; fore leg black except for knee; mid and hind femora black in basal half and yellow in apical half; mid and hind tibiae yellow; tarsomeres black, mid tarsomere of ♂ wholly, of ♀ partly, dull orange. Fore coxa bare behind. Fore femur without av setae; pv surface with 5 short setae in apical half, otherwise with quite dense fine setulae; pd row complete, short. Fore tibia rather expanded and flattened ( Fig. 60 ), dusted white in ♀ on posterior surfaces; with dorsal setulae appearing comb-like; without submedian setae; with short d and pv apical setae, the pv very reduced in ♂. Fore tarsus with basal tarsomere flattened like the tibia, otherwise without modifications. Mid femur very constricted in apical half; without av, pv or a setae; without preapical ad; 1 p preapical, preceded by a p seta at apical 1/3. Mid tibia long and slender in ♂; with 0 ad and 1 p; with moderate a, v and pv apicals, and a short d and p. Mid tarsus of ♂ modified ( Fig. 61 ): basal tarsomere elongated, with a row of v setulae, tarsomeres 2 and 3 short, each with a group of 2 short erect setulae; not modified in ♀. Hind coxa without a seta on posterior apical margin. Hind femur in ♂ ( Fig. 62 ) with 3–4 very long pv setae in basal half, short fine setulae on av surface, and some fine erect p to pv in apical half most of which are slightly longer than femoral depth; ventral surfaces completely bare in ♀; ad row complete, very fine; 0 pd preapical. Hind tibia in ♂ ( Fig. 62 ) slightly curved, and swollen in basal half ventrally; with 1 ad, long and fine in ♂ which also has the ground-setulae basad of this seta long and erect; without av or pd; in ♂ v surface with very short erect setulae, and pv surface with a row of fine erect setae in basal 3/5 that are longer than tibial depth; d preapical seta long, twice tibial depth, the ad absent; 1 short av apical, hair-like in ♂, but no pv. Hind tarsus of ♂ ( Figs 62–63 ) with basal tarsomere bent, concave, with dense ad to a setulae in basal part, a fine v seta near base, and erect ad to a setulae on apical part that continue on to tarsomere 2; not modified in ♀.

Wing. Narrow. Very weakly smoky. Tegula brown, basicosta orange. Crossvein r-m placed slightly apicad of the point where vein R1 enters costa; dm-cu straight, longer than apical section of vein CuA1. Vein M running straight to wing-margin. Calypters white to creamy, with creamy margins. Haltere yellow.

Abdomen. Ground-colour black. ♂ segments 4 and 5 modified and asymmetrical ( Figs 67–69 ); tergite 4 and sternite 5 fused, but the line of fusion still distinct; sternite 5 withdrawn into segment 5. Tergites subshining black with very thin dark brown dust; ♂ with white dusted spots ( Figs 64, 66 ), the dusting more yellowish-white on tergite 5; the dusting all white in ♀ but somewhat tinged with yellow on tergite 5, but the pattern rather different ( Fig. 65 ). ♂ epandrium dusted white. ♀ ovipositor with upper part of tergite 7 white dusted, visible tergal areas otherwise dark like rest of abdomen. Sternites 1–4 (♂) or 1–5 (♀) light grey dusted. Setae on tergites very weak, tergites 3 to 5 each with 1 pair of weak lateral marginal setae, tergite 5 with a few additional shorter marginals that form a row, without discals; these all very short and inconspicuous in ♀. ♂ sternites 2–4 with sparse setulae ( Fig. 69 ).

Ƌ terminalia. Epandrium separated from tergite 5 by syntergosternite 8, which has 2 spiracles ( Figs 67–68 ); tergite 6 absent. Sternite 6 absent. Surstylus absent, i.e. fused to epandrium without trace ( Fig. 70 ). Cercal plate ( Fig. 71 ) moderately divided. Hypandrium attached at lower anterior corner of inner side of epandrium via an apparent postgonite, with a seta at posterior end; posterior attachment of hypandrial+phallic complex made by an extension from base of phallus to wall of epandrium close to inner dorsal tip of cercal plate ( Figs 70, 72 .). Phallic complex ( Fig. 72 ): postgonite present, appearing at first sight to be a surstylus but firmly fused along its base to hypandrium and only loosely attached to epandrium from which it easily detaches during dissection; praegonite hook-like; phallapodeme enlarged, extending anteriorly over hypandrium and fused to it at mid-length by a plate; phallus simple, fully sclerotised, with no apparent juxta or spinulation, with a rod-like projection at mid-length anteriorly, with a posterior extension that attaches to cercal plate.

♀ ovipositor ( Figs 73–75 ). Tergites 6 and 7 complete dorsally; tergite 8 divided dorsally, extending below. Sternites 6 and 7 broad, plate-like; sternite 8 absent. Epiproct V-shaped, almost divided into two halves, with only short setulae. Hypoproct not greatly elongated, without spines. Cercus with 2 spines. 3 spermathecae.

Measurements. Wing-length, 3.0– 3.5 mm (♂), 4.0– 4.5 mm (♀). Body-length, 4.5–5.0 mm (♂), 5.5–6.0 mm (♀).

Biology. The holotype was reared from puparia found in mud on the edge of the Burnett River. Adults have been collected in the vicinity of rivers and waterholes.

Egg ( Fig. 76 ): 13 eggs were found in the abdomen of a dissected ♀. Colour brown. Large, 1.7 mm in length, as long as segment 5 and ovipositor combined. Papillae at posterior end variable in number, from 7 to 12. This egg matches closely that of L. litorea (Fallén) from Europe, the only species for which this stage is known, as illustrated by Skidmore (1985: fig. 124a).

Distribution. Known only from Australia (WA, NT, Q, NSW, ACT, SA).

Figures

FIGURES 57–59. Lispe nigrimana (Malloch). 57. ♂ head, lateral view. 58. ♂ head, frontal view. 59. ♀ palpus. (57, 58, NT, 32 km WNW of Alice Springs; 59, NT, Standley Chasm.)

FIGURES 60–63. Lispe nigrimana (Malloch). 60. ♀ fore leg, posterior view. 61. ♂ mid tarsomeres, posterior view. 62. ♂ hind leg, anterior view. 63. ♂ hind tarsomeres 1 and 2, dorsal view. (NT, 32 km WNW of Alice Springs.)

FIGURES 64–68. Lispe nigrimana (Malloch). 64. ♂ abdomen, dorsal view. 65. ♀ abdomen, dorsal view. 66. ♂ abdomen, lateral view. 67. ♂ abdominal segments, left side. 68. ♂ abdominal segments, right side. ep—epandrium, stg—syntergosternite, t—tergite. (64, 66, NT, Todd River; 65, 67, 68, NT, Standley Chasm.)

FIGURES 69–72. Lispe nigrimana (Malloch), ♂ terminalia. 69. sternites 1–4. 70. Hypopygium, lateral view. 71. Cercal plate, dorsal view. 72. Phallic complex, lateral view. pg—postgonite. (69, NT, Standley Chasm; 70, 71, 72, NT, Todd River 9 km N by E of Alice Springs.)

FIGURES 73–76. Lispe nigrimana (Malloch), ♀ ovipositor. 73. Dorsal view. 74. Ventral view. 75. Lateral view. 76. Ovarian egg, lateral view. (NT, 32 km WNW of Alice Springs.)