Merodon rufofemoris Vujić, Radenković & Likov, 2024
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publication ID |
https://doi.org/ 10.3897/zookeys.1203.118842 |
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publication LSID |
lsid:zoobank.org:pub:C1A2654B-7DC3-4451-91B7-49B29304FBED |
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DOI |
https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.11373358 |
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persistent identifier |
https://treatment.plazi.org/id/85A45AAA-5D78-4914-A8CC-A3E0F8C4DA4A |
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taxon LSID |
lsid:zoobank.org:act:85A45AAA-5D78-4914-A8CC-A3E0F8C4DA4A |
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treatment provided by |
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scientific name |
Merodon rufofemoris Vujić, Radenković & Likov |
| status |
sp. nov. |
Merodon rufofemoris Vujić, Radenković & Likov sp. nov.
Figs 2 D View Figure 2 , 3 C View Figure 3 , 4 E View Figure 4 , 5 C View Figure 5 , 7 E View Figure 7 , 11 View Figure 11 , 12 D View Figure 12 , 13 View Figure 13 , 20 A, B View Figure 20
Type material examined.
Holotype: IRAN • 1 ♂; Fars prov., Dasht-e Ajran ; 29.552, 51.942; 5 May 2015; leg. M. Kafka; in BM collection. GoogleMaps
Diagnosis
(only male known). Similar to Merodon vandergooti from which differs by all femora completely reddish yellow (Figs 4 E View Figure 4 , 20 B View Figure 20 ), while in males of M. vandergooti pro- and mesofemora are partly orange-yellowish and metafemur is almost completely black (Figs 4 C View Figure 4 , 20 D View Figure 20 ), a less curved metafemur (Fig. 4 E View Figure 4 ), and an elongated anterior surstylar lobe in M. rufofemoris sp. nov. (Fig. 11 A View Figure 11 : al) (shorter in M. vandergooti ; Fig. 10 A View Figure 10 : al). It differs from M. aenigmaticus sp. nov. by the reddish yellow femora (Fig. 4 E View Figure 4 ) (partly black in M. aenigmaticus sp. nov.; Fig. 4 G View Figure 4 ), and the posterior surstylar lobe angulate ventrally (Fig. 11 A View Figure 11 : pl) (rounded in M. aenigmaticus sp. nov.; Fig. 9 A View Figure 9 : pl).
Description.
Male. Head. Basoflagellomere orange-yellow (Fig. 2 D View Figure 2 ), elongated, ~ 2 × longer than wide, and ~ 1.9 × longer than pedicel, convex dorsally; fossette dorsolateral; arista reddish to brown and thickened at basal third; arista ~ 1.5 × longer than basoflagellomere; face and frons black, with whitish pollinosity; face covered with dense whitish pilosity; pile on frons dense, whitish; oral margin small, black, sparsely pollinose; lunula shining black to brown, bare; eye contiguity ~ 10 facets long; vertical triangle isosceles, black, shiny, except grey pollinose anterior corner, covered with greyish white pilosity; ocellar triangle equilateral; occiput with grey-yellow to reddish pile, densely covered with grey pollinosity along eyes; eyes covered with short, whitish grey pile (Fig. 12 D View Figure 12 ).
Thorax. Scutum and scutellum black with bronze lustre, covered with short, greyish yellow pile; pilosity between wing basis mostly black; scutum with indistinct pollinose vittae; transverse suture with two medial pollinose maculae (Figs 3 C View Figure 3 , 20 A View Figure 20 ); posterior margin of scutellum with very long grey-yellow to whitish pilosity, reduced medially (Fig. 3 C View Figure 3 ); posterodorsal part of anterior anepisternum, posterior anepisternum (except anteroventral angle), anterior anepimeron, dorsomedial anepimeron, and posterodorsal and anteroventral parts of katepisternum with long, dense greyish white pile; wings mostly covered with microtrichia; wing veins yellowish to brown; calypteres whitish yellow; halteres yellow to white; legs reddish yellow; metafemur broad, ~ 3.5 × longer than wide, covered with long, whitish yellow pilosity (Fig. 4 E View Figure 4 ).
Abdomen. Elongated (Fig. 5 C View Figure 5 ), ~ 1.3 × longer than mesonotum; terga black, except lateral sides of tergum 2 with reddish yellow maculae; terga 3 and 4 with a pair of broad, distinct silver-grey pollinose fasciate maculae; pile on terga grey-yellow to whitish; sterna black, covered with whitish grey pile; posterior margin of sternum 4 with characteristic posteromedial incision (Fig. 7 E View Figure 7 ).
Male genitalia (Fig. 11 View Figure 11 ). Anterior surstylar lobe large, elongated (~ 3.5 × longer than wide) and sickle-like (Fig. 11 A View Figure 11 : al); posterior surstylar lobe rectangular (Fig. 11 A View Figure 11 : pl, marked with red arrow); cercus rectangular (Fig. 11 A View Figure 11 : c); hypandrium sickle-shaped, without lateral projections; lingula short, with tapering but rounded tip (Fig. 11 C View Figure 11 : l).
Female. Unknown.
Distribution and biology.
This species is only found in the Fars Province of Iran (Fig. 13 View Figure 13 ). This Iranian locality lies within the Zagros Mountains forest steppe ecoregion ( Olson et al. 2001), representing an arid and semi-arid forest ecosystem with Quercus brantii as the dominant vegetation type ( Azizi Jalilian et al. 2020). Flight period: May. Developmental stages: undescribed.
Etymology.
The name is derived from the Latin adjective rufus (red, reddish) and inflection of the noun femur in genitive singular (femoris) and refers to the reddish yellow colour of femora. Species epithet to be treated as an adjective.
No known copyright restrictions apply. See Agosti, D., Egloff, W., 2009. Taxonomic information exchange and copyright: the Plazi approach. BMC Research Notes 2009, 2:53 for further explanation.