Hermesomyia Vockeroth, 1969

Mengual, Ximo, Miranda, Gil Felipe G. & Thompson, F. Christian, 2018, Unraveling Ocyptamus and the Baccha legacy (Diptera: Syrphidae): redefinition of groups and new species descriptions, Zootaxa 4461 (1), pp. 1-44 : 8

Genus Hermesomyia Vockeroth, 1969 stat. rev.

Figs 16 , 83 .

Hermesomyia Vockeroth, 1969: 121 , as a genus. Type species: Hermesomyia bacchiformis Vockeroth, 1969 (original designation); jun. syn. of Baccha wulpiana Lynch Arribálzaga, 1891 .

Baccha pirata species group. Hull (1949a).

Ocyptamus (Hermesomyia) . Mengual et al. (2012).

Ocyptamus wulpianus species group. Miranda et al. (2016).

Diagnosis. Straight face with large facial tubercle. Scutum covered by metallic microtrichia. Narrow, linear alula. Parallel-sided elongated abdomen with complete yellow fasciae.

Biology. Larvae of this genus live in the water-filled leaves of bromeliads and have been reported feeding on soft-bodied larvae of craneflies ( Tipulidae ), mosquitoes ( Culicidae ), aquatic beetles ( Coleoptera , Helodidae ), and larvae of other syrphids [ Ornidia obesa ( Fabricius, 1775) and Quichuana angustiventris ( Macquart, 1855) ] under artificial rearing conditions ( Rotheray et al. 2000). Rotheray et al. (2000) suggested that H. wulpianus and O. luctuosus ( Bigot, 1884a) use venom to subdue their prey.

Comments. When Vockeroth (1969) erected Hermesomyia , he considered it morphologically close to Orphnabaccha due to male genitalic similarities (mainly the O. ampla species group), but it is clearly distinguished by the linear alula and the elongated parallel-sided abdomen with sub-basal pale fascia, and the bare metasternum.

Species list (1): H. wulpiana ( Lynch Arribálzaga, 1891) .

Figures

FIGURES 11–19. 11: Ocyptamus maximus Thompson sp. nov. [male paratype, INB003306083], metacoxae, sternum 1 and metaepisternum, posterior view. Note: Arrow indicates pile on metaepisternum. Red lines indicate the incomplete postmetacoxal bridge (=metathoracic epimera widely separated behind metacoxae). 12: Dioprosopa clavata (Fabricius) [female, INPA-DIP0000109], head and pleuron, lateral view. 13: Rhinoprosopa aenea (Hull) [male, ZFMK-DIP-00028705], head, lateral view. 14: Rhinoprosopa flavophylla Hull [male, USNMENT 00890787], head, lateral view. 15: Leucopodella incompta (Austen) [female, INPA-DIP0000104], head, lateral view. 16: Hermesomyia wulpiana (Lynch Arribálzaga) [male, USNM], head, lateral view. 17: Atylobaccha flukiella (Curran) [male, GFGM-MPEG0007], head, lateral view. 18: Leucopodella incompta [male, INBIO CRI001820341], habitus, dorsal view. Scale = 1 mm. 19: Atylobaccha flukiella [male, GFGM-MPEG0007], habitus, dorsal view. Scale = 1 mm.

FIGURES 78–84. 78: Hybobathus norina (Curran) [female, CNC, JSS25237], head, dorsal view. 79: Ocyptamus sp., O. lepidus species group [male, INPA-DIP0000247], head, dorsal view. 80: Pelecinobaccha alia Miranda [female paratype, USNMENT 00036075], head dorsal view. Scale = 1 mm. 81: Hybobathus norina [female, CNC, JSS25237], thorax, dorsal view. 82: Hybobathus arx (Fluke), female, habitus, dorsal view, photo previously published in Miranda (2017). 83: Hermesomyia wulpiana (Lynch Arribálzaga) [male, USNM], habitus, dorsal view. 84: Ocyptamus titania (Hull) [female, CNC], abdomen, dorsal view.