Anthrax fontenellei Lamas

Lamas, Carlos José Einicker, 2006, A new species of Anthrax Scopoli, 1763 from Brazil, with description of its puparium (Diptera, Bombyliidae, Anthracinae, Anthracini), Zootaxa 1378, pp. 61-68 : 62-67

Anthrax fontenellei Lamas n. sp.

( Figs. 1–7 )

Types. Holotype: Belo Horizonte_MG / C. Ecol._UFMG / Brasil / 21/2/92 / Pimenta. H. R. Col.. 11 H 8 [handwritten]. UFMG. HOLÓTIPO [red label]. Anthrax fontenellei Lamas.

(MZUSP). Paratypes: BRAZIL, Minas Gerais (Belo Horizonte): Campus UFMG, 02.IV.1996, 1 male, J. C. R. Fontenelle (UFMG); Campus UFMG, 23.IX.1996, 1 male, J. C. R. Fontenelle (MZUSP). Genital segments in glycerin inside microvial pinned with Paratype.

Diagnosis. Anthrax fontenellei n. sp. is placed together with A. hylaios when using the key in Marston (1970) but can be easily distinguished from it by the pattern of wing coloration, not leaving a hyaline area before base of cell r4, antennae with scape dark brown, tibiae, femur and pleura light brown, male terminalia with different gonostylus shape, dorsal bands of epiphallus separated and ejaculatory apodeme short, not surpassing gonocoxal limits.

Description. Male. Body length 7.2–9.8 mm, wing length 11.1–12.4mm.

Head: eyes holoptic, separated by ocellar tubercle; front dark brown, gray pollinose, with short black hairs; face dark brown, gray pollinose, with short black hairs; proboscis dark brown, not extending beyond oral margin; labellum light brown pollinose; palpus very short, dark brown with dark brown bristles; antennae broader than pedicel, with scape dark brown, gray pollinose; pedicel dark brown, gray pollinose; flagellum dark brown, gray pollinose, cone shaped, longer than scape and pedicel together; style with bristles around apex; ocellar tubercle dark brown, gray pollinose (similar to front pattern) with short black bristles; occiput dark brown gray pollinose, with short dark brown hairs and scales.

Thorax: mesonotum dark brown, dark gray pollinose, with long light brown hairs on anterior margin and scattered dark brown ones laterally; halter dark brown with yellowish brown knob; katepisternum light brown, gray pollinose, with thin dark brown hairs on posterior half; anepisternum dark brown, gray pollinose, with long dark brown hairs; anepimeron with dark brown hairs on anterior upper surface; meron, laterotergite, metepisternum, and metepimeron bare; supra alar callus with 2–3 strong black setae; postalar callus with 3 long black setae and short black bristles.

Legs: coxae dark brown, gray pollinose, with dark brown bristles; femur I light brown with scattered brown scales and dark brown bristles on posteroventral surface; femur II light brown with row of short dark brown bristles on posterior surface and dark brown scales; femur III light brown with dark brown scales on apical third of ventral and dorsal surfaces; tibia I light brown with dark brown scales and short dark brown bristles; tibiae II and III light brown with dark brown scales and dark brown bristles; tibial spurs dark brown, tarsus light brown with short dark brown bristles and scattered long setae on ventral and dorsal surfaces; claws dark brown; pulvilli light brown, shorter than the claws.

Wing: pigmented basally, expanding to cell r1, half of cell r2+3, base of r4+5, half of the 1st posterior cell, little beyond half of discal cell, base of the 3rd posterior cell, base of the 4th posterior cell, and all of anal and axillary cells except apex ( Fig. 1 ).

Abdomen: dark brown gray pollinose, covered with black scales and hairs; segments I, VI and VII with yellow hairs laterally.

Genitalia: in lateral view with gonocoxa elongate, rounded at base, dorsal margins straight; aedeagus long, with pointed apex, conspicuously surpassing apex of posterior process of gonocoxa ( Fig. 3 ); dorsal bands narrowly separated mesally, with numerous short setae; dorsal part of apex of epiphallus raised above ventrolateral parts, cuneate apically, spatulate basally in dorsal view, convex and sharply pointed basally and apically in lateral view; gonostylus with robust base and pointed apex, slightly hooked; in dorsal view, lateral aedeagal apodeme short, not surpassing gonocoxal margins ( Fig. 2 ); ejaculatory apodeme short, not surpassing gonocoxal limits and not visible in lateral view.

Female: Unknown.

Pupa. Length: 10.4 mm. Head width: 1.6 mm. Thorax width: 2.2 mm. Abdominal width: 2.4 mm, tapering to 0.9 mm at width of anal segment.

Coloration: predominant light brown; cephalic and anal tubercles and chitinous rods dark brown; setae light brown; segment I with setae darker on apex and base.

Head. Cephalic tubercles armed with three pairs of spines fused basally to form an arch ( Fig. 4 ); first pair frontal; second pair placed below the first, both with similar length; third pair placed on lateral base of the inferior facial tubercle, with 2/3 of the others length ( Fig. 5 ). Two pairs of long and thin setae, the first pair in the dorsal surface of the tubercle base and the second one laterally. Head in ventral view with two pairs of setae; first pair placed beside the anterior facial tubercle ( Fig. 5 ), the second one placed laterally to the posterior facial tubercle; posterior cephalic tubercle reduced to ½ of the length of the anterior one.

Thorax. With four pairs of setae, all on anterior surface, three pairs dorsal with two pair near each other and one pair placed laterally; prothoracic spiracle heavily sclerotized, dark brown, conspicuously raised above surface and located immediately behind head.

Abdomen. Segment I with transverse row of long setae, dark brown on apex and base, interrupted medially; segments II–IV with transverse row of chitinous rods intercalated with long, thin setae, row of setae interrupted in center; segment V with same pattern, but with reduced chitinous rods; segments VI–VII with reduced chitinous rods, resembling small spines, intercalated with long and thin setae; segment VIII with reduced chitinous rods, resembling small spines; pleura with rows of long and thin setae; sternites I–VIII with rows of thin setae, interrupted in center, located in middle of the segments; anal tubercle with one pair of spines, fused in the base and hooked on apex ( Fig. 6 ), with a tiny projection located on ventral surface ( Fig. 7 ); abdominal spiracles slightly darker and more sclerotized than surrounding area, raised above surface and placed laterally on segments I–VII.

Notes. The adults were collected near nests of two Sphecidae (Hymenoptera) species: Rubrica nasuta Christ and Bicyrtes angulata Smith , which may probably be its hosts.

Etymology. Named in honor of Dr. Julio César Fontenelle, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais (UFMG), Belo Horizonte, Brazil.

Distribution. Brazil, Minas Gerais (Belo Horizonte).

Figures

FIGURE 1. Wing of Anthrax fontenellei n. sp.

FIGURES 2 – 3: Male terminalia of Anthrax fontenellei n. sp.: (2) Dorsal view; (3) Lateral view.

FIGURES 4 – 7: Puparium of Anthrax fontenellei n. sp.: (4) Cephalic tubercle, dorsal view; (5) Cephalic tubercle, lateral view; (6) Anal tubercle, dorsal view; (7) Anal tubercle, lateral view.