Sarcophaga (Heteronychia) helenae ( Trofimov, 1948 )

Whitmore, Daniel, 2011, New taxonomic and nomenclatural data on Sarcophaga (Heteronychia) (Diptera: Sarcophagidae), with description of six new species, Zootaxa 2778, pp. 1-57 : 35-36

Sarcophaga (Heteronychia) helenae ( Trofimov, 1948) , revived stat.

Pierretia (Boettcherella) helenae Trofimov, 1948: 835 .

Heteronychia (Spatulapica) fraterna Lehrer, 1977b: 27 , syn. nov. Spatulapica delicata Lehrer, 2000: 33 , syn. nov.

Type material examined. Heteronychia (Spatulapica) fraterna : Holotype 3 [three slides with just the terminalia; rest of holotype not found in SOFM (A. Popov, pers. comm. 2007)]: [first slide] Heteronychia / ( Spatulapica ) / fraterna n. sp. / LEHRER // Holotypus / Sternite V / Haskovo – 1906; [second slide] Heteronychia / ( Spatulapica ) / fraterna n. sp. / LEHRER // Holotypus / Cerci / Haskovo – 1906; [third slide] Heteronychia / ( Spatulapica ) / fraterna n. sp. / LEHRER // Holotypus / Phallosome / Haskovo – 1906 ( SOFM).

Spatulapica delicata : Holotype 3: Israel / N. Amud / 24.VI.1981 / M. Kaplan // Spatlapica [sic!] 3 / delicata sp. n. / HOLOTYPUS / Det. Dr. A.Z. Lehrer / 1998 // Spatulapica 3 / delicata sp. n. / HOLOTYPUS / Det. Dr. A.Z. LEHRER / 1998 ( TAU) and corresponding slides: [first slide] Spatulapica 3 / delicata n. sp. / Det. Dr. A. Z. LEHRER // 3 HOLOTYPUS / Sternite V; [second slide] Spatulapica 3 / delicata n. sp. / Det. Dr. A. Z. LEHRER / / 3 HOLOTYPUS / Cerci & paralobi; [third slide] Spatulapica 3 / delicata n. sp. / Det. Dr. A. Z. LEHRER // 3 HOLOTYPUS / Phallosome ( TAU). Paratypes: 2 3: Israel, N. Amud, 24.VI.1981, M. Kaplan leg. ( TAU) [one with terminalia dissected and glued to a slip of card pinned with source specimen].

Additional material examined. Armenia: Kot’i, 11.VI.1974, A. Pomarenko leg., 1 3 ( YVC). Georgia: Zekari crossing, subalpine forest, 27.VIII.1967, Gudjabidze leg., 1 3 (CNBFVR, ex IZGAS, as “ Het. kobachidzei det. Gudjabidze”). Greece: Makhedonia/Thessalia, Olympos, 21–26.V.1990, 1 3 ( ZMUC); Meteora, 2.VI.1992, D. Povolný leg., 5 3 ( MMBC, as “ Heteronychia setinervis ”); Panteleimon, 20.VI.1993, D. Povolný leg., 6 3 ( MMBC, as “ Heteronychia setinervis ”); Platamon, 1992–1993 [various dates], D. Povolný leg., 76 3 ( MMBC, as “ Heteronychia setinervis ”); Skotina, 28.V.1992, D. Povolný leg., 1 3 ( MMBC, as “ Heteronychia setinervis ”); same locality, 28.VIII.1992, D. Povolný leg., 1 3 ( MMBC, as “ Heteronychia setinervis ”); same locality, 20.VI.1003, D. Povolný leg., 1 3 ( MMBC, as “ Heteronychia setinervis ”); Thessalia, Larissa prov., Mt. Ossa, Ambelakia, 27.V.2002, P. Cerretti et al. leg., 2 3 (CNBFVR). Turkey: Izmir, Bergama-Kozak road, 700m, 10– 12.V.1993, V. Michelsen leg., 1 3 ( ZMUC). Turkmenistan: Kopet Dag, Ak-Depe, 2.VII.1981, A. Ozerov leg., 1 3 ( ZMUC).

Remarks. Trofimov (1948) described Pierretia (Boettcherella) helenae on more than one specimen, as can be deduced from the range “ 9–12 mm ” given for the body length of the species; however, he did not designate a holotype and did not mention a depository for the type series. Trofimov compared his new species with “ Pierretia setinervis Rohd. ” [= Sarcophaga (Heteronychia) setinervis Rondani, 1860 ] and Verves (1978a), presumably based solely on the original description, later proposed its synonymy with S. (H.) setinervis (as “ Heteronychia setinervis ”), under which it was subsequently listed also by Verves (1986) and Pape (1996). Based on my knowledge of S. (H.) setinervis (of which I have also examined the lectotype ɗ, preserved in MZUF) (cf. Pape 1988), Trofimov’s original illustrations (p. 834, figs 5–6), and details of his original description such as the large body size and the possession of apical scutellar setae, I consider Pierretia helenae as a senior synonym of Heteronychia fraterna and Spatulapica delicata , and a valid species of Heteronychia . It can be distinguished from S. (H.) setinervis by the generally larger size (although variability allows for some overlap), the presence of apical setae on the scutellum and the absence of a dorsal excavation on the cercus, as well as by details of the distiphallus such as the presence of short apical processes of harpes and a membranous, wrinkled tip of juxta.

Verves (1986) synonymized Heteronychia fraterna with H. boettcheriana (= S. (H.) bulgarica ); this synonymy was accepted by Povolný (1987), who later synonymized Spatulapica delicata with H. setinervis ( Povolný 2002a) . My examination of the holotypes of both these species allowed me to verify that they are both junior synonyms of Sarcophaga (H.) helenae .

Gudjabidze (1965: 184) described Heteronychia kobachidzei on two males from Gurshevi (collected 12.IX.1956) and Ketrisi (collected 4.VIII.1955), two localities in Georgia. He designated one of these two specimens as the “Tip” [= Type = holotype], mentioned IZGAS as the depository, and compared his new species with Heteronychia fertoni Villeneuve, 1911 (= S. (H.) minima Rondani, 1862 ). Conflicting information in the original description of Heteronychia kobachidzei and the finding in IZGAS of a male of S. (H.) helenae from Georgia (see above), identified by Gudjabidze himself as “ Het. kobachidzei ”, suggest a possible synonymy of H. kobachidzei with S. (H.) helenae . However, pending a direct examination of the holotype, which I was unfortunately unable to carry out, the identity of H. kobachidzei remains doubtful (see below under “Doubtful species”).

Sarcophaga (H.) helenae is known, so far, from Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bulgaria, Georgia, Greece, Israel, Turkey and Turkmenistan.