Philoliche (Philoliche) rubiginosa Dias, 1966

Morita, Shelah, 2008, A revision of the Philoliche aethiopica species complex (Diptera: Tabanidae), African Invertebrates 49 (1), pp. 129-158 : 150-152

Philoliche (Philoliche) rubiginosa Dias, 1966

Figs 1a , 5b , 8 , 9

Philoliche (Philoliche) rubiginosa Dias, 1966: 1189 . Sabié, “Lourenço Marques” [Maputo], Mozambique (MHNE). Type not available.

nec Corizoneura rubiginosa Bigot, 1892: 617 . “ Australie.”

Diagnosis: P. rubiginosa is the only species of Philoliche with white-grey pruinescence that gradually blends from the scutellum, across the posterior margin of the scutum, into the brown colour of the scutum. It is separated from P. elegans by this lack of sharp contrast in colour, whereas in P. elegans the white-grey pruinescence on the posterior margin of the scutum is sharply demarcated from the brown of the scutum. Also, the frons in P. elegans is yellow-grey pruinose, versus P. rubiginosa , which is shining and dark red.

Description:

Female.

Head: Eyes dichoptic; facets of similar size throughout. Frons very slightly divergent towards antennae, almost parallel; reddish brown and shining, if yellow-grey pruinescence present, then only on ridges along eye margin. Face conically produced forward a distance not more than length of the antennae. Antennae with first two segments orange to brown with black hairs; flagellum orange-brown to bright orange. Palps slender; distal segment wider and short with black hairs and sensory groove leading to an aperture; apex blunt. Proboscis length rarely much longer than length of head and thorax combined.

Thorax: Mesonotum brown to reddish brown with faint, paler brown or red-brown sublateral stripes. Supra-alar areas of scutum gradually blending into white-grey pruinescence beginning with postpronotal lobes and continuing across the posterior margin of the scutum; pruinescence continues anteriorly beyond the pre-scutellum. Scutellum same white-grey colour that may be slightly pink. Pleura light grey to pinkish grey with numerous white to yellow hairs.

Wings: Slightly smoky and slightly tinted yellow, usually without darkening at crossveins. Fifth radial cell usually open, although closed at margin or even closed and stalked in some specimens; third medial cell always open. Darker yellow pterostigma, subcostal cell and costal cell.

Legs: Fore coxae brown, mid and hind coxae yellow with white and some black hairs; trochanters orange to brown; fore and mid femora yellow-orange; hind femur paler yellow. Tibia of foreleg and midleg paler than femora. Hind tibia darker than hind femur towards apex; tarsi concolourous with apex of tibia of same leg; darkened at apex of fifth tarsomere in all tarsi.

Abdomen: Orange-yellow with black medial spot on segments 1 and 2; segments 3–7 slightly darker than 1 and 2 and with coat of small, black hairs. Central posterior margin of segment 2 sometimes with white or yellow hairs. Posterior margin of segment 4 with black hairs (as rest of segment), except on posterolateral margin. Posterolateral margin of segments 3–7 with tufts of black or white hairs as follows: 3 – black, 4 – mostly white, 5 – mostly white, 6 – white, 7 – white.

Male as female except:

Head: Eyes holoptic; facets abruptly increasing in size from ventral to dorsal margin. Frons extremely small and triangular, pruinose, covered with long, silky yellow, golden or white hairs; eye margins beginning to diverge a distance from vertex similar to length of antennae. Face conically produced, but not as prominent as in female, clypeus highly reduced. Palps reduced compared to female but with sensory pit. Clypeus reduced to frontoclypeal membrane. Antennae and proboscis similar to female.

Thorax: Legs with short distally projecting dorsal process on tarsomeres 1 and 2 (lappet). Lappet of tarsomere 2 never extending beyond proximal margin of tarsomere 4.

Abdomen: Abdomen narrower and often more brightly coloured.

Holotype (not examined): 1♀MOZAMBIQUE: Maputo: nr Dingue , i.1955, H. Gonçlaves Vocente ( MHNE) . Additional material examined: SOUTH AFRICA: KwaZulu-Natal: Fanie’s Island (28°19'S: 32°25'E): 1♀19.ii.2003, S.I. Morita ( SMPC) , 1♀19.ii.2003, D. DeKlerk ( SMPC) ; Hellsgate Tsetse Fly Res. St. (28°07'S: 32°23'E): 15♀16 –21.ii.2003, S.I. Morita ( SMPC) ; J. Esterhuisen : 12♀17 –24.ii.2003, 1♀3.iii.2003, 19♀no date (all SMPC) ; 2♀Mkhuze (27°37'S: 32°02'E), xii.1960, P. de Moor ( NMSA) ; St Lucia (28°23'S: 32°25'E): 1♀16.xii.1983, J. Manning ( NMSA, det. as elegans by Manning, 1983) ; 1♀20.xii.1970, H.V. & B.B. Daly ( CASC, det. as elegans by Chainey, 1987) ; 1 ♂ St Lucia Estuary , 13.xi.1970, H. & M. Townes ( AEIC) .

Distribution: Southern Mozambique and north-eastern KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa (Maputaland Centre) ( Figs 8 , 9 ).

Remarks: P. (P.) rubiginosa was described by Dias (1966) based on one female specimen. This species has not been mentioned by any subsequent author other than its appearance in the Afrotropical catalogue of Diptera ( Chainey & Oldroyd 1980) . Dias (1966) gives its distribution as the southern parts of Mozambique. Based on my own collections and a few specimens in NMSA, CASC, AEIC, and a long series of females collected by J. Esterhuisen, I can extend the species range to the Maputaland region of South Africa near St Lucia, KZN. It is likely due to the previously understood distribution (Dias 1966), that Usher (1972) did not record this species in her review of the South African tabanids. The lack of recognition of this species by Usher (1972) probably also explains why no subsequent researchers have considered P. rubiginosa , and have therefore misidentified this species as P. (P.) elegans , based on the grey colouration of the scutellum in both species ( Fig. 1 ).

Figures

Fig. 1. Dorsal view of (a) Philoliche rubiginosa and (b) P. elegans showing differences in patterning of the mesoscutum and frons. White arrows point to the transition between colouring of the grey hind margin of the mesoscutum and the main part of the mesothorax.

Fig. 5. (a) Morphotypes of Philoliche aethiopica. From left to right: Philoliche aethiopica Natal (female and male), P. aethiopica Albany (female and male). Note that the Natal form pictured here has a white stripe formed by a continuous fringe of white hairs on the posterior margin of the fourth abdominal segment. (b) Females of the rondani species group. From left to right: Philoliche umbratipennis stat. rev., P. rondani, P. rubiginosa, and P. elegans.

Fig. 8. Geographic distribution of the rondani species group over South African provinces (GP – Gauteng, MPU – Mpumalanga, KZN – KwaZulu-Natal) and in neighbouring countries (SW – Swaziland). Note that all taxa overlap in distribution in the Eastern Cape, with the exception of Philoliche rubiginosa.

Fig. 9. Map showing geographic and taxonomic variation in proboscis length for Philoliche rubiginosa, P. rondani and P. umbratipennis. Circle diameter is proportional to the proboscis length of the individual specimen collected at that site.