Melanogaster raccoon, Popov & Prokhorov, 2020

Popov, Grigory V. & Prokhorov, Alexey V., 2020, Revision of the Melanogaster jaroslavensis group (Diptera: Syrphidae), with description of a new species from Afghanistan, Zootaxa 4743 (4), pp. 536-552 : 545-547

Melanogaster raccoon sp. nov.

Figs 6 A–J; 7–9

Type material. Holotype. ♂ [ Afghanistan, Bamyan Prov., Band-e Amir , alt 2900 m, 26.VI.2016, Yu. Skrylnik].

Paratypes. No. 1: ♂ [ Afghanistan, vic. of Kabul, Paghman, alt 2700 m, 2.VI.2010, O. Pack leg.]; No. 2: ♂ [Af- ghanistan, Band-e Amir, Bamyan Province, alt 3200 m, 25.V.2010, O. Pack leg.]; No. 3 & 4: 2 ♂♂ [Afghani- stan, Kabul Prov., Paghman, alt 2500–2600 m, 9.VI.2016, O. Pak leg.]; No. 5 & 6: 2 ♀♀ [ Afghanistan, Sha-tu pass, alt 3100–3200 m, 18.VI.2016, Yu. Skrylnik leg.]; No. 7: ♀ [ Afghanistan, Kabul Prov., Paghman , alt 2400 m, 30.VI.2013, Yu. Skrylnik leg.] .

Diagnosis. Small-sized robust species with body length 6.0– 7.5 mm. Melanogaster raccoon sp. nov. male can be separated from males of the other three species by the virtual absence of a facial tubercle. Melanogaster raccoon sp. nov. is most similar to M. tadzhikorum , but can be separated from it by: frons covered with pale pile only; face and frons broader; emarginated surstyli at the apex in ventral view. Melanogaster raccoon sp. nov. female differs from females of the other three species by the absence of transverse furrows on the frons. Melanogaster raccoon sp. nov. can be distinguished both from M. jaroslavensis and M. kirgisorum by: halter colour (light greyish-brown stem and dark knob in M. raccoon sp. nov., but entirely yellow in those species); frons and face widths (clearly wider in M. raccoon sp. nov.); surstyli short and emarginated apically in ventral view. Hypopygium very similar to M. tadzhikorum . Hypandrium similar to one of the M. hirtella species-group, epandrium typical for the M. nuda species-group ( Maibach et al., 1994 a; Kassebeer, 1999 a). Generally, M. raccoon sp. nov. can be easily separated from remaining species of this group by the combination of the body pile pale without dark ones on male frons, the almost flat face in male, the absence of frontal transverse furrows in female, and surstyli both short and emarginated apically in ventral view.

Description. MALE ( Figs 6A , C–G; 7). Body length: 6.5–7.5 mm. Head ( Fig. 6E, F ). Eyes bare, holoptic; frons slightly swollen, shining, upper half with dense and long yellowish-white or only white pile; face and frons broad, ratio of the maximum head width to the frons width at the level of the antennal base 1.9–2.0. Frons shiny, apart from pollinose stripe between eyes from antennal base to facial tubercle or almost completely pollinose; facial pile whitish; facial tubercle very small, weakly protruded, almost absent; antenna brownish-black to black including bare arista; ocelli nearly equidistant but the distance between the posterior ocelli slightly greater; vertex and occiput white pilose. Thorax ( Fig. 6A, C ). Scutum and scutellum shiny black with weak bluish shine, not pollinose, finely punctate, covered with long whitish pile, on posterior margin of scutellum pile longer; sides of thorax shiny, whitish pilose (postpronotum, posterior anepisternum, anepimeron and katepisternum except bare part between the top and the bottom covered with long white pile; proepisternum and proepimeron covered with medium white pile; katatergite with short light yellowish pile; anterior anepisternum, katepimeron, meron and metapleuron bare). Legs black, paratype No. 2 with partly dark brownish-black legs, covered with pale pile, long pile whitish, short pile sometimes yellowish-white on tarsi. Wing ( Fig. 6D ). Length 5.2–5.5 mm. Almost hyaline, entirely microtrichose, clearly yellowish basally, as well as veins yellow near base but brownish apically; pterostigma yellow; vein M joining vein R 4+5 at right angle; calypter whitish with yellowish edge; halter stem light greyish-brownish, knob dark. Abdomen ( Fig. 6A, C, G ): general colour black. Tergite I slightly rugose, tergites II–III distinctly transversely rugose, tergite IV almost unnoticeably rugose. Tergites I–III matt black dorsally with distinct pollinosity between wrinkles, slightly greenish-bronze on their sides, tergite IV shiny bronze except triangular matt black spot on front edge of tergite, tergite VIII shiny black with goldish to greenish-bronze shine. Abdomen covered with moderately long protruding white pile, longest ones located on the tergite sides, shortest ones located on tergite dorsally. Sternites shiny, greenish-bronze with inconspicuous transverse rugosity, gently pollinose, covered with protruding and adpressed white pile. Genitalia ( Fig. 7 ). Surstyli relatively short and almost rectangular in lateral view, with small hook-like process on apex, but slightly emarginated apically in ventral view ( Fig. 7A, B ); cerci almost triangular in dorsal view.

FEMALE ( Fig. 6B , H–J). Body length: 6.0– 6.5 mm. Similar to the male except for sexual dimorphism, and differing by somewhat smaller body size, shorter body pilosity and the following characters. Head ( Fig. 6 H–J). Frons, vertex and occiput shining, with sparse short white pile; transverse furrows of the frons absent; frons and face broad (ratio of the maximum head width to the frons width at the level of the antennal base 1.7–1.8, ratio of the maximum head width at the level of the antennal base to the vertex width 2.6–2.7). Face pollinose in upper half, shiny in lower half; facial pile whitish; scape and pedicel black; basoflagellomere brownish-black; arista black. Thorax ( Fig. 6B ). Scutum and scutellum shiny black with weak bluish shine (2 paratypes) or without such shine (1 paratype), covered with short whitish pile; legs black. Wing ( Fig. 6B ). Length 5.5–5.8 mm, yellowish. Abdomen ( Fig. 6B ). Tergite IV not rugose, black, without matt black triangular spot on anterior edge of tergite, tergite V black. Abdomen covered with short protruding white pile. Sternites shiny, brownish black, finely punctated, covered with subadpressed pale pile of equal length.

Etymology. The specific name refers to the common nocturnal mammal ( Procyon lotor (Linnaeus, 1758) , “raccoon” in English and in Ukrainian) native to North America and introduced in the Palaearctic Region, with whom the new species shares such characteristics as the contrasting black-and-white colouration and the ability to climb high up.

Distribution. Central Afghanistan ( Fig. 8 ).

Biology. Melanogaster raccoon sp. nov. occurs at altitudes of 2400–3200 m above sea level. The species inhabits in mesophilous valleys between dry semi-desert areas high in the mountains ( Fig. 9 ). Three specimens of M. raccoon sp. nov. were collected from the Band-e Amir National Park and its vicinity about 60 km west of the town of Bamyan in Central Afghanistan. The vegetation of the shores of Lake Band-e Amir shores is peculiar: it is a natural oasis at an altitude of 3000–3050 m along the chain of lakes in the canyon. The surrounding area is a hilly plateau dissected by deep canyons with streams that drain into the Band-e-Amir River, covered with alpine friganoid and tragakantoid steppe. The adults fly from May to June (25.V–30.VI by label data). Nothing is known about the life history of this species, but we can speculate that the larvae are hydrobionts similar to the known larvae of other species belonging in this genus ( Hennig, 1952; Hartley, 1961; Maibach & Goeldlin, 1994).

Figures

FIGURE 6. Melanogaster raccoon sp. nov. A: Male, dorsal view (holotype); B: Female, dorsal view (paratype No. 5, Sha-tu pass); C: Male, lateral view (paratype No. 2, Sabzel); D: Male wing (paratype No. 2, Sabzel); E: Male head, lateral view (holotype); F: Male head, frontal view (holotype); G: Male abdomen, dorsal view (paratype No. 1, Paghman); H–J: Female head (paratype No. 5, Sha-tu pass) in frontal (H), lateral (I) and dorsal view (J). Scale line = 1 mm.

FIGURE 7. Melanogaster raccoon sp. nov. (paratype No. 1, Sabzel). A: Epandrium, ventral view; B: Epandrium, lateral view; C: Hypandrium, lateral view; D. Hypandrium, ventral view. Scale line = 0.2 mm.

FIGURE 8. Distribution map of Melanogaster raccoon sp. nov., Afghanistan. Red circle—type locality (locality of holotype), green circles—paratypes localities.

FIGURE 9. Melanogaster raccoon sp. nov. habitats. A: Type locality (locality of holotype, Band-e Amir National Park, 1,5 km NE Jarukashan vill.); B: Locality of paratypes No. 1, 3 and 4 (5 km NW Paghman); C: Locality of paratype No. 2 (Band-e Amir National Park, 3 km E Sabzel vill.); D: Locality of paratype No. 5 (Sha-tu pass vic.).