Austroleptis atriceps, Malloch, 1932

Fachin, Diego Aguilar, González, Christian R., Elgueta, Mario & Hauser, Martin, 2024, An illustrated catalog of the South American Austroleptidae (Diptera: Tabanomorpha), with a compilation of all known records and new records from Chile and Argentina, Zootaxa 5514 (3), pp. 273-293 : 279-281

atriceps Malloch, 1932

(holotype, Figs 1–4 ; paratype, Figs 5–7 , and additional non-type specimens, Figs 8–18 )

Austroleptis atriceps Malloch, 1932: 203–204 (antenna, fig. 15b). Type material: holotype, female (NHMUK); paratype, female (NHMUK); allotype, male (it should be deposited in NHMUK according to Malloch, 1932, but was not found; presumed lost). Type locality: Chile: Casa Pangue, Llanquihue.

References. Stuardo, 1946: 76 (cat.); James, 1975: 2 (cat.); Hennig, 1967: 28 (com., antenna, fig. 40); Nagatomi & Nagatomi, 1987: 141 (in key), 144–148 (redescr., head, figs. 4–5, abdomen, fig. 6); Fachin et al., 2018: 564 (distr.), 559 (head, fig. 1), 563 (thorax, fig. 12), 566 (wing, fig. 21; habitus lateral, fig. 35).

Material examined. 2 ♀, Chile, Region IX Araucanía, Prov. [Province] Cautín, SE Curacautín, Conguillío Natl Park [Parque Nacional Conguillío], sector Playa Curacautín , Lago Conguillío , site Conguillío MT & PT02, el. [elevation] 1134 m, 38°38’48.6”S 71°39’14.2”W, 09–21.i.2013, leg A. De Braekeleer & M. Pollet, sorted: M. Pollet 13215 // Austroleptis atriceps ♀ det.: D. Fachin 2018 (1 ♀, RBINS; 1 ♀, MNHNS) ; 1 ♀, Chile, Region IX, Araucanía, Prov. [Province] Cautín, SE Curacautín, PN Conguillío [Parque Nacional Conguillío], sector Captren , trail Los Carpinteros , 38°38’24.5”S 71°41’46.3”W, 1260 m, 09–21.i.2013, M. Pollet, A. De Braekeleer, 13222 // Austroleptis atriceps ♀ det.: D. Fachin 2018 ( MNHNS) ; 1 ♀, Chile, Region IX Araucanía, Prov. [Province] Cautín, SE Curacautín, Conguillío Natl Park [Parque Nacional Conguillío], sector Captren ; trail Los Carpinteros (site Conguillío MT & PT03), el. [elevation] 1264 m, 38°38’24.5”S 71°41’46.3”W, 09–21.i.2013, leg. A. De Braekeleer & M. Pollet; sorted: M. Pollet 13220, Austroleptis atriceps ♀ det.: D. Fachin 2018 ( RBINS) . 1 ♀, Chile, [La Araucanía], Malleco , 6 km, E. Malalcahuello, 13–31.xii.[19]82, 1080 m, A. Newton & M. Thayer // CNC 1274471 ( CNC) ; 1 ♀ ( Figs 8–11 ), Chile, [La Araucanía], Malleco , 14 km E. Malalcahuello, 3–31.xii.[19]82, 1570 m, A. Newton & M. Thayer // CNC DIPTERA # 254158 // Barcode of Life, DNA voucher specimen, Smplel [BIOUG31901-C01, BOLD Proc. ID: SKEVD006-17 ( CNC) ; 1 ♀ ( Figs 12–14 ), Chile, [Aysén], Aysén Province, Puerto Cisnes , 44°45’S 72°40’W, 1–15.ii.[19]61, Peña (NMSA-DIP 154044) . 1 ♂ ( Figs 15–18 ), Chile, [Los Lagos], Chiloé , 20.ii.1957, L.E. Peña // USNM ENT 00024150 // Austroleptis /spp./det. Woodley 1991 ( CNC).

Distribution. Argentina: Neuquén Province (Lago Correntoso); Río Negro Province (Bariloche). Chile: La Araucanía Region: Malleco Province (from 6 to 14 kilometers east of Malalcahuello, Parque Nacional Conguillío); Los Lagos Region: Osorno Province (Parque Nacional Puyehue, Termas Aguas Calientes; Portezuelo, Puyehue, 22 kilometers east of Anticura), Llanquihue Province (Parque Nacional Vicente Pérez Rosales, Casa Pangue), Chiloé Province (without precise locality); Aysén Region: Aysén Province (Puerto Aysén; Puerto Cisnes; Río Mañihuales); Magallanes Region: Tierra del Fuego Province (Olguita, southwest of Cameron) ( Figs 73, 75 ).

Comments. Nagatomi & Nagatomi (1987: 145) mentioned that an illustration of the wing of this species can be found in Nagatomi (1984), page 112, fig. 31, but this is incorrect, as it refers to Dialysis iwatai Nagatomi, 1953 .

Austroleptis atriceps has several long setae on flagellomere 1, one of them rather long, reaching to flagellomere 4. The first flagellomere has a field of short, stiff white setae on its apical side ( Fig. 17 ), which none of the other Austroleptis species seem to have. Additionally, the species is characterized by a flagellum with five flagellomeres, with flagellomeres 2–4 subequal in size, often dark brown, head dark brown to black, and distal palpus enlarged, rounded, shorter than basal segment ( Nagatomi & Nagatomi 1987). The two females from Malleco Province ( Figs 8–11 ) matched the type, but their distal palpus is nearly as long as the basal segment, and they do not have as many setae on the veins as seen in the male ( Fig. 16 ) or the female specimens of A. atriceps reported by ( Fachin et al. 2018: 566, fig. 21). It should be noted that the pattern of setae on the wing veins of the holotype and paratype ( Figs 2 and 5 ), however, matches that of the females from Malleco Province. Our male was not compared to the male allotype, which is likely lost, as was not found in the NHMUK collection, nor with the other two provided by Nagatomi & Nagatomi (1987). The female from Puerto Cisnes, Aysén Province ( Figs 12–14 ) is a much lighter specimen of the species and only the flagellomere 5 is dark brown. It is worth mentioning that the flagellum of none of the specimens here or elsewhere reported (see Fachin et al. 2018) matches that of the female paratype (the flagellum is absent in the holotype), in which it seems that only the last three flagellomeres are dark brown, or as illustrated by Nagatomi & Nagatomi (1987), in which the flagellomeres 2–4 are dark brown.

There is one additional female, labeled “ Chile, Malleco, 14 km E. Malalcahuello, 38°28’35.70”S 71°24’28.26”W, 1570 m, A. Newton & M. Thayer ”, in the CAU collection (see the CNC database: https://www.cnc.agr.gc.ca/ taxonomy/Specimen.php?id=641456).

Figures

FIGURES 1–7. Austroleptis atriceps Malloch, 1932 [NHMUK] (1–4. Holotype, female; 5–7. Paratype, female) © The Natural History Museum, London (United Kingdom).

FIGURES 8–18. Additional specimens of Austroleptis atriceps Malloch, 1932. 8–11. Female [CNC]. 12–14. Female [NMSA]. 15–18. Male [CNC].

FIGURE 73–79. Geographic distribution of Austroleptis in South America. 73. Map with all the records of Austroleptidae (data compiled in Table 1). 74. Map of Austroleptis atrata. 75. Map of A. atriceps. 76. Map of A. breviflagella. 77. Map of A. fulviceps. 78. Map of A. penai. 79. Map with records of Austroleptis sp. 1, Austroleptis sp. 2, and additional records of undetermined specimens of the genus. Square indicates the holotype of each species.