Thienemanniella sanctivincenta Saether 1981

Wiedenbrug, Sofia, Lamas, Carlos E. & Trivinho-Strixino, Susana, 2013, A review of Neotropical species in Thienemanniella Kieffer (Diptera, Chironomidae), Zootaxa 3670 (2), pp. 215-237 : 229-231

Thienemanniella sanctivincenta Saether 1981

( Fig. 8 )

Thienemanniella sanctivincenta Saether, 1981: 1 larva, 8 pupae, 9 adult males and 2 females. Type locality St. Vincent. Not Thienemanniella spreta (Roback) — Sublette and Sasa (1994): 14 males, 7 females, 5 pupal exuviae, 3 larvae, all from Guatemala.

Material examined. Paratypes of T. sanctivincenta Saether : One male with pupal exuviae, one pharate male with pupal exuviae, one male, all from St. Vincent, Rabacca river, 5.XI.1971, A. D. Harrison, ZMBN Nos 36 mpm A204, 207, 235; one male with pupal exuviae, mouth of Buccament river, 5.III.1971, ZMBN No. 36 mpm A222; one female with pupal exuviae, Fitz Hughes river, 18.X.1971, ZMBN No. 36 mpn A211.

Diagnostic characters. T. sanctivincenta Saether can be distinguished from the other species described as pupae here by the following characters: Sternite I with fine shagreen, tergites VII and VIII with posterior shagreen of spinules wider than long, and sternites VI–VII with one or two posterior rows of points distinctly larger than those preceding them. The male transverse sternapodeme in this species does not show oral projections as are present in T. sancticaroli . Males of T. sanctivincenta (total length 1.17–1.39 mm, wing length 0.63–0.78 mm) are smaller than in T. liae (total length 1.72–1.85 mm, wing length 0.86–1.15 mm). Since the material examined of T. sanctivincenta was so strongly cleared that the color of the abdomen could not be defined, it is difficult to separate T. sanctivincenta from T. ubatuba or T. liae . Diagnostic for the larva of T. sanctivincenta is the mentum with three subequal median teeth. In contrast, T. spreta sensu Sublette & Sasa has the central median tooth much smaller than the adjacent teeth; in this it resembles all remaining species of the T. spreta group, but according to Sublette & Sasa (1994) the central median tooth is lighter colored than the adjacent teeth.

Additions to previous descriptions. Male. Superior volsella transparent, elongated, with posterior margin at 45° angle to median margin of gonocoxite.

Pupa. Tergites II–VIII with fine shagreen increasing in size in the respective most posterior rows. Sternite I with very fine shagreen; S II with shagreen of elongate spinules; S III–V with homogeneous fine shagreen of short points; S VI–VII; male pupae S VIII with one or two posterior rows of points distinctly larger than those preceding them. Male genital sac with inner margin oblique.

Remarks. T. sanctivincenta Saether (1981) was described as male, female and immature stages from Saint Vincent. Sublette and Sasa (1994) found the species in Guatemala and synonymized the name with T. spreta (Roback) , though without having examined the type material, and in spite of the fact that Roback had described only males for T. spreta . According to Sublette and Sasa (1994) the larva of the species that they collected (presumably associated) is different from the larva described by Saether (1981), who mentioned that the holotype had been reared and there was also a prepupal larva. Based on our work, the knowledge of males only is not enough to ensure that T. sanctivincenta and T. spreta are synonyms. Instead, it is quite possible that the specimens of Thienemanniella mentioned by Sublette and Sasa (1994) and the ones mentioned by Saether (1981) represent species with similar males but different larvae. Thus we consider the synonymy by Sublette and Sasa (1994) as invalid and apply the name T. spreta to the specimens described by Sublette and Sasa (1994). The identity of T. sanctivincenta is maintained.

Figures

FIGURE 8. Thienemanniella sanctivincenta Saether. A. Adult male. B – E. Pupa. A. Gonocoxite and gonostylus in dorsal view, internal sclerites hatched. B. Sternite II. C. Tergite III. D. Tergite VIII. E. Sternite VIII, and anal lobe, left: dorsal view of anal lobe; right: ventral view of anal lobe.