Protypusia dimonica ( Zaitzev, 1996 ) Gibbs, 2023

Gibbs, David, 2023, A world review of the bee fly tribe Usiini (Diptera, Bombyliidae) - Part 3: Parageron Paramonov s. lat., European Journal of Taxonomy 863 (1), pp. 1-162 : 72-75

Protypusia dimonica ( Zaitzev, 1996) gen. et comb. nov.

Figs 13 , 24 , 29 , 45

Parageron dimonicus Zaitzev, 1996: 693 .

Parageron dominicus , error for dimonicus Zaitzev, 1996 – Evenhuis & Greathead 1999 (acting as First Revisers). In his type description, Zaitzev (1996) used the name “ dominicus ” throughout except in the abstract where he used dimonicus . The spelling of dimonicus was selected as the correct original spelling because it derives from the town of Dimona where the types were collected.

Etymology

Named after the town of Dimona in the Israeli Negev close to the type location.

Type material

Holotype

ISRAEL • ♀; “Loc. No. 18, C. Negev, N. ′Negarot 11 km SE, Mizpe Ramon 17 April 1994, Volkovitsh & Dolgovskaya leg./ Holotypus, Parageron dimonicus V. Zaitzev 96”; TAU.

Paratype

ISRAEL 1 ♀; “Loc. No. 18, Central Negev, N. ′Negarot 11 km SE, Mizpe Ramon 17 April 1994, V. Zaitzev leg./ Paratypus, Parageron dimonicus V. Zaitzev 96”; TAU.

Other material examined

ISRAEL • 1 ♀; “ Ein Mur , 19 April 1975 A. Freidberg / griseola ”; TAU • 1 ♀; “ Avdat , 11 April 1975 A. Freidberg ”; TAU • 2 ♀♀; “ 19 April 1975 ”; TAU • 1 ♀; “ Ein Mur , 31 March 1981, F. Kaplan ”; TAU • 1 ♂; “ Jerusalem, Mishot Rotem , 7 March [19]65, M. Weichselfish ”; TAU .

MOROCCO • 9 ♂♂, 5 ♀♀; “ Ouarzazate , Tizi-n-Bachkoum 1500 m N30º49′06.0″ W07º15′33.4″ 16 April 2008, leg. J. Dils & J. Faes ”; PCJD • 6 ♀♀; “ Tafraout , Tafraout 1000 m N29º44′19.0″ W08º57′51.4″ 13 April 2008 leg. J. Dils & J. Faes ”; PCMB • 1 ♂; “ 3 May 1961, Maroc Sahar, Taidelt/[leg.] P. duMerle 4333/ Parageron griseus Param, V. Zaitzev det. 2002”; MNHN .

Redescription

MEASUREMENTS. Body length: 2.6–3 mm. Wing length: 1.9–3.2 mm.

Male

HEAD. Frons and mouth margin silvery grey, ground colour completely obscured, lacking longer erect hairs. Silvery dusted gena very narrow, almost linear below, much narrower than the rather protuberant, shiny black to brown mouth margin (in Israeli specimens dusted gena a little broader). Occiput and ocellar tubercle dark in ground colour densely and evenly covered with grey dust and outstanding white hairs, those on ocellar tubercle hardly longer than width of vertex across hind ocelli, longer in Israeli specimens. Hairs on occiput relatively short, in face view only just visible, becoming longer below onto jowls. All ocelli in contact with eye margin, making an equilateral triangle. Eyes confluent for slightly longer than the length of vertex (difficulty to assess because the eyes come together at very acute angles both above and below). Ommatidia conspicuously enlarged in the upper half to three fifths of the eyes, the transition to the smaller ones occupying the lower part distinct but not very abrupt. Antennae black, postpedicel mid-length, rather convex below, deepest beyond middle, with a small point dorsally immediately beyond the subapical sulcus, about one and a half times as long as scape and pedicel together. Antennae sparsely and very short-haired above, a few longer but inconspicuous ones immediately before the subapical sulcus. Palps minute and slender, slightly clavate, dark brown to blackish, the white apical setae shorter than the length of the palps. Proboscis moderately long, a little more than head-thorax length (including scutellum), naked dorsally, black except for the dirty-white basoventral membrane in some examples.

THORAX. Dark ground colour obscured by grey dust, tending to be browner on disc in Moroccan specimens. Mesonotum with distinct darker paramedian vittae from front to just beyond wing bases (often darker anteriorly in Moroccan specimens) and more diffuse darker antehumeral vittae widely divided at thoracic suture (anterior one blackish in Moroccan specimens). Behind thoracic suture, and below the antehumeral vittae is a vague, roundish darker spot, barely visible in Israeli specimens. Whole of mesonotum and scutellum with variably long, white hair (longer in Israeli specimens), tending to form acrostichal and dorsocentral lines, more generally distributed laterally. Paramedian and antehumeral vittae mostly hairless. Scutellar hairs apically almost as long as scutellum and confined to periphery, naked on disc. Pleura concolourous with mesonotum, with similar hairs on pronotum and posterior twothirds of the anepisternum.

WING. Membrane hyaline, at most very faintly brown tinged, the veins pale yellow-brown, yellower basally, subcosta yellow. Crossvein r-m very close to the base of the discal cell, barely beyond m-cu. Anal lobe broad with triangularly convex margin, obviously broader than anal cell.

HALTERE. Pale yellow, base of stem slightly infuscated.

LEGS. Coxae blackish with coating of grey dust same as pleura. Femora predominantly blackish or dark brown with a covering of grey dust, the tip yellow, more brownish on hind femora. Tibia and tarsi blackish or brown, base narrowly yellow. Coxae and front four femora furnished with moderately long white posterior hairs, hind femora with rather shorter anterior hairs, legs otherwise covered with short, adpressed white hairs.

ABDOMEN. Tergites dark blackish-brown with dense grey dusting tending to be darker, subshining on disc of first two tergites, laterally. Each tergite with sharply demarcated pale yellow apical margins, sometimes broader on central tergites, tapering to a point on reflexed lateral margins. On average yellow apical margins narrower than width of hind basitarsus, often conspicuously so. Sternites similar to tergites. Tergites and sternites all covered with fairly long, erect white hairs, longest on lateral margins of tergites.

GENITALIA. Small often partially contracted into apical tergites. Gonocoxites black, grey dusted with tips shinier and browner, covered in long white hairs. Epandrium basally black, grey dusted, with very broad yellow apical margin, covered in short, dense white hairs, erect medially, apically directed on yellow part. Cerci brown.

Female

Differs from the male in its broadly separated eyes, the frons dark in ground colour, densely grey dusted with short, white hairs anteriorly, a small dark undusted spot centrally. Frons about one third head width. Ocelli forming an equilateral triangle. Antennae tending to be shorter than in male. Eye facets equalsized throughout. Mesonotal dusting rather more yellowish, darker vittae tending to be less conspicuous. Hairing of thorax, legs and abdomen shorter, significantly so on the abdomen. Yellow apical margins on tergites tending to broaden towards tip. Vaginal plate smaller and less pigmented in Israeli specimens than in Moroccan specimens.

Remarks

Despite the wide distribution from Israel to Morocco, there is very little variation between populations. Moroccan specimens tend to have less clearly pale knees, males have longer vestiture and a rather browner mesonotum. There are minor differences in the genitalia of the few specimens dissected but no more than can often be found within populations.

Using the key in Efflatoun (1945), this species will run to Pro. tewfiki (Efflatoun) , but Efflatoun’s choice of characters in his key is bizarre and Pro. tewfiki can readily be eliminated on abdominal pattern. Based on Efflatoun’s descriptions, the Smithsonian Archives plates, and the photos from EFC, it is probably closest to Pro. deserticola (Efflatoun) . The possibility that Pro. dimonica is a synonym of this species has to be considered. Unfortunately, I have been unable to examine the types of Pro. deserticola held in Cairo, but photographs suggest that it differs in colour of dusting and has more strongly marked paramedian and antehumeral vittae. The genitalia of both sexes of Pro. deserticola need to be studied to confirm its conspecificity or otherwise with Pro. dimonica .

Distribution

Israel, Morocco.

Figures

Fig. 13. Protypusia dimonica (Zaitzev, 1996) gen. et comb. nov., ♂.

Fig. 24. Protypusia dimonica (Zaitzev, 1996) gen. et comb. nov., ♀.

Fig. 29. Protypusia dimonica (Zaitzev, 1996) gen. et comb. nov., ♀.

Fig. 45. Protypusia dimonica (Zaitzev, 1996) gen. et comb. nov. a. Epiphallic complex ventral. b. Epiphallic complex lateral. c. Gonocoxite ventral. d. Gonocoxite lateral. e. Epandrium dorsal. f. Female genitalia ventral. g. Female genitalia lateral.