Apotropina maculigena Riccardi, 2023

Ang, Yuchen, Lumbers, James & Riccardi, Paula R., 2023, A conspectus of Australian Apotropina (Diptera, Chloropidae) with the description of two new species, ZooKeys 1187, pp. 261-299 : 261

Apotropina maculigena Riccardi sp. nov.

Fig. 2A-H

Type locality and distribution.

Australia: New South Wales (Taree).

Material examined.

Holotype ♂ Australia: New South Wales, Taree, Lorien Wildlife Refuge , 3km N Landsdowne; sclerophyle forest, Dec.14-31.2011, Malaise trap; 31°45'04"S, 152°32'03"E; E.G. & B. Williams leg; [AMRI TYPE CODE]. Deposited in the AMRI.

Paratypes ♂♂ ♀♀ 34 same data as holotype; Deposited in the AMRI (20♂, 5♀), MfN (3♂, 1♀), MZUSP (3♂), ZRC (1♂, 1♀, same as specimens with submitted Genbank barcodes) .

GenBank barcodes.

Specimen no. ZRCENT0021054: OR136427; specimen no. ZRCENT0021055: OR136428.

Diagnosis.

Gena yellow with a dark median macula that reaches ventral margin; frons dark yellow; ocellar triangle with silvery pruinosity; male terminalia with anal area bearing a pair of conical membranous extensions.

Description.

Male (Fig. 2A, C-G ). Body length, 2.4-2.7 mm. Wing length, 2.28-2.45 mm. Head (Fig. 2A, B ). Broader than long dorsally and deeper than long in profile, dark yellow except for black ocellar tubercle and a dark occiput. Head and thoracic setae black. Ocellar seta strongly developed, as long as inner and outer vertical setae. Postocellar cruciate, ~ 2/3 of ocellars length. Three fronto-orbital setae developed, ~ 1/3 of the ocellars; the two anterior proclinate and the posterior lateroclinate. Inner vertical seta inclinate and outer vertical seta lateroclinate. Two pairs of interfrontal setae distinct; as long as fronto-orbitals; proclinate and slightly convergent. Frons as long as broad, lateral margins slightly convergent, front margin straight. Ocellar triangle with a silvery pruinosity, extending to half of frons length, posterior margin two thirds width of frons, lateral margins straight. Eye oval, long axis slightly oblique with short, very sparse pubescence. Face deeper than broad; carina knife-like, restricted to the upper half of frons; antennae dark yellow, postpedicel reniform, as deep as long, mostly yellow; arista blackish, with short sparse pubescence, ~ 3 × as long as postpedicel; gena as wide as the length of postpedicel, with ~ 2 unordered rows of setulae and two vibrissae; occiput blackish; proboscis short yellow; palpus yellow, small, equal in length to postpedicel, with brown setulae; mouth edge not protruding; clypeus dark brown. Thorax (Fig. 2A, B ). Scutum approx. as long as broad, dark brown, entirely pruinose; one row of decussate acrostichal setulae and one pair of prescutellar acrostichal seta; four dorsocentral setae developed, the posterior one longer than the remaining three and as long as the ocellar seta; postpronotal lobe concolorous with scutum; one long basal postpronotal seta, equal to notopleurals; anterior postpronotal seta short and reclinate; one presutural intra-alar seta developed; notopleuron with 1+1 setae; one long presutural and three short postsutural supra-alar setae; postalar seta as long as ocellar seta. Pleuron dark brown, pruinose, katepisternum with a dorsal long seta. Scutellum concolorous with scutum, pruinose, broader than long, rounded apically with one pair of setulae on the disc; apical scutellar setae with separation greater to that of posterior ocelli and as long as half the scutal length; one pair of lateral scutellar setae inserted on the disc, as long as the prescutellar dorsocentrals; post-scutellum blackish. Halter pale yellow. Wing (Fig. 2A, C ). Translucent with a large dark spot more than half of second sector, light brown veins covered in sparse brown microtrichia; costal ratios measured from h: R1: R2+3: R4+5 is 6: 7.5: 7: 2; veins R4+5 and M1 subparallel; distance between r-m and dm-m six times length of r-m. Legs (Fig. 2A ). Brownish yellow, dark pilosity organized in rows; posterior tibial organ well developed, occupying one third of tibia, narrow, yellow; hind tibial spur subapical, as long as the width of the tibia apex. Abdomen (Fig. 2A ). Tergites brown. Terminalia (Fig. 2D-G ). Postabdomen sclerites asymmetric as in generic diagnosis. Epandrium well developed, with a laterobasal projection; surstylus conical, directed inwards; cerci not fused to each other, oval; anal lobe membranous, with a long bifid projection. Hypandrium with arms open; basiphallus oval; distiphallus cylindrical and membranous; pregonite with four setulae and sensorial pores on the apex; postgonite minute, elongated; phallapodeme short, not bifid basally; sperm pump present. Female (Fig. 2B ). Same as male, except wing completely hyaline; abdominal segments 6-8 narrow; epiproct with one pair of setae; hypoproct pilose; cerci dark yellow, long, and narrow, with short setae at base.

Egg (Fig. 2H ). Length 0.43 mm, width 0.14 mm, matt, milky white, elongated, slightly rounded at both ends; one apical pole with four to five spine-like structures. Chorionic surface with poorly visible pattern of small rounded microsculptures.

Etymology.

The specific epithet maculigena is feminine derived from Latin, meaning gena with macula.

Remarks.

The wings of Apotropina maculigena sp. nov. males are similar to A. costomaculata . However, a yellow gena with a distinct mesal dark spot and postgena yellow are considered distinctive features of A. maculigena sp. nov., while A. costomaculata has a whitish gena with an indistinct dark marking and dark postgena. Furthermore, the yellow mouthparts and male epandrium of Apotropina maculigena sp. nov. differ from the brown coloration of the same structures in A. costomaculata .

Figures

Figure 2. Apotropina maculigena Riccardi, sp. nov. ♂ ♀ A ♂ habitus, lateral view B ♀ habitus, dorsal view C ♂ wing D ♂ terminalia, terminal view E ♂ terminalia, ventral view F hypandrium and phallic complex, lateral view G ♂ postabdomen, ventral view H egg. Abbreviations: bas, basiphallus; cer, cercus; dis, distiphallus; ep, epandrium; hyp, hypandrium; phal, phallapodeme; phal s, phallapodemic sclerite; pog, postgonite; prg, pregonite; S, syntergosternite; sp, spiracle; spm, sperm pump; st, sternite; sur, surstylus.