Chelipoda thaosuranaria, Plant, 2009

Plant, Adrian R., 2009, Diversity Of Chelipoda Macquart, 1823 (Diptera: Empididae: Hemerodromiinae) In Northern Thailand With Discussion Of A Biodiversity ‘ Hot Spot’ At Doi Inthanon, Raffles Bulletin of Zoology 57 (2), pp. 255-277 : 271

Chelipoda thaosuranaria , new species

( Fig. 18 )

Material examined. – Holotype. Male, THAILAND: Loei, Phu Ruea National Park, Nature Trail , 17°30.740'N 101°20.650'E, 1,353 m, Malaise trap, coll. N. Jaroenchai, 26 Sep.–2 Oct.2006 ( QSBG, T834 ).

Paratype. One male, same data as holotype ( NMWC) .

Diagnosis. – Superficially resembling C. thaosuranaria with head black and all yellow thorax but F 1 with usual double row of denticles beneath, front tarsomeres 2 & 3 not distinctly spinose and C 3 with strong black anteroapical seta.

Description. – Male. Body length 2.0– 2.5 mm. Head black with paler dusting; ocl, vtl and upper upo strong, black; other upo and lpo minute or absent; only a few pale setulae behind mouth. Antenna yellowish with poped obscurely darker, especially apically and stylus blackish; poped 2.2× long as wide, stylus 2× as long. Mouthparts yellowish brown, proboscis darker.

Thorax clear yellow, mediotergite medially and scutum sublaterally obscurely darkened. Setae black; two dc (including one level with npl) upper npl, sa and sct all strong; otherwise only minute hairs posteriorly on scutum, pospronotum and lower notopleural area.

Legs yellow, tarsomeres 4–5 and T 1 obscurely darker. C 1 0.8× as long as thorax, 5.0–5.2× as long as wide, slightly broader basally; anterior ciliation of fine yellowish setae distinct and almost as long as limb is deep on distal 0.6, no stronger anterobasal seta. C 3 with strong black anteroapical seta as long as limb is wide and 2–3 weaker dark setae anteriorly. Mid trochanter with short pointed prominence in inner face basally. F 1 1.2× as long as C 1, 4x as long as wide, widest 0.3 from base; femoral formula approximately 5(4–5)/18(15–18)/14(14–15)/5(5–6) +2–4 ( Table 1), spines yellow, denticles black; basal spines small, contiguous with and forming basal extension of both av and pv spines.

Abdomen dark yellow; tergite 8 reduced, slightly more strongly sclerotized than preceding tergites; sternite 7 with long yellowish setae posteroventrally. Epan and Hypan fused ( Fig. 18 ), subspherical in lateral view, brownish yellow with distinct setae posteriorly; left and right lamellae broadly separated by unpigmented membrane. Cercus fused with Epan, yellowish, bilobed; upper lobe short, bluntly pointed, dorsally with numerous closely set long setae curving anteriorly and inwardly; lower lobe longer, narrowly digitiform with a few short setulae distally and more numerous and longer setae below basally. Subepandrial process brownish yellow, narrow, broadened and anvil-shaped apically. Phallus yellowish, narrow, gradually tapered apically. Postgonite (?) closely apposed with phallus, apically broader with lateral twisted ribbonlike process extending laterally to inner face of lower lobe of cercus.

Wing membrane faintly greyish yellow, veins brownish yellow. Squamae with dark fringes. Halter pale yellow.

Female unknown.

Etymology. – The specific name commemorates Mo Mo, a woman from Korat who was honoured with the epithet Thao Suranari (‘brave woman’) by Thailand’s King Rama III in recognition of her bravery during a nineteenth century Laotian invasion of Thailand.

Remarks. – This species is only known from 1,353 m on the sandstone mesa formations at Phu Ruea, Thailand in late September – early October.

Figures

Fig. 18. Chelipoda thaosuranaria new species, male genitalia. Abbreviations: Epan+Hypan, fused epandrium and hypandrium; lcer, lower lobe of cercus; mem, median membrane separating left and right lobes of fused epandrium + hypandrium; ph, phallus; pgt, postgonite; subep, subepandrial process; ucer, upper lobe of cercus.