Houghia romeroae Fleming & Wood

Fleming, Alan J., Wood, Monty, Smith, Alex, Hallwachs, Winnie & Janzen, Daniel H., 2014, Revision of the New World species of Houghia Coquillett (Diptera, Tachinidae) reared from caterpillars in Area de Conservación Guanacaste, Costa Rica, Zootaxa 3858 (1), pp. 1-90 : 80-81

Houghia romeroae Fleming & Wood , sp. nov.

Figs. 2 a, 41 a–c

Diagnosis. Houghia romeroae belongs to the H. blancoi group of species ( H. blancoi , H. romeroae , H. chavarriae , H. marini , and H. matarritai ). It has few distinctive features except in the male terminalia and the the presence of gold tomentosity only directly adjacent to the ocellar triangle, covering less than 25% of the fronto-orbital plate. The eye is bare and the antenna is entirely black. The ground colour of the abdomen is black, and sex patches are confined to tergites 4 and 5. The apex of the first flagellomere is shorter than the face by half the length of the pedicel. Gold tomentosity on the frons is diffuse and not well defined in area, but extends from vertex to the upper fronto-orbital setae ( Fig. 41 b), thus is more extensive than in H. blancoi .

Description. Male. Antenna black. When viewed in profile, antenna arises distinctly above middle of eye. Length of first flagellomere almost extending to facial margin (usually shorter by less than length of pedicel). Facial ridge bare except for a few (usually 3–5) decumbent small setae above vibrissa. Palpus pale, usually distinctly yellowish. Postgena behind postoccipital row, above level of lower facial margin, with a small patch of few black setae. Parafacial silver. Colour of fronto-orbital plate gold only at vertex, adjacent to ocellar triangle, the remainder silver (up to 25% coverage). Surface of fronto-orbital plate almost bare. Ocellar triangle, when viewed from above appearing to be notched anteriorly. Diameter of anterior ocellus equal to, or greater than, diameter of base of adjacent ocellar seta. Ocellar setae arising beside, or slightly in front of, anterior ocellus. Eye bare. Postpronotum with 4 or 5 postpronotal setae. Dark stripes on either side of dorsocentral row of setae separated from one another by yellow tomentosity. Median and lateral stripes on either side of scutum separate from each other posteriorly. Postsutural dorsocentral setae 4. Anterior quadrant of anepisternum covered with short setae except for usually 3 to 5 distinctly larger setae. Katepisternum with three setae, the middle one always the smallest. Vein R1 bare dorsally. Legs ranging from reddish brown to yellow tinged but overall dark. Coxae dark usually concolourous with remainder of leg. Ground colour of dorsal surface of abdomen dark to black. Ground colour of ventral surface of abdomen entirely black. Sex patches present on tergites 4 and 5. Ground colour of sex patches shiny black. Terminalia (not illustrated due to poor quality of specimen): surstylus equilaterally oblong shaped, posterodorsal half bare, apex bearing apical spines along lower half only, tip with strong inwardly apical curve when viewed dorsally. Cerci rounded, apex with blunt, hooked tip, ventral surface haired, about as long as surstylus. Data for sternite 5 was unavailable, and due to the scarcity of this species could not be obtained at this time. Only one male remains undissected, and this specimen is designated as the holotype.

Hosts. Houghia romeroae has been reared only 6 times, from a sample of 74 wild-caught dry forest caterpillars of Lacosoma maldera Schaus (Mimallonidae) . This fly was reared from no other species of caterpillar.

Holotype. ♂, CNC. Type locality: Costa Rica, Area de Conservación Guanacaste, Prov. Guanacaste, Sector El Hacha, Estación Los Almendros (11.03226°, -85.52776°), 290 m, 11/25/2008, Lucia Ríos, DHJPAR0030201.

Paratypes. 1 ♂, 3 ♀ ( CNC) Costa Rica, Guanacaste, ACG database codes: DHJPAR0008132, DHJPAR0008123, DHJPAR0008142, DHJPAR0008117.

Etymology. Houghia romeroae is dedicated to Luz Maria Romero of Liberia, Guanacaste, Costa Rica, in recognition of her extreme enthusiasm for helping the ACG parataxonomists that rear these tachinids to improve their caterpillar and parasitoid inventory abilities.

Distribution. Costa Rica, ACG, Prov. Guanacaste, dry forest, 285–300 m elevation.

Figures

FIGURE 2. Lateral view of head, detailing the position of the antennae relative to the middle of the eye. a. Houghia romeroae sp. nov. b. Houghia chavarriae sp. nov.

FIGURE 41. General morphology of Houghia romeroae sp. nov. a. Dorsal habitus. b. Frontal view of head. c. Lateral habitus.