Physiphora rugosa, Elena P. Kameneva & Valery A. Kroneyev, 2016

Elena P. Kameneva & Valery A. Kroneyev, 2016, Revision of the Genus Physiphora Fallén 1810 (Diptera: Ulidiidae: Ulidiinae), Zootaxa 4087 (1), pp. 1-88 : 66-68

Physiphora rugosa sp. n.

Figures 313–322 .

Material. Type. Holotype ♂: South Africa: Eastern Cape: “Grahamstown / E.C.P. / 11.iii. [19]55 / P. S. Greathead”, “ Holotype ”, “ Holotype Physiphora rugosa Steyskal ‘64” [red label] (BMNH). Paratypes: South Africa: 1♂: “Cape Province, Matjesfontein, 1621. x.1928 ”, “S. Africa, R. E. Turner, 1928—491” (BMNH) (dissected); 1♀: “Resolution / Albany Distr / 23.III.1928 / A.Walton” (USNM).

Diagnosis. P. rugosa sp. n. is similar to P. obscura and P. tarsata in the combination of the fore basitarsomere white, mesonotum densely rugulose, with shining black postpronotal lobe and margins of transverse suture, differing from them by the frons strongly wrinkled in anterior half (smooth in P. obscura , deeply pitted in P. tarsata ) and mesonotum subshining green to violet on scutum and blue dull blue to black on scutellum; it also differs from P. tarsata by the facial carina with λ-shaped white microtrichose area (in P. tarsata face with entire transverse microtrichose band). It is similar to P. spriggsi sp. n. in having wrinkled or deeply pitted frons and wide facial rigge, clearly differing from that species by creamy fore metatarsus and facial carna with λ-shaped mark (respectively, black and entirely devoided microtrichia in P. spriggsi sp. n.). P. tarsata (Macquart) , another species with wrinkled or pitted frons and white fore metatarsus, differs by face with entire transverse microtrichose band and mesonotum subshining greenish, and frons deeply and widely pitted in anterior half and wrinkled posteriorly (uniformly deep wrinkled over whole frons in P. rugosa sp. n.). P. rugosa sp. n. is similar to P. aperta in having wing with brownish veins and brownish yellow pterostigma, differing from it by narrowly closed cell r4+5 and different coloration of head and body. P. rugosa sp. n. differs also from P. spriggsi sp. n., which often has rugose frons and face, by narrow facial carina with microtrichose pattern (in P. spriggsi sp. n., as wide as antennal groove and devoided of microtrichia) and subshining green mesonotum (in P. spriggsi sp. n., shining golden green), as well as preglans with wide black spines (in P. spriggsi sp. n., bare and smooth).

Description. Head ( Figs. 314–315 ) black, with dark brown frons, face and gena. Frons 1.0–1.1 times as long as wide, dark brown, subshining with moderately small round parafrontal microtichose spot not reaching anterior margin ( Fig. 315 ), deeply wrinkled or pitted, without expressed calluses, flat or slightly convex, finely yellowish setulose. Vertical plates and ocellar triangle shining black; 2 pairs of black orbital setae; ocellar setae lateroclinate, as long as orbital setae.

Face brown, facial carina very wide, with steep lateral margins and wrinkled surface, brown or brown with black pattern, with white λ-shaped microtrichose area widely separated from microtrichose antennal grooves; epistome wrinkled, shining black, lateral sides of face moderately high, black. Gena brown, half as high as eye; facial ridge and parafacial subshining brown, more or less wrinkled, each with narrow white microtrichose stripe; gena posteriorly without microtrichose mark separating it from partly brownish yellow postgena ( Fig. 313 ). Occiput black with partly brown postgenae. Medial vertical seta 0.4 times as long as frons width, 1.5 times as long as lateral vertical, 4 times as long as ocellar, orbital, and 2.5 times as long as postocellar setae. Antenna yellowish brown; flagellomere 1 laterally brown, rounded apically, 1.8–2 times as long as wide, greyish microtrichose; arista bare, yellowish brown in basal 1/6, remainder black. Clypeus black. Palp black, grey microtrichose and black setose. Mouthparts black.

Thorax ( Fig. 314 ). Scutum black, roughly rugulose, subshining, with golden-green to green (in holotype) or cyan to deep violet sheen; antepronotum, postpronotal lobe, posterior surface of notopleural triangle, supra-alar and postalar parts of scutum, anterior half of anepisternum and katepisternum, and whole anepimeron shining black; posterodorsal parts of anepisternum and katepisternum rugulose; postscutellum black, gray microtrichose; posteroventral margin of scutellum without microtrichose area; anatergite, katatergite and lateroventral parts of mediotergite sparsely grey microtrichose; medial part of mediotergite finely shagreened, with green or golden reflection. Scutum with acrostichal, dorsocentral, and intra-alar rows of setulae; acrostichal seta indistinguishable or lacking; dorsocentral setae hair-like; other setae moderately long, black: one postprononal, 2 postsutural supraalar, one intra-alar and one postalar.

Scutellum densely rugulose, usually with deep blue reflection or pitchy black, apparently bare or with indistinguishable setulae; 2 pairs of black scutellar setae.

Wing. Pale yellowish or hyaline, with partly brownish veins; pterostigma brownish yellow, cell r4+5 narrowly closed; apical section of M slightly arcuate ( Fig. 316 ). Postero-apical extension of cell cup 1.4–1.5 times as long as vein A1+CuA2, and 3 times as long as transverse section of vein CuA2. Calypters with white fringe. Length: 3.4–3.6 mm.

Legs. Black except fore tarsus with basitarsomere creamy white in basal 4/5; mid- and hind femora and tibiae entirely brown or black; mid and hind tarsi yellow except 2 or 3 last tarsomere dark brown; all setae black; fore femur not swollen, postero-ventrally with 5–6 almost non-thickened short setae in apical half.

Abdomen. Both tergites and sternites shining black, laterally finely shagreened, with slight golden reflection; all setulae black; abdominal tergite 1 basally sparsely grey microtrichose.

Male postabdomen brown to black; epandrium as on Fig. 319 , cerci with short triangular nipple-like structures ( Fig. 320 ), phallus with stipe slightly longer than preglans and glans; preglans with rough black spines or swellings ( Fig. 317 a); glans with 5–6 short lobes ( Fig. 318 ). Hypandrium ( Fig. 321 ) asymmetric, with well developed triangular vanes of phallapodeme).

Female terminalia not dissected.

Distribution. South Africa.

Biology unknown.

Etymology. Specific epithet rugosa means “wrinkled” in Latin and reflects the structure of frons and face. The unpublished name originally proposed by G. C. Steyskal is used.

Figures

FIGURES 313 – 316. Physiphora rugosa: 313, habitus, left; 314, head and thorax, dorsal; 315, head, anterior; 316, wing. Scale 1 mm.

FIGURES 317 – 322. Physiphora rugosa: 317, ♂ phallus (a — fragment of preglans, enlarged); 318, glans, enlarged; 319, epandrium, posterior; 320, epandrium, anterior; 321, hypandrium, ventral; 322, ejaculatory apodeme.