Psilota spathistyla Young and van Steenis, 2020

Young, Andrew D., Skevington, Jeffrey H. & Steenis, Wouter Van, 2020, Revision of the Psilota Meigen, 1822 flower flies (Diptera: Syrphidae) of Australia, Zootaxa 4737 (1), pp. 1-127 : 75-77

Psilota spathistyla Young and van Steenis sp. nov.

(Species plate: Fig. 33 ; Genitalia: Fig. 46 A–B; Map: 63B)

Diagnosis: Face black, densely grey pollinose, with black pile. Frons and vertex black pilose. Thorax black. Hind femur with a low triangular apicoventral setulose carina. Hind tibia with basoventral spur. Calypter with dark brown border. Halter pale, sometimes with knob slightly pigmented. Abdomen black. Lateral edges of tergite 3 with many long, pale pile. Male genitalia with inner lobe broadest near base. Body length: 11.1–15.1 mm.

Description: MALE: Head: Head black, face densely grey pollinose. Face mostly black pilose with some pale pile around the anterior rim of the eye, frons and vertex black pilose. Scape and pedicel orange-brown, postpedicel brown. Postpedicel triangular, approximately 1.5 times as long as widest point. Eye densely brown pilose. Thorax: Thorax black. Legs mostly orange, with apical three-quarters of femora, base and apex of hind tibia, and apical tarsomeres brown. Hind femur with a low, pointed apicoventral setulose carina. Hind tibia with a basoventral spur. Pleuron densely grey pollinose. Pile on anepisternum and anepimeron mixed black and white, pile on remainder of pleuron white. Pile on scutum and scutellum mixed black and whitish-yellow. Wing faintly brown tinted on apical half. Wing bare on anterior three-quarters of cell bm and one-quarter of cell cua, cell c bare on basal third. Alula completely microtrichose. Halter pale, sometimes with knob slightly pigmented. Calypter with border dark brown, upper calypter hairs brown, lower calypter hairs yellow. Abdomen: Abdomen black. Tergite 2 mostly white pilose, with some central black pile at posterior border. Tergite 3 whitish-yellow pilose laterally, black pilose medially. Tergite 4 with mixed black and white pile. Sternites black, with white pilosity. Genitalia: Epandrium compact, slightly taller than long. Cercus approximately triangular, somewhat elongate. Outer lobe of surstylus inserted near top of inner lobe, bent sharply downwards at half its total length, and then swollen at apex. Inner lobe of surstylus Phallapodeme smooth. Gonostylus darkened.

FEMALE: Identical except for normal sexual dimorphism.

Etymology: The specific epithet ‘ spathistyla ’ consists of spathi-, derived from the Latin for ‘spatula’ (‘spathe’), and -styla, the Latin for “pen” or “writing implement”. This is in reference to the distinctive spatula-shaped genitalia of this species male, which can be used to distinguish it from that of Psilota nigripila sp. nov.

Specimens examined: HOLOTYPE: AUSTRALIA: Tasmania: Mt Barrow ; -41.366667 147.416667; 1000mm,

23.I.1992; coll. G. and A. Daniels; GDCBReg_19620; (1♂, AM). PARATYPES: Tasmania: Same as holotype, GDCBReg_19617–19618 (2♂, GDCB) ; Don River, nr Don , -41.183333 146.316667, on Leptospermum , 7.i.1992, G. and A. Daniels, Malaise trap, GDCBReg_19519 (1♂, GDCB) ; Franklin-Gordon Wild River National Park , Sum- mit of Donaghy’s Hill, -42.197778 145.931944, 10.i.2015, J.H., A.M. and A.W. Skevington, CNC457499 (1♂, CNC) ; Lyell Highway, Frankin R nature trail, -42.215700 146.019800, 11.i.2015, S.J. Grove, hand collected,

TMAG-F11623/CNC_ Diptera 253753 (1♂, TMAG); North of Corinna, -41.588514 145.189764, 12.i.2015, J.H., A.M. and A.W. Skevington, CNC457434 (1♀, CNC) ; Tarkine BushBlitz SG04 shrubland adj quarry at Browns Plain , -41.610000 145.175500, 29.i.2015, S. Grove, hand collected, TMAG-F11744/ CNC _ Diptera 253752 (1♀,

TMAG); Tarkine SG02, ridge NW of Little Savage River, -41.472100 145.163200, 28.i.2015, S.J. Grove, hand collected, TMAG-F11622/CNC_ Diptera 253749 (1♀, TMAG); Tarkine SG04, adj quarry at Browns Plain , -41.610000 145.175500, shrubland, 29.i.2015, S.J. Grove, hand collected, TMAG-F11618/ CNC _ Diptera 253748; TMAG- F11620/ CNC _ Diptera 253755; TMAG-F11621/ CNC_ Diptera 253757; TMAG-F11618; TMAG-F11619 (2♂, 3♀, TMAG); Warra Long Term Ecological Research Site 170, Grid: 744284, LTIS8211, -43.100000 146.683333, 14.i–12.ii.1998, Malaise trap, UQIC_ Reg 94610 (1♀, QM); Warra Longterm Ecological Research Site 59, Grid : 742279,LTIS8211, -43.100000 146.683333, 14.i–12.ii.1998, Malaise trap, UQIC_ Reg 94604 (1♀, QM) .

Discussion: Psilota spathistyla sp. nov. displays more divergence on COI than other Psilota and may represent a species complex. However, no morphological characters could be found to distinguish specimens that were more similar on COI than others, and it was therefore treated as a single species. This species has been collected on Leptospermum (Myrtaceae) .

Figures

FIGURE 33. P. spathistyla sp. nov., A) male dorsal habitus, B) male anterolateral face, C) male lateral habitus. Scale bar =1 mm.

FIGURE 46. Lateral and dorsal male genitalia of A, B) P. spathistyla sp. nov.; C, D) P. spinifemur sp. nov.; E, F) P. viridescens sp. nov.; and G, H) P. viridis Macquart. Scale bar =1 mm.