Tomosvaryella ellipiensis Motamedinia & Skevington

Motamedinia, Behnam, Skevington, Jeffrey H. & Kelso, Scott, 2021, Revision of Tomosvaryella Aczél (Diptera: Pipunculidae) in the Middle East, with description of 19 new species, Zootaxa 5002 (1), pp. 1-103 : 27-28

Tomosvaryella ellipiensis Motamedinia & Skevington sp. nov.

Figs 12A–D , 53 , 66E –F

Diagnosis: This species can be recognized by the shape of epandrium in dorsal view, expanded towards the left side ( Fig. 12A ); small surstyli with a ventromedial projection in lateral view ( Fig. 12C–D ); phallic guide curved towards surstyli, with a pair of dorsolateral spines in lateral view ( Fig. 12C ).

Description: MALE: Body length (excluding antennae): 2.6 mm. Head. Scape, pedicel, arista dark brown, flagellum brown; scape and pedicel without setae; flagellum tapering (LF: WF = 3.0). Eyes meeting for a distance of 7–8 facets. Frons silver-gray pollinose. Vertex black, lacking pollinosity. Occiput dark and gray pollinose. Thorax. Postpronotal lobe light yellow, gray pollinose with 2–3 small pale setae along the upper margin (up to 0.02 mm). Prescutum and scutum black, with uniseriate rows of intra-alar setae. Scutellum black, silver-gray pollinose, without bristle. Subscutellum and pleura dark brown, gray pollinose. Wing. Length: 2.5 mm. LW:MWW = 2.6. Wing almost entirely covered with microtrichia. Cross-vein r-m reaching cell dm at the middle. M 1 strongly undulating in middle. Halter length: 0.28 mm. Whitish, narrowly light brown at base. Legs. Dark brown but narrowly yellow at base of tibiae and all tarsal segments except distitarsi. Trochanters smooth. Femora partly gray pollinose, hind femur shining in posterior. Hind femur bearing two rows of dark, peg-like anteroventral spines in apical one third. Fore, mid and hind femora with 1–2 wrinkled indentations in basal quarter. Tibiae with two rows of short setae on anterior and three rows on posterior side. Hind tibia with 1–2 wrinkled indentations in the middle. Tarsi light brown, gray pollinose. Pulvilli shorter than distitarsi. Claws white with black tips. Abdomen. Ground color dark brown. Tergite 1 entirely gray pollinose with 3–4 yellowish short lateral setae (up to 0.05 mm). Tergites 1–5 with scattered yellowish setae (up to 0.05 mm). Sternites brown laterally and dark centrally, gray pollinose. Genitalia. Genital capsule in dorsal view: epandrium and surstyli brown, gray pollinose. Epandrium wider than long (MLE:MWE = 0.5), expanded towards left side ( Fig. 12A ). Surstyli small, rather symmetrical, triangular-shaped, slightly curved to each other at apex ( Fig. 12A ). Genital capsule in ventral view: gonopods large and slightly equal in height, subepandrial sclerite wide basically ( Fig. 12B ). Genital capsule in lateral view: both surstyli small with ventromedial projection (12 C–D); phallic guide broad at base, curved towards surstyli, with two small dorsolateral spines at basal half ( Fig. 12C ); phallus with three small ejaculatory ducts, one broader than other ( Fig. 12C ). FEMALE: unknown.

Etymology: The specific epithet refers to Ellipi, the historical name of Kermanshah, from where the holotype has been collected.

Specimen examined: HOLOTYPE: IRAN: Kermanshah: Gheshlagh , 34°56’N, 46°27’E, 1533 m a.s.l., 1.vii.2015, M. Zardouei, Malaise trap, JSS51945 (1♂, CNC).

Distribution: Iran ( Fig. 53 ).

Note: Based on DNA barcodes, T. ellipiensis sp. nov. is genetically most similar to T. teligera (5.6% pairwise divergence).

Figures

FIGURE 12. Male genitalia of Tomosvaryella ellipiensis sp. nov., holotype (JSS51945, CNC) A) dorsal view, B) ventral view, C) ejaculatory apodeme, D, E) lateral view.

FIGURE 53. Distribution of Tomosvaryella ellipiensis sp. nov., T. geniculata, T. helwanensis, T. jubata, T. kiansiae sp. nov., T. nigronitida in the Middle East.

FIGURE 66. Male habitus of Tomosvaryella species A–B) T. bistounensis sp. nov., holotype (JSS51939, CNC) A) in dorsal view B) in lateral view, C–D) T. cyprusensis sp. nov., paratype (JSS52349, CNC) C) in dorsal view D) in lateral view, E–F) T. ellipiensis sp. nov., holotype (JSS51945, CNC): E) in dorsal view F) in lateral view.