Cheilosia erratica Barkalov & Peck, 1997

Barkalov, Anatolij V. & Ståhls, Gunilla, 2022, Cheilosia (Diptera, Syrphidae: Rhingiini) of Nepal with descriptions of 29 new species, European Journal of Taxonomy 829 (1), pp. 1-127 : 37-41

Cheilosia erratica Barkalov & Peck, 1997

Figs 18–19

Cheilosia erratica Barkalov & Peck, 1997a: 1173 . Type locality: “Okrestnosti Choroga, Botanicheskij sad, Tadzikistan” (holotype ♂, ZMMGU).

Cheilosia (Montanocheila) nigriventris Barkalov & Cheng, 2004: 327 . Type locality: “ China, Xizang [Autonomus Republic of Tibet], Yadong, 2800 m ” (holotype ♂, ZICAS). Syn. nov.

Cheilosia erratica – Barkalov & Peck 1997b: 1375. — Barkalov 2020: 248 .

Differential diagnosis

Cheilosia (Montanocheila) erratica is most similar to C. (M.) distincta , and differs by having yellow and black pilosity ventrally on the apical part of hind femur (vs only yellow pilosity in C. distincta ).

Material examined

NEPAL • 1 ♂, 3 ♀♀; Maharigaon, Nördl. ; 29°20′24″ N, 82°23′21″ E; 3400 m a.s.l.; 20 Jun. 1997; Creutzburg leg.; on Euphorbia sp. ; NME • 1 ♂; near Kathmandu, Bhurumche; 8500–9500 ft a.s.l.; 10 May 1967; Can. Nepal Exped.; Oak forest; CNC • 2 ♂♂; Prov. Bagmati, Langtang-Himal, Rimche to Ghora Tabela; 2500–3000 m a.s.l.; 12 Apr. 2004; J. Weipert leg.; “KF”; IBSJW / NME • 1 ♂; Prov. Mahakali, Hochlager vor Api bis Lager an Chamliya Khola bei Shinae [high camp before Api to camp at Chamliya Khola near Shinae]; 3400– 2800 m a.s.l.; 10 Jun. 2005; J. Weipert leg.; IBSJW / NME • 1 ♂; Prov. Gandaki, Bhimtang to Yak Kharka; 3700– 3000 m a.s.l.; 24 May 2013; J. Weipert leg.; labcode MZH _ Y2506 ; IBSJW / NME • 2 ♀♀; same data as for preceding; labcodes MZH _ Y2503 , MZH _ Y2504 ; IBSJW / NME • 1 ♀; same data as for preceding; IBSJW / NME • 1 ♂; Prov. Gandaki, Lho Bazar to Sama; 3100–3680 m a.s.l.; 17 May 2013; J. Weipert leg.; IBSJW / NME • 1 ♀; Solukhumbu Junbesi to Ringmo; 27°34′ N, 86°35′ E; 2700–3000 m a.s.l.; 12 May 97; Hauser leg. [515]; CSCA .

Description

Female

LENGTH. Body 9.4–13.4 mm, wing 8.8–10.9 mm.

HEAD. Face broad, in anterior view distinctly widened ventrally, antero-ventrally protruded, shiny black, covered with fine grey pollinosity; facial tubercle moderate in size, laterally compressed and distinct; parafacia relatively broad, ventrally shiny adjacent to face and dorsally grey pollinose, long yellow pilose; gena broad, with slight grey pollinosity and long pale (yellow) pilosity. Frons anteriorly broad and posteriorly narrower, with densely punctured lateral furrows and very fine medial furrow, in anterior ¼ with narrow stripes of pollinosity adjacent to eyes, covered with rather short, dense, yellow pilosity; lunule brownish or yellow, antennal pits separated. Scape black or brownish, pedicel basally black and pale-brown apically, basoflagellomere oval, distinctly enlarged, orange basally and brownish apically, arista long, narrow, black, bare. Vertex with yellow pilosity, ocellar triangle equilateral. Occiput with yellow pilosity.

THORAX. Postpronotum black, grey pollinose and yellow pilose. Scutum fine-punctured, shiny black, grey pollinose only laterally anterior to transverse suture; covered with dense, long, erect yellow pilosity, without black bristles laterally; scutellum with longer yellow pilosity, sometimes also with a few black pilosity on disc. Pleura moderately densely greyish-yellow pollinose, and with dense, erect, long, yellow pilosity.

LEGS. Fore coxa black, densely grey pollinose and yellow pilose, without baso-lateral spur; femora shiny black with yellow tips, fore and mid femur posteriorly and hind femur antero-ventrally with long yellow pilosity; tibia mostly yellow, fore and mid tibia brownish in apical part, hind tibia yellow in basal ⅓ and on tip and brownish-black in other part; all tarsi yellow ventrally, dorsally fore and hind tarsi black, mid tarsus yellow with black 5 th segment.

WING. Slightly brownish anteriorly, completely covered with microtrichia, Rs with short yellow and black pilosity along all length, inner angle between veins M

1

and R

4+5

right. Haltere and calypter yellow.

ABDOMEN. Broadly oval, in broadest part slightly broader than scutum at level of wing base, shiny black with erect, yellow pilosity, laterally longer on tergites and shorter medially.

Taxonomic remark

Barkalov & Peck (1997) described Cheilosia erratica based on one male from Tajikistan. No subgeneric classification was indicated, but the authors noted that among the species known from Tadzikistan, C. erratica was most similar to C. (Montanocheila) heptapotamica Stackelberg, 1963 .

Barkalov & Cheng (2004: 327) described Cheilosia (Montanocheila) nigriventris from China, Xizang [Autonomous Republic of Tibet], based on a male holotype and one male paratype. Body lengths of C. erratica and C. nigriventris are 12.7 mm and 11–11.5 mm, respectively. The colour of the pilosity of abdominal terga are reddish yellow in C. erratica , but yellowish in C. nigriventris . Both described taxa share the same, distinct structure of the male genitalia, especially of the superior lobe. The mtDNA COI barcode is identical among the tested samples of C. erratica from Tajiikistan and C. nigriventris from Nepal ( Fig. 1 ). Based on the high similarity of structures of male genitalia and the identical DNA barcode sequences we consider C. nigriventris a junior synonym of C. erratica . We here provide the description of the female sex of Cheilosia erratica based on specimens from Nepal (provinces Maharigaon, Bagmati and Mahakali, and Kathmandu area) and Tajikistan.

Remarks

Male specimens from Nepal differ from the type material from China by having almost only yellow pilosity on abdomen but only with black pilosity present posteriorly on tergite IV and sometimes at posterior corner of tergite III (one specimen with posterior ⅔ of tergite IV with black pilosity). The character of pilosity on wing vein Rs shows sexual dimorphism, males with only a few short pilosity (1–3) on basal half, while females have pilosity along all length of Rs.

Distribution

China, Nepal, Tajikistan.

Figures

Fig. 18. Cheilosia (Montanocheila) erratica Barkalov & Peck, 1997, ♂. A. Head, lateral view. B. Antenna, lateral view of pedicel and basoflagellomere. C. Superior lobe of hypandrium, lateral view. D. Aedeagus and aedeagal apodeme, lateral view. E. Surstylus and gonocercus, lateral view. After Barkalov & Peck 1997. Scale bars indicated in drawings.

Fig. 19. Cheilosia (Montanocheila) erratica Barkalov & Peck, 1997. A. ♀ (IBSJW/NME), dorsal view. B. ♂ (IBSJW/NME), dorsal view. C. Male head (IBSJW/NME), anterior view.

Fig. 1. Maximum likelihood tree based on mtDNA COI barcodes. Species labelled with subgeneric or species group membership. Taxa from Nepal in boldface.