Mesembrinella aeneiventris ( Wiedemann, 1830 )

Whitworth, Terry L. & Yusseff-Vanegas, Sohath, 2019, A revision of the genera and species of the Neotropical family Mesembrinellidae (Diptera: Oestroidea), Zootaxa 4659 (1), pp. 1-146 : 68-73

Mesembrinella aeneiventris ( Wiedemann, 1830)

( Figs 35–36, 125–126, 205, 249, 292, 336, 378, 421)

Dexia aeneiventris Wiedemann, 1830: 376 . Holotype male (NMW), not examined. Type locality: Brazil.

Huascaromusca cruciata Townsend (1918: 112) .

Huascaromusca aeneiventris: Peris & Mariluis (1984: 255) ; Kosmann et al. (2013: 77); Wolff & Kosmann (2016: 867); Wolff et al. (2017: 253); Marinho et al. (2017: tab. 1).

Mesembrinella aeneiventris: Cerretti et al. (2017 : tab. 2).

Diagnosis. A medium-sized fly, averaging 10 mm (9–11/5) in length. Postpronotal lobe 2x 2; subcostal sclerite bare; outer posthumeral seta present; thorax brown with four whitish tomentose stripes; pleural area orange; abdomen bluish with whitish tomentum; thorax with ac 1:1 or 2:1. Male frons broad, 0.08 of head width at narrowest; ST5 very broad ( Fig. 249); terminalia as in Figs. 35–36. Female frons 0.22 of head width at narrowest; T6 of RV shape, as in Fig. 292.

Redescription. Male. Head. Frons broad, 0.08/2 of head width at narrowest, as wide as fronto-orbital at level of lunule. Fronto-orbital slender with silvery tomentum; frontal setae ascending about 60% of distance to vertex; frontal vitta dark orange; upper parafacial silvery, lower parafacial orange; gena pale orange with silvery tomentum; postgena pale yellow with long yellow setae; occiput with pale tomentum and silky pale yellow setae; median occipital sclerite broad, shiny dark orange; pedicel and first flagellomere dull orange; eye with median facets about 2x size of lateral facets; ocellar triangle medium-sized, anterior ocellus slightly larger than posterior ocelli.

Thorax. Dorsum brown with four pale tomentose stripes; pleura orange with faint bluish reflections [good specimens]; chaetotaxy: ac 1:1 [sometimes 2:1 on one side], dc 2:3, ia 1, ph 1, ppn 2x 2, kat 1:1, meron typical with long, slender tan setae, 1 pair converging ap, sa absent, 1 weak lat, 1 stout bas, 1 weak pb, 1 disc; subscutellum weakly developed; spiracles pale yellow, medium-sized; legs: femora orange with brown apices, tibiae and tarsi brown. Wing yellowish along costa, faintly yellow throughout; subcostal sclerite bare; basicosta pale yellow; tegula pale orange; section IV 0.11 of section III; disc of upper calypter light tan; rim of upper calypter with short dark setae; lower calypter pale yellow with long white setae on rim.

Abdomen with T1+2 pale orange midway, dull orange laterally; T3 dull orange; T4–5 dull orange, often with faint bluish reflections; disc of T5 with horizontal row of stout setae, rest of disc with sparse, fine setae. Terminalia in left lateral view with surstylus short and slender, apical end curved slightly backward, cercus with apical hook ( Fig. 35); in posterior view, cerci with broad bases gradually tapering to slender tips ( Fig. 36); phallus in lateral view with moderate-sized epiphallus curving backward ( Fig. 125); phallus in dorsal view with narrow hypophallic lobes with coarse serrations ( Fig. 126); pre- and postgonite and ejaculatory sclerite as in Fig. 205; ST1–5 ( Fig. 249) with ST5 exceptionally broad and wing-like.

Female. Similar to male except frons 0.22/2 of head width at narrowest; T6 of RV shape, T7 of inverted Vshaped incision on rear, T8 as two sclerites ( Fig. 292); ST6, 7 and hypoproct as in Fig. 336, ST8 with stout setae; spermathecae filiform as in Fig. 378; ST2–5 as in Fig. 421.

Material examined. Brazil, Rio de Janeiro. 1 ♀ *, Servico Febre Amarela, M.E.S., Bras , ix.1938 ( USNM) . Sao Paulo. 1 ³*, Estação Biológica de Boracéia, Salesópolis , 16.iii.1972, J.H. Guimarães ( USNM) ; 1 ³*, “Rioʺ, 8.viii.1923, L.G. Saunders ( NHMUK) .

Distribution. Brazil. Guimar„es (1977) also listed it from Ecuador, Colombia, Costa Rica, Panama and Peru.

Remarks. This species was rare in our search for specimens. Records of it from Panama and Costa Rica need to be verified; numerous mesembrinellids were examined from these countries, but none belonged to this species. No specimens were barcoded.