Suffomyia Freidberg

McAlpine, D. K., 2007, The Surge Flies (Diptera: Canacidae: Zaleinae) of Australasia and Notes on Tethinid-Canacid Morphology and Relationships, Records of the Australian Museum 59 (1), pp. 27-64 : 60

Genus Suffomyia Freidberg

Suffomyia Freidberg, 1995: 448 . Type species (original designation) S. scutellaris Freidberg.

Diagnostic description. Minute flies; wing c. 0.9–1.5 mm long.

Head. Postvertical bristles proclinate, divergent; postfrons without setulae, except sometimes for a few between ocelli. Arista three-segmented, or two-segmented through loss of segment 4.

Thorax. Prothoracic precoxal bridge absent; posterior acrostichal setulae present or absent; prescutellar acrostichal bristle at most weakly differentiated; scutellum with or without two pairs of minor bristles in addition to two major pairs. Mid femur without posteroventral comb in either sex. Distal section of subcosta (beyond humeral crossvein) well sclerotized on c. middle third, weakened towards base, obsolete and unpigmented on c. distal third, thus ending freely in membrane well before subcostal break of costa; anterior crossvein meeting vein 4 distinctly basad of midlength of discal cell; basal section of vein 4, separating first basal and second basal cells, quite desclerotized; alula narrowed distally, its terminal margin narrowly rounded, setulae of its marginal fringe c. as long as maximum width of alula.

Abdomen of male. Dorsal protandrial sclerite two to three times as long as tergite 5; only one pair of surstyli present, each with two condyles (one anterior, one posterior) where it hinges with margin of epandrium; distiphallus (only known for S. scutellaris ) very short, apparently without associated papillae.

Abdomen of female (unknown in S. ismayi ). Tergite 7 without anterior apodeme.

Distribution. Palaearctic Region: Sinai ( Egypt and Israel). Australasian Region: Caroline Islands; New Guinea.

Notes

With the addition of two species to the only previously recognized representative, some of the previously used generic characters are seen to have only specific value, e.g., the shape of the head and antenna, the reduction of the acrostichal bristles and setulae, the number of scutellar bristles, some aspects of sclerotization of the female postabdomen, and the degree of proximal narrowing of the wing. As my research has shown additional differences between Suffomyia and Zalea , some probable differences awaiting confirmation from more material, and differences in range of character variation, I have set these out in the generic descriptions so that they may be readily contrasted.

I have experienced some difficulty in working with the old, dry, and, in one species, meagre material of these minute flies. My specific descriptions are therefore not as detailed as that of the type species given by Freidberg (1995), nor as those of most Zalea spp.

The following four apparent autapomorphies, not present in Zalea , support the monophyletic status of Suffomyia : postfrons without setulae between ocellar region and anterior margin; subcosta desclerotized distally; basal section of vein 4 desclerotized; in male, only one surstylus present, with two basal condyles.