Medetera glaucella Kowarz

Naglis, Stefan & Negrobov, Oleg P., 2014, Re-description of Medetera glaucella Kowarz, 1878 (Diptera, Dolichopodidae) based on type material, Zootaxa 3796 (1), pp. 194-196 : 194-195

Medetera glaucella Kowarz

( Figs 1 A–B)

Medeterus glaucellus Kowarz, 1878: 51 [printed 1878, see Pont (2011)].

Diagnosis. Antenna dark brown, arista apical; frons and face dark metallic blue, with dense grey pruinosity; postocular setae white; mesonotum dark metallic blue, with dense grey pruinosity; 4 pairs of strong dc, with some smaller setae anteriad; ac very small; 2 sa; 4 scutellar setae; coxae and legs entirely dark; mid tibia without ad/pd setae; setae on legs and coxae white; distal section of vein CuA twice as long as crossvein dm-cu; aedeagus flanked laterally by curved appendages ( Fig. 1 B); median epandrial lobe with whip-shaped seta ( Fig. 1 A), twice as long as lateral seta.

Type material examined. LECTOTYPE ♂ (here designated) from Italy labelled “Duino, 13.4.65, Mik” ( NMW). PARALECTOTYPE ♂ from Austria: “Freistadt, 13.5.71, Mik” ( NMW). Lectotype and paralectotype labels have been added.

Re-description. Male. Body length lectotype 1.9 mm, wing length 2.1 mm; body length paralectotype 1.8 mm, wing length 1.9 mm. Head: Frons dark metallic blue, with violet reflections, with dense grey pruinosity; face dark, with dense grey pruinosity in upper part, and dense yellowish pruinosity in lower part; clypeus dark, with dense grey pruinosity; narrowest distance between eyes two times distance between ocellar setae; palpus black, with white hairs; proboscis dark brown; antennal segments dark brown; first flagellomere rounded, about as long as high; arista apical, bare; postocular setae white. Thorax: Mesonotum and scutellum dark metallic blue, with dense grey pruinosity; thoracic setae black; 4 pairs of strong dc of almost same length, 2nd pair slightly smaller than 1st pair; 2–3 additional small setae in front of 1st pair; ac very small, 5–6 pairs, which are half as long as distance between rows; 2 sa, anterior seta distinctly smaller; 4 scutellar setae, laterals half as long as medians; 2 white ppls, lower twice as long as upper; pleura dark, with blue reflections, and dense grey pruinosity. Legs: Coxae and legs entirely dark brown, all setae and hairs white. Fore leg: Coxa with some anterior setae; femur, tibia and tarsomeres bare; relative length of femur/tibia and tarsomeres: 46/ 46:22:11:9:6:6. Mid leg: Coxa with strong white anterolateral seta in addition to anterior white setae; femur and tibia bare; relative length of femur/tibia and tarsomeres: 50/58:31:15:11:6:7. Hind leg: Coxa with strong white lateral seta; femur bare; tibia with 1 white dorsal seta subapically, and some small apical setae; basitarsus with incision and small tooth basally on posterior side; relative length of femur/tibia and tarsomeres: 50/67:18:23:13:7:6. Wing: Hyaline, veins dark brown; basal section of M distinctly shorter than distal section; CuAx ratio: 0.5; RMx ratio: 3.5; lower calypter brownish, with dark brown rim, with white setae; halter brown. Abdomen: Dark metallic blue-green, with white hairs. Hypopygium ( Figs 1 A–B): Epandrium dark brown, cercus, surstylus and hypandrium yellowish-brown. Epandrium ovate; hypandrium (ventral view) broad and subparallel, with acute apex; aedeagus flanked laterally by curved appendages; surstylus short and straight; ventral arm of surstylus with ovate apex, with 3 lateral and 1 median setae; dorsal arm of surstylus L-shaped, with small apical and small dorsal seta; epandrial lobes basally separated, median seta whip-shaped and twice as long as lateral seta; cercus with blade-like apical projection, with finger-like and horn-like ventroapical projections.

Remarks. The re-description in Negrobov & Stackelberg (1974: 303), based on specimens from Bakar ( Croatia) (22.IV.1888, Staudinger & Bang-Haas, Zoological Museum Helsinki), differs in several points from the re-description above (3 pairs of strong dc; basal section of vein M longer than distal section; distal section of vein CuA 1.5 times as long as crossvein dm-cu), and probably represents a different species. Parent’s (1938) re-description matches our redescription, except crossvein dm-cu is almost as long as the distal section of vein CuA (see Parent 1938, fig. 541). Recently, a new closely related species, Medetera glaucelloides Naglis , was described from Turkey ( Naglis 2013), which differs by entirely yellow legs and hypopygial characters. Medetera glaucella has been recorded from 12 countries in Europe, ranging from France to Russia ( Yang et al. 2006), but the true distribution of M. glaucella needs to be reevaluated. We suppose that under the typical phenotype with bare mid tibia and white postocular setae, commonly identified as “ Medetera glaucella ”, more than one species could be concealed. In saying that, we hope that the present paper can help to solve this taxonomic problem.

Figures

FIGURE 1. Medetera glaucella Kowarz, lectotype. A. hypopygium, lateral; B. hypandrium and aedeagus, ventral Aed = aedeagus; Cer = cercus; Dsur = dorsal arm of surstylus; Epl = epandrial lobes; Hyp = hypandrium; Vsur = ventral arm of surstylus) (scale bar = 0.1 mm).