Morellia (M.) pectinipes van Emden, 1965

Pamplona, Denise, Nihei, Silvio S., Couri, Márcia S. & Pont, Adrian C., 2016, Taxonomy of Morellia Robineau-Desvoidy (Diptera: Muscidae): revision of the subgenera Morellia s. str. and Parapyrellia Townsend, Zootaxa 4163 (1), pp. 1-110 : 68-70

30. Morellia (M.) pectinipes van Emden, 1965

( Figs 115–116 )

Morellia pectinipes van Emden, 1965: 112 . Type locality: INDIA, Bihar, Pusa. Holotype ♀, BMNH (seen).

Redescription. Female. Colour. Black, with intense grey pruinosity. Frontal vitta and fronto-orbital plate black, dusted with grey pruinosity; face and parafacial black with silver pruinosity; gena with grey pruinosity; antenna brown with grey pruinosity; palpus brown; mesonotum metallic black, dusted with grey pruinosity and with one silver-dusted central vitta on presutural acrostichals, pleura silver pruinose; postpronotal lobe, notopleuron and anepisternum silver pruinose; legs black; haltere yellow; calypters whitish, upper calypter on outer half white and opaque; wing without dark markings; abdomen with weak grey pruinosity but last two tergites with silver pruinosity laterally and ventrally.

Body length: 6.0 mm; wing length: 6.0 mm.

Head. Eyes bare, separated at level of anterior ocellus by 0.39–0.40 of head width; frons divergent towards lunule; ocellar triangle with 3 or 4 pairs of strong setae; fronto-orbital plate with 2 proclinate setae, 3 proclinate setulae and 1 reclinate setula; 12–13 pairs of frontal setae; postpedicel about 2.1 times the length of pedicel; pedicel with 2 setae and a few setulae; arista plumose, with 17–20 cilia, bare apicad, and with some secondary plumes as far as level of 5th or 6th cilia; vibrissa shorter than arista; 1 strong supravibrissal seta, half as long as vibrissa, and a few other setulae that extend to level of middle of postpedicel; 5 subvibrissal setae followed by 9 genal setae.

Thorax. Acrostichals 0+1; dorsocentrals 3+4; intra-alars 1+1; presutural 1; prealar 1, half the length of first supra-alar; supra-alars 2; postpronotals 4, the innermost weaker; notopleuron with 2 long, subequal setae and covered with ground-setulae; postalars 2; intrapostalar 1; scutellum with 1 basal, 2 discal and 1 apical pairs of setae, and latero-ventrally with many setae, the basalmost ones downcurved; postalar wall bare; suprasquamal ridge bare; proepisternal depression bare; proepimeron with about 3 long setae and a few setulae; prosternum broad and setulose; anepisternum with a posterior row of about 9 setae, with 2–3 weak setae upcurved on upper-anterior corner, and covered with short setulae; katepisternals 1+2; anepimeron extensively setulose; katepimeron bare; anatergite bare; katatergite setulose. Legs: fore femur with a posterodorsal row of setae on apical two-thirds, and a complete posteroventral row of setae; fore tibia with a posterodorsal row of short and strong setae, 1 dorsal and 1 anteroventral preapical setae, 1 ventral apical seta, and a golden ctenidium on ventral surface; fore tarsus with a golden ctenidium; mid femur without a tubercle, with 3 ventral setae on basal third and 4 posterior to posterodorsal preapical setae; mid tibia with a row of 5 strong and short setae on basal two-thirds, 2 stronger anteroventral setae on apical half, 1 anterodorsal and1 dorsal preapical setae and 2 anteroventral, 1 posteroventral and 2 ventral apical setae; hind femur with an anteroventral row of setae on apical half, an anterodorsal row of setae, a ventral row of weak setae on basal half, 2 posterodorsal preapical setae, and a few long posteroventral setulae on apical fourth; hind tibia with 5 short and subequal anteroventral setae on apical half, an anterodorsal row of short setae of which the middle one is longer, a long and strong posterodorsal seta on apical third, 1 anterodorsal, 1 dorsal, 1 anteroventral and 1 ventral preapical setae and no apical setae; hind tarsus with a golden brush ventrally. Wing with a uniform covering of microtrichia; dm-cu sinuous; stem-vein bare on dorsal surface, and ventrally with about 4 short setulae before humeral cross-vein and bare after humeral cross-vein; R2+3 bare on dorsal and ventral surfaces; R4+5 setulose from base to midway to r-m on dorsal surface and at base on ventral surface; 4–5 strong setae on basicosta.

Abdomen. With a lateral tuft of setulae on syntergite 1+2; tergite 4 with setae apically and tergite 5 with few discal setae; sternite 1 setulose.

Terminalia. Tergite 6 as 2 rods; tergite 7 as 2 rods, posteriorly with 2 small spines; tergite 8 as 2 rods; sternite 7 as 1 rod, posteriorly with 4 very small setae; sternite 8 as 1 rod, posteriorly with 3 plates with spines; enlarged spicules on intersegmental membrane between segments 6–7 and 7–8; epiproct triangular and with about 4 small spines; hypoproct with many setae; cercus flattened and not long ( Figs 115–116 ).

Male. Unknown.

Material examined. INDIA: Bihar state, Pusa , on pony, 6.xi.1922, T.B. Fletcher, holotype ♀ ( BMNH) ; same locality and collector, Justicia hedge, 11.iii.1915, 1 ♀ paratype ( BMNH) .

Distribution. ORIENTAL: India (Uttarakhand, Bihar), Sri Lanka.

Figures

FIGURES 115 – 116. Morellia (M.) pectinipes van Emden, female. 115. Ovipositor, dorsal view. 116. Ovipositor and spermathecae, ventral view.