Diplosmittia dracomaris Dantas & Hamada, 2024

Dantas, Galileu P. S., Amat, Eduardo & Hamada, Neusa, 2024, New species and record of Diplosmittia Saether, 1981 (Diptera: Chironomidae, Orthocladiinae) from Brazil and Colombia, Zootaxa 5397 (1), pp. 127-134 : 128-131

Diplosmittia dracomaris Dantas & Hamada sp. n.

urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:F00CE735-5853-4CD4-9650-1F9871ADEB06

Type material. Holotype ♁, BRAZIL, Ceará State, Ubajara, Ubajara National Park , Cafundó waterfall , 03°50’13”S, 40°54’35”W, 805 m a.s.l., 25–26.II.2023, light trap, N. Hamada, J. Silva, J.M.C. Nascimento & G.P. Amorim Jr. leg. ( INPA) . PARATYPES: 3 ♁♁, as holotype ( INPA) .

Etymology. The specific epithet is a tribute to Francisco José do Nascimento, also known as “Drag„o do Mar” (draco maris in Latin), who was a sea man and an important Brazilian abolitionist leader born in Ceará State, where the new species was collected.

Diagnostic characters. The new species can be separated from all other Diplosmittia species by the combination of a well-developed costal extension, virga strongly reduced to a small horizontal bar, and inferior volsella present.

Description. Male (n = 3).

Total length 1.68–1.73 mm. Wing length 0.99 mm. Total length/wing length 1.74. Wing length/profemur length 3.20.

Coloration ( Fig. 1C ). Head and antenna dark brown, palp light brown; thorax with median scutal vittae, postnotum, median anepisternum and preepisternum darker brown. Wing veins light brown, R 1, R 2+3, R 4+5 and costal extension darker, membrane with pale brownish undertone. Legs brown, hind leg lighter. Abdomen light brown, TVI–TVIII with slightly darker posterior band.

Head. Antennae with 13 flagellomeres, with the last three being difficult to distinguish from each other; ultimate flagellomere 142–147 μm long; sensilla chaetica on second, third and ultimate flagellomeres. AR 0.30–0.32. Postorbitals 1–2, outer verticals 3–4, inner verticals absent. Clypeus with 5–6 setae. Tentorium 98 μm long, 14 μm wide; stipes not discernible. Palp segment lengths (in μm): 13–15, 22–27, 40–43, 38–42, 44–48. Third palpomere with 2 sensilla clavata subapically, longest 12–14 μm long.

Thorax. Antepronotum without setae. Dorsocentrals 4–6, acrostichals 2 in median field, prealars 3. Scutellum with 3–4 setae.

Wing. VR 1.47–1.53. R 2+3 ending closer to R 4+5 than to R 1. Costal extension 118–130 μm long; false vein almost reaching tip of wing; Cu 1 slightly sinuate. Brachiolum with 1 seta.

Legs. Spur of fore tibia 26–31 μm long; spurs of mid tibia 14–17 μm and 15–18 μm long; spurs of hind tibia 15–17 and 35–36 μm long, tibial comb with 9–10 bristles. Width at apex of fore tibia 22–23 μm; of mid tibia 24–25 μm; of hind tibia 29–30 μm. Lengths (in μm) and proportions of legs as in Table 1 .

Hypopygium ( Figs. 2A–D , 3A–C ). Anal point well-developed, without crest, 40–48 μm long; 35–40 μm wide at base; 9–12 μm wide at apex; with 9–11 strong setae ( Fig. 2A ); laterosternite IX with 2–4 setae. Phallapodeme 70–73 µm long; transverse sternapodeme slightly arched, 68–75 µm long. Virga a small horizontal bar, 10 µm long. Gonocoxite 98–102 µm long, with broadly rounded inferior volsella ( Fig. 2C ); superior volsella indicated as basal swelling of inner margin of gonocoxite. Main lobe of gonostylus somewhat triangular, 46–48 μm long, with large crista dorsalis, with 3 dorsal setae and a ventral row of 7 setae subapicaly; basal lobe 56–60 μm long, with 6 small ventral setae; megaseta 9–10 μm long. HR 1.92–2.13; HV 3.26–3.65.

Female imago and immatures. Unknown.

Figures

FIGURE 1. Diplosmittia dracomaris sp. n. (Diptera: Chironomidae): A–B. Stream where the new species was collected, at the Ubajara National Park, Ceará, Brazil. C. Male habitus, lateral view.

FIGURE 2. Diplosmittia dracomaris sp. n. (Diptera: Chironomidae), adult male: A–B. Hypopygium, in dorsal view. C. Hypopygium in dorsal view, with tergite IX removed, the red arrow points to the inferior volsella. D. Hypopygium in ventral view, the red arrow points to virga. Scale bar = 25 µm.

FIGURE 3. Diplosmittia dracomaris sp. n. (Diptera: Chironomidae), adult male: A. Hypopygium, in dorsal view, with tergite IX removed. B. Gonostylus, in ventral view. C. Gonostylus in dorsal view. Scale bar = 25 µm.