Efferia picea, Scarbrough & Perez-Gelabert, 2009

Aubrey G. Scarbrough & Daniel E. Perez-Gelabert, 2009, Review of the West Indian species of Efferia Coquillett (Diptera: Asilidae) with 13 new species and checklist: Part II. Hispaniola, Puerto Rico, and Lesser Antilles including Tobago and Trinidad, Zootaxa 1994, pp. 1-66 : 31-33

Efferia picea sp. nov.

Figs. 52–57 , Table 1

Male. Black, brownish-yellow tomentose, tibiae black. Measurements, body 16.0– 17.5 mm; wing 12.5–13.8 mm. Head: Brownish-yellow tomentose, mostly black setose. Face mostly with thin, black bristles, sparse yellowish setae medially, long thin setae along epistomal margin; face at antennae 1/2 as wide as 1 eye. Palpi mostly black setose, white or yellowish basally. Antennae, frons, and ocellar setae black. Occiput yellow or yellowish-gray, mostly white setose; 5–6 thin, black postocular bristles dorsally, surrounded by black setae, thinner black bristles extend to lower 2/3 of eye.

Thorax: Pronotum brownish-yellow tomentose, setae pale, bristles thin, black. Scutum with stripes and lateral spots dark brown tomentose, tomentum laterally and posteriorly brownish-yellow, sometimes yellowish-gray posteriorly; setae and bristles black, all thin, anterior setae as long as scape, 5 lateral and 5 dorsocentral bristles. Scutellum yellowish tomentose, setae mostly black, several yellow setae basally, setae longer than scape and pedicel combined, about as long as marginal bristles; 5–6 long, black marginal bristles, 2–3 of these thick, remaining 1–2 thinner. Pleura brown or brownish-yellow, vestiture black. Halter reddish or yellowish.

Wing: Brownish, especially dark along margin of veins and costal cell; costal dilation absent. Crossvein rm just before apical 1/3 of cell d. Cell r4 just beyond d, R4 recurrent vein longer than diameter of cell base.

Legs: Entirely black. Coxae brownish-yellow tomentose, mostly pale vestiture, several black setae on fore coxae, sparse or absent on mesothoracic and metathoracic coxae. Femora mostly yellowish setose, black on apical 1/3–1/2; bristles black. Tibiae and tarsi black, bristles black; dense setae mostly dark brownish-yellow or reddish-brown.

Abdomen: Black. Tergites 2–5 mostly brown tomentose, wide sides yellowish-gray or brownish-yellow tomentose and long, pale setae laterally, black setae dorsally. Sternites 1–5 yellowish-gray tomentose, setae long and erect on 1–4; segments 6–7 white tomentose. Segment 8 black, black setose.

Terminalia ( Figs. 52–55 ): Black, mostly black setose, sparse yellowish dorsally. Epandrium 2.4–2.5 longer than wide, dorsal process prominent. Gonostylus podiform apically, dilated wider below. Aedeagus with long tubes, recurved apically. Gonocoxa with short, moderately dense black setae, wide apically rounded anterodorsally.

Female. Measurements, body 13.5–17.4 mm; wing 11.0– 13.6 mm. Head: Face at antennae 1/2 as wide as 1 eye. Thorax: Anterior scutal setae as long as scape. Scutellum mostly or entirely yellow or black; setae about 1/2–2/3 as long as marginal bristles. Pleura with mostly black setae and bristles. Wing: Crossvein r-m at apical 1/4 of cell d. Abdomen: Tergites 3–5 mostly dark brown tomentose, appears black at some angles, black setose; tergite 7 dark brown tomentose dorsally, shining laterally, setae black; segment 1, wide sides of 2–6 gray tomentose, gray extends narrowly along apical margin of tergites 2–4 or 5, with long white setae. Sternites 1–6 dense gray or slightly brownish-gray tomentose, setae long white, becoming progressively shorter on each segment with longest setae on 1–3; sternite 7 sparsely pale brownish-gray tomentose with erect white setae, setae sometimes black apically. Terminalia ( Figs. 56–57 ): Length 5.0– 5.7 mm, 10–11 times longer than diameter at middle. Cercus 1/2 as long as tergite 9 dorsally.

Types. DOMINICAN REPUBLIC: La Vega Prov., P.N. Armando / Bermúdez, trail La Ciénaga de / Manabao-Los Tablones, 20. / viii.2006, D. Perez, R. Bastardo, / B. Hierro (holotype ♂, NMNH). Paratypes: same data as holotype (4 ♂, 2 ♀, NMNH; 1 ♂, 1 ♀, MHND).

Distribution. Dominican Republic: La Vega province. Captured at 900 to1700 meters in elevation during May through August.

Etymology. Latin picea for black, referring to the color of the tibiae.

Remarks. Efferia picea is distinguished by the mostly black vestiture of the body, brownish-yellow tomentum, mostly black mystax and palpi, face at antennae about 1/2 as wide as a compound eye, mostly or entirely black setose pleura, scattered black setae of the fore coxae, entirely black tibiae, and combined characters of the terminalia ( Figs. 52–57 ).

Figures

FIGURES 52–57. Efferia picea sp. nov. Male terminalia, lateral view: 52. Intact, left side; 53. Gonostylus with thick sclerotization; 54. Phallus; and 55. Aedeagus with tubes and phallic flange. Female terminalia, lateral view: 56. Ovipositor; 57. Lateral spermatheca.