Fulgenta apicalis, Macgowan, Iain, 2017

Macgowan, Iain, 2017, A new genus and species within the tribe Earomyiini (Diptera, Lonchaeidae), Zootaxa 4216 (3), pp. 201-224 : 206-208

Fulgenta apicalis sp. nov.

( Fig. 1 & 6–9 )

Description. Male: Head: Eye bare. Frons black, dulled by grey dusting, ocellar triangle glittering black, frontal and interfrontal setulae very short. Orbital plate shining black, bare apart from orbital seta. Lunule, base colour brown, covered in sparse silver pollinosity as are parafacials and face dorsally. Anterior genal setulae in single row of 5 along mouth margin. Antennae entirely black, 1st flagellomere length to depth ratio 2:1. Arista short plumose; ratio of plumosity at maximum extent to depth of 1st flagellomere 0.3:1.

Thorax: mesonotum, anepisterum and katepisternum shining dark emerald green, other sclerites black Anepisternum with 1 anterodorsal and 2 posterior setae. 1 seta on both proepimeron and proepisternum. Katepisternum with 1 dorsal seta, 4–5 setulae on anterior part of sclerite. Scutellum; disc shining emerald green, on margin between lateral and apical setae with 2 short setulae, 0 between apical setae. Calypteres pale with whitish fringes. Wing apically with obvious brown shading, reaching from where vein r1 reaches the costa to apex, particularly evident anteriorly between vein R4+5 and costa. Veins yellow basally, brown in apical shading, vein R2+3 rather sinuous. Wing length 2.5mm. Legs black, all basal and 2nd tarsomeres pale, apical tarsomeres darkened.

Abdomen: basal tergites shining dark green, apical segment with more blue reflections, with a rather angular apical excavation.

Male terminalia: Epandrium; with 9th and 10th terga not completely fused, 9th tergite long and relatively narrow, attached to anterior surface of, and approximately half as wide as, 10th terga, 10th terga in lateral view triangular in shape, 2.2x as wide as high. Cerci elongated laminate structures, in adult male specimens they can often be seen extending below abdomen, 1.2x as long as epandrium, each cercus long and narrow, 6x as long as wide, narrowed apically, fused only for a short distance on basal third, covered with dense fine setulae on apical third. Surstyli represented only by a rather narrow, rod-like structure with a slight lateral flange from which arise approximately 6 long, strong, ventrally directed curved setulae. Phallus S-shaped, basally rather stout, apically sinuous with a pair of long, thin medial spurs.

Female: This is the only species within the genus in which the female can be confidently identified due to the apical shading of the wing.

Frons widening slightly from level of ocellar triangle to antennal bases where it is 0.75x width of eye; subshining black, covered with fine microsculpture slightly domed centrally and with a slight semi-circular depression anterior to ocellar triangle. Oviscape brownish black with strap-like sclerites twice as long as basal portion. Aculeus long and thin, apical segment with a tiny pair of ventral setae at apex.

Type material. Holotype ♂. CAMEROON; Rt. N 9, 20km. E. of Sangmélima , 7.xi.1987, leg. A. Freidberg ( TAUI)

Paratypes: 1♂, 2♀ with the same data as the Holotype. KENYA; Cheymen , Rt. B 1, 10km E. of Kericho, 19.ix.1992 , A. Freidberg, 1♂ ( TAUI) . DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC of the CONGO; Parc Nationale Garamba, Miss. H. de Saeger, 28.xi.1951, 1♂ ; 8.xi.1951, 1♀ (MRAC).

Differential diagnosis. The fumose area on the apex of the wing make this species distinctive in both sexes, the cerci are extremely long and narrow, the surstyli are very rudimentary, the phallus has 2 very distinct long medial spurs.

Etymology. The specific epithet refers to the apical darkening of the wing.

Figures

FIGURES 6 – 9. Fulgenta apicalis sp. nov. 6. Epandrium and associated structures, posterior view. 7. Same, lateral view. 8. Epandrium, internal view, showing surstylus and associated structures. 9. Phallus, lateral view.