Mesembrinella anomala (Guimarães, 1977)

(Figs 99–100, 189–190, 237, 280, 324, 368, 409, 453, 488, 496–497)

Thompsoniella anomala Guimar „es, 1977: 54. Holotype male (MZSP), not examined. Type locality: San Diego, Venezuela.

Thompsoniella anomala: Toma & Carvalho (1995: 139); Kosmann et al. (2013: 78); Wolff et al. (2014: 321); Marinho et al. (2017: tab. 1); Velásquez et al. (2017: 109).

Mesembrinella anomala: Cerretti et al. (2017: tab. 2).

Diagnosis. A medium-sized fly with subshining blue thorax and abdomen, averaging 10.8 mm (10–12/5) in length. Anterior thoracic spiracle with broad oval opening above (see Fig. 5). Postpronotal setae 2x 2; wing with faint yellowish infuscation on distal 2/3 along costa; scutellum without discal setae; gena with some pale orange setae; fore femur brown; ac usually 0:1, rarely 0:0; male with T5 about 2x as long as T4 (Fig. 496); epandrium with a pair of knob-like anteroventral projections (Fig. 99, 497); epiphallus long, slender and sharply curved backward (Fig. 189).

Redescription. Male. Frons broad, 0.096 (0.09–0.10/5) of head width at narrowest. Fronto-orbital and parafacial silvery when viewed from above and orange when viewed from below; frontal setae ascending halfway to vertex; frontal vitta broad, extending to ocellar triangle, orange below and black above; gena pale orange with whitish tomentum a short horizontal row of 2–3 stout setae, and pale orange setae; postgena and occiput with silvery tomentum and long pale setae; median occipital sclerite shiny black with faint whitish tomentum; antenna: pedicel orange: base of first flagellomere orange, tip with tan tomentum; base of arista dark orange, tip black; palpus typical; eye with median facets 3x size of lateral facets; ocellar triangle small, anterior ocellus 2x size of posterior ocelli; facial ridge with short black supravibrissal setae ascending about 1/10 of distance to antennal base.

Thorax. Dorsum subshining blue with pale tomentum; pleura silvery-orange; chaetotaxy: ac 0:1, rarely 0:0, dc 2:2, ia 0, ph 0, kat 1:1, ppn 2x 2, meral setae typical, with short horizontal section, 1 pair crossed ap, 1 stout bas, 1 sa, 1 lat, 1 pb, 0 disc; subscutellum moderately developed; spiracles orange and medium-sized; legs: fore femur brown, mid femur brown to orange, hind femur orange, tibiae and tarsi brown. Wing: distal 2/3 along costa with faint yellowish infuscation; subcostal sclerite pubescent; basicosta and tegula brown; section IV 0.19 of section III; discs of both calypters pale; rims tan with tan setae.

Abdomen entirely blue with whitish tomentum; T5 2x as long as T4 (Fig. 496); T4 with row of marginal setae; pairs of lateral marginal setae on T4 and T5; disc of T5 with dense, medium-long, fine setae only. Terminalia in lateral view with exceptionally broad surstylus and tiny cercus (Fig. 99); in posterior view as in Fig. 100; T 6, STS7+8 and epandrium fused into broad plate at tip of abdomen (Fig. 497); knob-like bases of surstylus also visible at tip of abdomen (Fig. 497); phallus in lateral view with epiphallus exceptionally long and curving at 90° angle, directed backward (Fig. 189); in dorsal view, hypophallic lobes extremely narrow with coarse serrations (Fig. 190); T6, STS7+8, pre- and postgonite and ejaculatory sclerite as in Fig. 237; sternites of very unusual shape (Fig. 280).

Female. Similar to male except frons 0.187 (0.18–0.19/3) of head width at narrowest. T6 of FU shape, divided midway; condition of T7 unclear, possibly fused with T6; ST8 as separate sclerites (Fig. 324); ST6–8 and hypoproct as in Fig. 368, ST8 with pair of stout setal clusters; spermathecae as in Fig. 409; ST1–5 as in Fig. 453.

Material examined. Venezuela, Aragua. 1 ♂*, 1 ♀, Marcai, Choroni Pass, 1100 m, 26.ii.1971, G. & M. Wood (CNC) ; 1 ♂, 1 ♀, 11 km N Rancho Grande, 1100 m, 25.ii.1971, G. & M. Wood (CNC) ; 1 ♂, Parque Nac., Avila, 28.ii.1971, G. & M. Wood (CNC) ; 1 ♂, Rancho Grande, 6–7.xii.1976, J. Robertson (LACM) ; 1 ♀ ♦ (TLW458), Co- corote, Sector Candelo, 10°36ʹ89ʺN 66°82ʹ63ʺW, 1600 m, 15–21.x.2001, R. Briceño, A. Chacán, J. Clavijo, F. Díaz, R. Paz, E. Arcaya L. Joly (MJMO) . Miranda. 1 ♂♦ (TLW198), San Antonio de los Altos, IV, IC, 10°24ʹN 66°58ʹW, 1680 m, iv. 2003, Y. Velásquez (MIZA) .

Distribution. Venezuela. Bonatto (2001) also listed it from Ecuador. Marinho et al. (2017) also listed it from Bolivia.

Remarks. Two specimens (TLW 198 and TLW 458) were barcoded and grouped together near M. semihyalina (Fig. 488).