Sphegina (Asiosphegina) bispinosa Brunetti, 1915

Steenis, Jeroen Van, Hippa, Heikki & Mutin, Valeri A., 2018, Revision of the Oriental species of the genus Sphegina Meigen, 1822 (Diptera: Syrphidae), European Journal of Taxonomy 489, pp. 1-198 : 45-49

Sphegina (Asiosphegina) bispinosa Brunetti, 1915

Figs 16 , 21 H–I, 67D, 72E–F, 77C

Sphegina bispinosa Brunetti, 1915: 223 . Type locality: Margerita, Assam, India (syntype, ♂, NZSI).

Differential diagnosis

Sphegina (Asiosphegina) bispinosa is similar to S. (A.) hansoni but clearly differentiated by the characters in the key and the strongly asymmetrical surstyli.

Material examined

Syntype

INDIA • ♂; “ Margherita , Assam: syntype ♀ Darjiling (7000 ft.) 29-v-[19]10 leg Brunetti”; not studied .

Additional material

INDIA • 1 ♂, “ India: Darjeeling / Singamari 2031m / 26. v. 1976 / S. Biswas No. B24a”; “Ghorpade / collection / Bangalore”; “ Sphegina / ( Asiosphegina ) / bispinosa Brun. / Mutin det 1998”; USNM • 1 ♂; “ India / Himalayas / 196? / V.K. Gupta No.?”; “ Ghorpade / collection / Bangalore”; “ Sphegina / ( Asiosphegina ) / sp. in det / K.D. Ghorpade det 2003”; “USNMENT / QR code / 01224069”; USNM • 1 ♂; “ Northwest Himalaya / Kulu valley / vi.1970 / No.”; “Ghorpade / collection / Bangalore”; “ Sphegina / ( Asiosphegina ) / bispinosa Brun. / Mutin det 1998”; JSA • 1 ♂; “ Northwest Himalaya / Manali 1828 m / 16. v. 1970 / M. Gupta No. M5”; “Ghorpade / collection / Bangalore”; “ Sphegina / ( Asiosphegina ) / bispinosa Brun. / Mutin det 1998”; NZSI • 1 ♂; “ India: Sikkim / Gangtok 1871 m / 5. v. 1974 / Ghorpade No. A118”; “Ghorpade / collection / Bangalore”; “ Sphegina / ( Asiosphegina ) / bispinosa Brun. / Mutin det 1998”; JSA • 1 ♂; same data as for preceding; “No. A119”; USNM • 1 ♂; same data as for preceding; “No. A117”; JSA • 1 ♀; same data as for preceding; NZSI • 1 ♂; “ India: (Uttar Pradesh) / Mussoorie c 1500–2200m / 3–14. vii. 1978 / Copenhagen Zool. Mus. Exp.”; “UZM”; “ Sphegina / ( Asiosphegina ) / bispinosa Brun. / Mutin det 1998”; ZMUC • 1 ♀; “ India: Sikkim / Gangtok 1618 m / 11. v. 1966 / D Ram No. T243”; “Ghorpade / collection / Bangalore”; USNM • 1 ♀; “ India: West Bengal / Darjeeling 2176 m / 25. iv. 1974; / Ghorpade No. A110”; “Ghorpade / collection / Bangalore”; “ Sphegina / ( Asiosphegina ) / bispinosa Brun. / Mutin det 1998”; JSA • 1 ♀; “ India: Bhowali / Kumaon Hills U.P / 1700 m 5–8. vi. 1968 / Gupta No. 310”; “Ghorpade / collection / Bangalore”; “ Sphegina / ( Asiosphegina ) / bispinosa Brun. / Mutin det 1998”; JSA • 1 ♀; “ Sikkim: Himalaya / Gangtok / 16. v. 1966 / Gupta No. 180”; “Ghorpade / collection / Bangalore”; “ Sphegina / ( Asiosphegina ) / bispinosa Brun. / Mutin det 1998”; USNM • 1 ♀; “ex coll Brunetti / Brit.Mus. 1927–184”; “ India / Simla / 20–28.vii.1918 ”; NHM .

NEPAL • 1 ♂; “538 Nepal Rhojpur / Phedi to Dilkarka 1500– / 1900 m 27°25’ N, 87°00’E / leg.: Hauser; 26.V.[19]97”; CSCA .

BHUTAN • 1 ♂; “ Bhutan [Thimpu] / Taba / 27°31 ′ 02 N, 89°38 ′ 34 E / shoulders of the highway / 10–08– 2016, 2379 m / leg. Tsering Nidup & Wim Klein”; AET .

Description

Male

LENGTH. Body 7.9–9.8 mm, wing 5.8–7.7 mm.

HEAD. Face in lateral view concave, strongly projected antero-ventrally; frontal prominence weakly developed. Ratio width of vertex at anterior ocellus: width of head 1: 3.9–4.4; ratio width of ocellar triangle: width of vertex 1: 1.9–2.2; ratio length of ocellar triangle: length of frons 1: 1.9–2.1. Face dull black, long pilose along eye-margin. Hypostomal bridge black, long pale pilose. Gena and mouth edge black, grey pollinose with large subtriangular non-pollinose shiny area. Frons and vertex black, predominantly grey pollinose, a subtriangular area posterior of lunula non-pollinose and shiny; pile short, light yellowish brown ( Fig. 21 H–I). Frons with deep pit anteriorly and wide medial furrow. Occiput black, light grey pollinose, light yellow pilose. Eye without enlarged facets at anterior margin. Antenna dark brown with black setae dorsally on scape and pedicel; basoflagellomere oval, ratio width: length 1: 1.3–1.4; arista short pilose, about 3.5–4 times as long as basoflagellomere.

THORAX. Colour dark brown to black, postpronotum and dorso-medial part of anepisternum and anepimeron dark brown, weakly greyish pollinose, pleuron entirely grey pollinose; scutum and pleuron with very short adpressed pale-brown pile. Scutellum sub-rectangular, black, pollinose, with pile slightly longer than on scutum, with two closely set, very short setae medially at posterior margin, ratio length of scutellum: length of seta 1: 0.8–0.9.

WING. Entirely microtrichose; hyaline, stigma yellowish, membrane brown infuscated along veins dmcu and M 1. Crossvein dm-cu meeting vein M almost perpendicularly and vein M 1 meeting vein R 4+5 perpendicularly.

LEGS. Pro- and mesoleg brown to brown-yellow, tarsomeres 4–5 dark brown to black. Metaleg, Fig. 72E , dark brown to black, dark yellow on extreme base of femur and tibia; femur slightly incrassate, ratio width: length 1: 3.9–4.3, with 1–3 long and rather strong subapical setae anterodorsally, basitarsomere thin, ratio width: length 1: 4.3–4.6.

ABDOMEN. Length ratio of terga I: II: III: IV 1: 4.1–4.7: 2.4–2.9: 1.9–2.2; ratio width at posterior margin: medial length of tergum II and III 1: 4.0–4.8 and 1: 1.1–1.2. Terga black, anterior ⅓ of tergum III with brown-yellow sub-anterior fascia; pile mixed dark brown to pale yellowish, short, laterally on terga II and III long; tergum I ( Fig. 77C ), with 3–4 strong black setae at lateral margin, posteriormost 2 setae almost vertically placed, one above the other; sternum III rectangular, ratio width: length 1: 1.5–1.8; sternum IV, Fig. 16A ; sterna VI, VII and VIII with long yellow pile, sternum VII, Fig. 16B , with a large rounded yellow-pilose/setose conical process, sternum VIII posteriorly with tuft of long mixed yellow and black seta-like pile. Genitalia, Fig. 16 C–E: observe the strongly asymmetrical surstyli and superior lobes and the short finger-like lobe subbasally on the medial side of surstyli.

Female

Similar to the male except the normal sexual dimorphism.

LENGTH. Body 7.8–9.2 mm, wing 6.1–7.0 mm.

HEAD. Ratio width of vertex at anterior ocellus: width of head 1: 3.4–3.7; ratio width of ocellar triangle: width of vertex 1: 2.2–2.5; face slightly narrower than vertex, ratio width of face: width of vertex 1: 1.0–1.1; ratio length of ocellar triangle: length of frons 1: 2.0–2.3. Basoflagellomere round to slightly oval, ratio width: length 1: 1.1–1.3; arista short pilose, about 3 times as long as basoflagellomere.

THORAX. Scutellum with two closely set, very short setae medially at posterior margin, ratio length of scutellum: length of seta 1: 0.9–1.0.

WING. Apex of R

2+3

brownish infuscate.

LEGS. Metafemur ( Fig. 72F ) slightly incrassate, ratio width: length 1: 4.0–4.4, basitarsomere thin, ratio width: length 1: 3.9–4.4.

ABDOMEN. Length ratio of terga I: II: III: IV: V 1: 4.2–4.7: 2.9–3.5: 2.1–2.6: 1.2–1.5; ratio width at posterior margin: medial length of tergum II and III 1: 2.3–2.9 and 1: 0.7–0.8. Tergum III black; tergum VI medially divided by a narrow membranous line; sternum III oval, very small, ratio width: length 1: 1.1–1.2; sternum IV trapezoidal, apical margin widest, ratio width: length 1: 0.7–0.9; sternum V rectangular, ratio width: length 1: 1.1–1.3.

Remarks

The specimens mentioned by Brunetti (1923) as types of Shegina (Asiosphegina) bispinosa are not the same specimens as mentioned in the original description ( Brunetti 1915). Ghorpade (2015) already discussed this discrepancy and apparently studied the mentioned specimens, concluding they belong to one and the same species.

One of the additional females mentioned by Brunetti (1915) from Bhowali was studied by us and found to be conspecific with Sphegina (Asiosphegina) carinata . This specimen was labelled as cotype of S. (A.) bispinosa with a handwritten label. However, in his publication Brunetti (1915) designated only one male and one female as type: “Described from a ♂ (type) from Margherita, Assam, a ♀ (type) from Darjiling (7000 ft.) collected by me, 29–v–10; also, two ♀♀ taken by Mr. Imms near Bhowali, Kumaon, Western Himalayas (5700 ft.) in July 1909. Type ♂ and ♀ in Indian Museum”. Therefore, the supposed female cotype from Bhowali cannot be part of the type series and this is now indicated for this specimen (see the label information under S. (A.) carinata ).

Figures

Fig. 16. Sphegina (Asiosphegina) bispinosa Brunetti, 1915, Ƌ, India. A. Sternum IV, ventral view. B. Sternum VII, ventral view. C. Left surstylus, lateral view. D. Left superior lobe, lateral view. E. Genitalia, right side, lateral view. Scale bars = 0.5 mm.

Fig. 21. Head, lateral view (A, D, F, J–K), dorsal view (B, C, G–H, L), frontal view (E, I). A–B. Sphegina (Asiosphegina) albolobata sp. nov., holotype, Ƌ, Vietnam. C. S. (A.) amplistylus sp. nov., holotype, Ƌ, Philippines. D. S. (A.) apicalis Shiraki, 1930, ♀, Taiwan. E. S. (A.) bifida sp. nov., holotype, Ƌ, Sabah, Malaysia. F–G. S. (A.) bracon sp. nov., paratype, Ƌ, Vietnam. H–I. S. (A.) bispinosa Brunetti, 1915, Ƌ, Nepal. J. S. (A.) brevipilis sp. nov., holotype, Ƌ, China. K–L. S. (A.) collicola sp. nov., paratype, Ƌ, Malaysia. Scale bars = 0.5 mm.

Fig. 72. Metaleg, anterior view (A–E) and dorsal view (F). A. Sphegina (Asiosphegina) malaisei Hippa, van Steenis & Mutin, 2015, paratype, ♀, Myanmar. B. S. (A.) nigerrima Shiraki, 1930, Ƌ, Taiwan. C. S. (A.) ornata sp. nov., holotype, Ƌ, China. D. S. (A.) philippina, Thompson, 1999, paratype, ♀, Philippines. E. S. (A.) bispinosa Brunetti, 1915, Ƌ, Nepal. F. S. (A.) bispinosa, ♀, India. Scale bars = 0.5 mm.

Fig. 77. Tergum I, dorsal view (A, E–F) and lateral view (B–D). A. Sphegina (Asiosphegina) mirifica Hippa, van Steenis & Mutin, 2015, ♀, Myanmar. B. S. (A.) nigerrima Shiraki, 1930, Ƌ, Taiwan. C. S. (A.) bispinosa Brunetti, 1915, Ƌ, Nepal. D. S. (A.) philippina Thompson, 1999, paratype, ♀, Philippines. E. S. (A.) raduloides Hippa, van Steenis & Mutin, 2015, paratype, Ƌ, Myanmar. F. S. (A.) cf. spathigera sp. nov., ♀, Philippines. Scale bars = 0.5 mm.