Lonchaea biarmata, Introduction & Fallén & Morge, 2007

Introduction, Iain, Fallén, Lonchaea & Morge, Setisquamalonchaea, 2007, New pecies of Lonchaeidae (Diptera: Schizophora) from Asia, Zootaxa 1631, pp. 1-32 : 2-4

Lonchaea biarmata sp. nov.

Description: Holotype male: Head: Eyes bare. Frons subshining black and uniformly covered with microsculpture, narrowing steadily from level of ocellar triangle to antennal bases, covered with short interfrontal setulae at most one quarter length of orbital setae. Orbital plate shining black and without setulae. Lunule partly hidden below frons due to shrinkage of head, number of setulae on lunule not known, lower part of lunule silvered. Parafacials and the lateral margins of the face silvered, face ventrally subshining black. Anterior genal setulae in single row of four along mouth margin, none particularly strong. Antennal flagellomere very long, almost four times as long as deep, black apart from, on medial surface, narrowly orange at base and along one third of ventral margin. Arista with short pubescence dorsally and ventrally, as long as width of arista.

Thorax: Disc brightly shining, covered with short appressed setulae no more than one quarter length of orbital setae. Anepisternum with three strong anterior setae and apparently only two posterior, although some may be missing due to damage. Katepisternum with one strong seta and several other relatively strong setulae anterior to it. One propleural and one slightly weaker stigmatical setae. Scutellum with disc shining, slightly metallic, damaged in that two apical setae missing but with at least two short setulae between apical and lateral setae. Squamae pale with light gold fringes. Wing slightly yellowish anteriorly. Wing length 3.5mm.

Legs: All black apart from basal and second tarsomeres of all legs clear yellow, apical tarsomeres darkened.

Male terminalia; Figs. 1–3. Epandrium rather bulbous, bearing three strong setulae along posterior margin. Cerci as tall as epandrium, with fringe of rather short setulae. In ventral view surstyli extending beyond shell of epandrium along most of ventral margin, with fringe of setulae along the lateral margins, these setulae moderately long and becoming longer posteriorly. Basal plate or sclerite bearing one strong, black tooth. Aedeagus J-shaped, basal part relatively narrow and sinuous with, just distal to middle, two finger-like projections extending ventrally, almost reaching apical section. Apical section almost twice as long as basal, sinuous and becoming thinner towards apex.

Differential diagnosis: This species belongs to the Lonchaea impressifrons group of species established by McAlpine (1960). This group is composed of a number of very similar small species, which have a combination of yellow tarsomeres, clear wings and pale squamae and long antennal flagellomere. The male terminalia characteristically have tall rather hooded cerci, rounded epandrium, long aedeagus and surstyli bearing hooks, projections or spines. In this species there is one strong black tooth on the basal plate of the surstylus. The aedeagus is in general rather similar to that of Lonchaea fangi sp. nov. but in this case the two processes on the basal section are much longer and parallel sided and extend out like a pair of arms from the body.

TYPE MATERIAL: Holotype male. TAIWAN, Kaohsiung Hsien, Liukuei Shan Ping L. T.E. R. site, U. V. light traps, no.14, 3.iii – 04.iv. 2003, leg. Papp & Földvári.

Only known from the holotype in the HNHM

Etymology. The specific epithet refers to the two “arms” on each side of the basal section of the aedeagus.