Papaverellus Artigas & Vieira

Artigas, Jorge N. & Vieira, Rodrigo, 2014, New genus and species of Neotropical robber flies (Diptera, Asilidae, Asilinae), Zootaxa 3774 (3), pp. 282-288 : 283

Papaverellus Artigas & Vieira gen. nov.

( Figs. 1–18 )

Type –species. Papaverellus aureocingulatus Artigas & Vieira sp. nov. (orig. des.).

Etymology. The name Papaverellus is dedicated to Dr. Nelson Papavero.

Distribution. Brazil: Pará State and Piauí State.

Description. Head. Face ( Fig. 2 ) with only slightly exposed on lower ½ in lateral view, sparse black and short setae dorsally; remaining area and oral border with abundant long macrosetae directed anteriorly and ventrally ( Fig. 3 ). Postpedicel of antenna as long as scape and pedicel combined ( Fig. 4 ); scape 1.5 times as long as pedicel ( Fig. 4 ); stylus slightly longer than scape and pedicel; apex of stylus bare ( Fig. 4 ).

Thorax. Tumid, postsutural dorsocentral macrosetae, notopleural, supraalar and postalar macrosetae strong; anatergal setae absent; scutellum tumid as the thorax and coxae, without rim on posterior border; 2 scutellar macrosetae on posterior border, sparse, fine, short setae on disc and border; pleura asetose.

Wing ( Fig. 5 ). Cell r1 closed before wing margin; stump vein supernumerary crossvein on R4 absent; R4 ending before the wing tip, and R5, after; m3 cell closed.

Legs ( Fig. 1 ). Coxae gray; femora shining black; tibiae yellow, except for brown stripe anteriorly; tarsus light brown.

Abdomen. Vestiture as in notum; sides of all tergites setose.

Male terminalia. Angled 45º with abdomen ( Fig. 1 ); epandrium flat ventrally, looks like goat hoof ( Fig. 7 ). Epandria broad and thick, subglobular on proximal 3/4, attenuated distally and meeting in an acute tip ( Figs. 6 – 8 ). Gonocoxites globular on basal 3/4, distal 1/4 flattened, elongate, with 3 – 5 teeth or spines ventrally ( Fig. 12 ). Median region of gonocoxite with round tumid protuberance with few short setae ( Figs. 7, 8, 12 ). Gonocoxite with 2 conspicuous patches of long setae, 1 of scattered long, fine, yellow setae directed posteriorly and other with patch of dense long, golden setae directed to opposite side and crossing over hypandrium tip as golden belt ( Figs. 7, 8, 11 ); gonostylus long, flattened towards apex, with abundant short, fine setae and few macrosetae ( Figs. 11, 12 ); gonostylus hidden in closed genitalia; hypandrium subglobose and subtriangular, with 3 small tubercles on tip and patch of 12 long, fine setae on each side, directed posteriorly ( Figs. 7, 8, 9, 11 ). Aedeagus long, ending in 2 long tubes, ejaculatory apodeme thin and long, not expanded apically ( Fig. 13 ).

Female terminalia. Ovipositor compressed, formed by segment VIII and the following ( Figs. 14–17 ); genital fork with long, thin arms, about 2.5 times longer than base, base much wider than arms ( Fig. 18 ); common duct long ( Fig. 18 ); 2 expulsory and capsular ducts ending in 2 spherical capsules, as wide as the width tip of the apodeme of the furca ( Fig. 18 ).

Discussion. In Papavero et al. (2009), Papaverellus gen. nov., keys to Scarbroughia Papavero, 2009 . However, Papaverellus gen. nov. differs from it by the following characters: stylus 1½ times longer than postpedicel; 2 apical scutellar macrosetae; setae present only in the fore and middle coxae, and sparse black macrosetae on the femora, tibiae and tarsi; basal 1/2 of epandrium globose; hypandrium with abundant macrosetae and setae laterally; aedeagus with 2 very long, pointed prongs. By contrast, Scarbroughia has postpedicel as long as the scape and pedicel combined and as long as the stylus; 4 or more apical scutellar macrosetae; apical 1/2 of the fore and middle femora medially with stout bristles, all tibiae and tarsi, and coxae (mainly fore and middle ones) have long white macrosetae, in addition to more or less long, white, dense, appressed short setae; epandrium narrow, elongate; hypandrium with patches of short, sparse macrosetae lateroventrally; aedeagus with 2 long prongs.

The junior author included only Papaverellus gen. nov. in the cladistic analysis of Asilinae (Vieira et.al. in prep.), i.e. Papaverellus gen. nov. with Cerozodus Bigot and Myaptex Hull : ( Myaptex ( Papaverellus gen. nov. + Cerozodus )).

Figures

FIGURES 1 – 5. Papaverellus aureocingulatus Artigas & Vieira gen. nov. et sp. nov. Male. 1, Habitus, lateral view; 2, Head, frontal view; 3, Head, lateral view; 4, Antennae, lateral view; 5, Wing; Male terminalia, lateral view. Abbreviations: pp: postpedicel; ped: pedicel; scp: scape; sty: stylus.

FIGURES 6 – 13. Papaverellus aureocingulatus Artigas & Vieira gen. nov. et sp. nov. Male. 6, Male terminalia, dorsal view; 7, Male terminalia, ventral view; 8, Male terminalia, ventral view; 9, Male terminalia, lateral view; 10, Inner margin of epandrium and subepandrial sclerite; 11, Hypandrium, gonocoxite and gonostylus, ventral view; 12, gonocoxite and gonostylus; 13, Aedeagus and ejaculatory apodeme, lateral view. Abbreviations: aed: aedeagus; cerc: cercus; ej apod: ejaculatory apodeme; epand: epandrium; goncx: gonocoxite; gonst: gonostylus; hypd: hypandrium.

FIGURES 14 – 18. Papaverellus aureocingulatus Artigas & Vieira gen. nov. et sp. nov. Female. 14, Habitus, lateral view; 15, Ovipositor, lateral view; 16, Ovipositor, dorsal view; 17, Ovipositor, ventral view; 18, Genital fork and spermathecae. Abbreviations: ar: arms of genital fork; cap duct: capsular ducts; com duct: common duct; exp duct: expulsory ducts; cerc: cercus; f apod: furcal apodeme; spmth: spermathecae; stVIII: sternite VIII; tVII: tergite VII; tVIII: tergite VIII; tIX + X: tergite IX + X.