Lasiocnemus lugens Loew, 1858

Dikow, Torsten, 2007, Taxonomic revision of the genus Lasiocnemus (Loew, 1851) (Diptera: Asilidae: Leptogastrinae), African Entomology 15 (1), pp. 57-74 : 71-72

Lasiocnemus lugens Loew, 1858 ,

Figs 4 , 8–10 , 16 , 22 , 23

Lasiocnemus lugens Loew, 1858: 353 ; Loew 1860: 106; Curran, 1928: 329; Engel & Cuthbertson 1934: 36; Janssens 1952: 5; Hull 1962: 309; Oldroyd 1980: 357.

Diagnosis

The species is distinguished from congeners by the overall black coloration, the predominantly black setae, and the densely arranged microtrichia in the discal cell.

Description

Head. Black; face brown pruinose, facial swelling indistinct, mystax black with a few white setae laterally, more than 10 macrosetae; proboscis and palpi black, setae black; occiput brown pruinose laterally and grey pruinose medially, setae black. Antennae, scape black, black setae ventrally, apruinose; pedicel black, brown setae dorsally and ventrally, grey pruinose; postpedicel brown, grey pruinose; stylus brown, as long as postpedicel; apical ‘seta-like’ sensory element hyaline or brown.

Thorax. Black, brown pruinose except for scutum and scutellum, anepisternum and katepisternum setae black; scutum black, sometimes red anterolaterally and anteromedially, predominantly apruinose, margins grey pruinose, surface covered with long white setae, white and brown setae on pruinose part; macrosetae: brown, one or two supra-alar setae; scutellum grey pruinose, discal scutellar and scutellar setae long, brown. Legs, dark brown; coxa brown pruinose; prothoracic and mesothoracic femora with erect black setae anteriorly and dorsally, metathoracic femora with erect black setae on all surfaces, clubbed and widest sub-distally; tibiae erect black setae on all surfaces, prothoracic tibiae with yellow cleaning setae in distal two-thirds ventrally, metathoracic tibiae with yellow setae disto-ventrally; tarsomeres with black setae, first metathoracic tarsomere with yellow setae posteroventrally; empodium two-thirds to nearly length of claw. Wings, length = 7.3–10.0 mm; cell d densely covered with microtrichia, wing pattern Fig. 16 ; halter brown.

Abdomen. Black; T brown pruinose anteriorly and grey pruinose posteriorly, T 2 in proximal half with long brown setae laterally, remaining T with short white setae, S 2 in proximal half apruinose and in distal half grey pruinose, S3–4 grey pruinose, S5–8 brown pruinose. Male terminalia as in Figs 8–10 . Female terminalia as in Fig. 22 .

Type material. The male holotype is labelled ‘96. (handwritten)/266. (handwritten)/ Lasiocnemus lugens / HOLOTYPE Lasiocnemus lugens Loew, 1858 by T. Dikow 2004 (red label)’. The specimen is directly mounted and in relatively poor condition (legs and parts thereof broken, attached to cardboard piece on specimens pin), ( NHRS).

Additional material examined. BOTSWANA: 2♂ Metsimaklaba, 24°32’S 25°29’E, 7–12.iii.1930; 1♀ Serowe, 22°25’S 26°44’E, –. x.1989; MOZAM- BIQUE: 2♀ 1♂ Goba (several such localities), 13.iv.1980; SOUTH AFRICA: 1♂ Barberton, 25°47’S 31°03’E, 6.iv.1928; 1?, Barberton, 19–26.iii.1920; 1?, Barberton, 29.iv.1920; 1♂ Caffraria (holotype); 2♀ Crocodile Marico River junction, 24°12’S 026°52’E, –. ii.1918; 1♂ Doorndraai Dam Nature Reserve, 24°11’S 28°26’E, 18.i.1980; 1♀ 1♂ Doorndraai Dam Nature Reserve, 16.ii. 2005, 1182 m; 1♀ Dunstable Hoedspruit Farm, 24°16’S 30°27’E, 18–20.i.1990; 4♀ 2♂ 1? Harold Johnson Nature Reserve, 29°12’S 31°25’E, 29.iv.1988; 2♀ Harold Johnson Nature Reserve, 27.i.1987; 1♀ 2♂ Harold Johnson Nature Reserve, 14.i.1994; 3♀ 4♂ Melville Koppies Reserve, 26°11’S 28°01’E, 15–30.iii.1987; 1♀ Johannesburg, [Raedene], 26°12’S 28°05’E, 14.ii.1967; 1♀ 2? Kube Yini Game Reserve, 27°48’S 32°14’E, 10–14.i.1994; 1♀ Louwscreek, 25°39’S 31°18’E, –. iii.1920; 1♀ 1♂ Matlabas, 35 km N Thabazimbi, 24°08’S 027°18’E, 1 8. i.1 9 8 3; 1♀ Mfongosi, 2 8° 4 2 ’S 3 0 ° 4 8’ E, –. iii.–iv.1935; 1♂ Mfongosi, –. iv.–v.1934; 1♀, 2♂, 1?, Mfongosi, –. ii.–iii.1917; 1♀ Mfongosi; 1? Mfongosi, –. iv.1916; 1♀ Mfongosi, 20.iii.1923; 1♀ Mhlopeni Nature Reserve, 29°01’S 30°24’E, 15.iii.2000; 1♂ Mhlopeni Nature Reser ve, 8–9. ii.1 9 9 1; 1♀ N aboomspruit, 24°30’S 28°43’E, 5.iii.2000; 1♀ Norvalspont, 30°38’S 25°27’E, 16.iv.1934; 1♀ Nylstroom, 24°42’S 28°24’E, 17.i.1981; 2♀ Olifants Camp Kruger National Park, 24°00’S 31°45’E, 23–25.iv.1969; 1♂ Pafuri, Kruger National Park, 22°16’S 31°07’E, 20–24.i.1985; 3♀ 1♂ Percy Five Nature Reserve, 24°02’S 29°05’E, 10–12.iii.1980; 1♂ Pongolapoort Nature Reserve, 27°12’S 31°34’E, 7.ii.1990; 1♂ Potgietersrus, 10 km N, 24°10’S 28°58’E, 28.i.1978; 1♂ Pretoria, 25°13’S 28°04’E, 14.ii.1996; 1♂ Pretoria, Renosterkop, 25°50’S 27°55’E, 11.ii.1986, 1400–1480 m; 1♀ 1♂ Rooiberg (10 km NW), 24°42’S 27°40’E, 1.ii.1978; 1♂ Rustenburg Nature Reserve, 25°24’S 27°07’E, 23–26.ii.1981; 1♀ Schoongelegen, 23°20’S 27°29’E, –. i.1988; 1♂ Thaba Zimbi, 24°35’S 27°24’E, 23.iii.1985; 1♀ Ubombo Jozini turnoff, 27°34’S 32°04’E, 11.v.1981; 1♀ Vaalwater, 24°10’S 28°06’E, 2.iii.1980; 2♂ Vila Nora, 23°35’S 28°05’E, 31.i.1978; 6♀ 1♂ Villa Nora, 23°32’S 28°07’E, 31.i.1978; 1♀ 3♂ 1? Weenen, 28°51’S 30°05’E, –. ii.1925; 1♀ Weenen, 28°51’S 30°05’E, –. iii.1924; 1♀ Weenen, 28°51’S 30°05’E, –. iii–iv.1924; 1? Weenen, 28°51’S 30°05’E, –. i.1925; 1♀ Zoutpan, 23°10’S 28°25’E, 4–10.ii.1929; 1♂ Zoutpan, 23°10’S 28°25’E, 7.iv.1950; SWAZI- LAND: 8♀ 4♂ Mbuluzi Nature Reserve, 26°08’S 32°00’E, 25.iv.1991; 1♀ Mbuluzi Nature Reserve, 25.iv. 1991, 200 m; 3♀ Ngogolo, 13 km N, 26°19’S 31°38’E, 22–24.iv.1991; 2♀ 3♂ Sand River Reservoir, 25°59’S 31°42’E, 26.iv.1991; ZIMBABWE: 1♀ Balla Balla, 20°27’S 29°03’E, –. iii.1931; 1♂ Balla Balla, 3 km NW, 20°26’S 29°02’E, 22.iii.1958, 1100 m; 2♀ Bazely Bridge, 19°00’S 32°40’E, 29.iv.1966; 1♀ 2♂ 2? Bulawayo, 20°09’S 28°35’E, 9.iii. (1♂) 17.iii. (1?) 20.iii. (1?) 22.iii. (1♂) 23.iii.1923 (1♀); 1♀ 2♂ 2? Bulawayo, 20°09’S 28°35’E, 7.iii.1925; 1♀ Bulawayo, 20°09’S 28°35’E, 14.iii.1920; 1♂ Hot Springs, 19°39’S 32°28’E, 19.iv.1965; 1♀, 2♂ Mapembi, 19°05’S 32°22’E, 22.iii.1964; 1♀ Masvingo, 22 km W, 20°05’S 30°38’E, 21.iii. 1958, 1050 m; 2♀ 2♂ 2? Matopos Hills, 20°25’S 028°29’E, –. iv.1932; 1♂ Matopos National Park, 20°33’S 28°33’E, 1–2.iv.1968; 1♂ Harare district, 17°49’S 31°02’E, 21.ii.1943; 2♀ 1? Umtali, 86 km S, 19°44’S 32°40’E, 18.iii. 1958, 560 m. Depositories: BMNH, CAS, CSCA, FSCA, NHRS, NMSA, SAMC, SANC, USNM, ZSMC.

Type locality, distribution and biodiversity hotspots ( Fig. 23 ). The original type locality is Caffraria, South Africa. The type specimens were collected by Wahlberg, who travelled primarily in eastern South Africa and northern Botswana ( Usher 1972). Following recommendation 76 A.1.4. of the ICZN a new type locality is selected from within the range of the species. I hereby designate Doorndrai Dam Nature Reserve, Limpopo Province, South Africa, 24°11’S 028°26’E, which is close to Wahlberg’s route and in which the species has been recently collected, as type locality. Botswana, South Africa, Swaziland, Zimbabwe. Eastern Afromontane, Maputaland–Pondoland–Albany.

Lasiocnemus obscuripennis ( Loew, 1851) ,

Figs 4 , 23

Figures

Fig. 23. Map of sub-Saharan Africa with biodiversity hotspots, shaded in grey, showing distribution of Lasiocnemus griseicinctipes (■), La. hermanni (▲), La. lugens (●) and La. obscuripennis (★). Type localities with open symbols.

Figs 1 – 4. Male terminalia of species of Lasiocnemus in lateral view. 1, La. fascipennis; 2, La. hermanni; 3, La. hyalipennis; 4, La. obscuripennis. Scale bar = 1.0 mm.

Figs 8 – 10. Male terminalia and aedeagus of Lasiocnemus lugens. 8, Terminalia lateral view; 9, aedeagus dorsal view; 10, aedeagus lateral. Scale bar = 1.0 mm.

Figs 11 – 16. Wings of species of Lasiocnemus. 11, La. fascipennis; 12, La. griseicinctipes; 13, La. hermanni; 14, La. hyalipennis; 15, La. londti; 16, La. lugens. Scale bars = 4.0 mm.

Figs 17 – 22. Female spermathecae of species of Lasiocnemus in lateral view. 17, La. fascipennis; 18, La. griseicinctipes; 19, La. hermanni; 20, La. hyalipennis; 21, La. londti; 22, La. lugens. Note: second lateral spermathecal duct and reservoir, in lateral view situated ventral to median reservoir, omitted. Scale bars = 1.0 mm.