Leia rufiptera Ostroverkhova, 1977

Polevoi, Alexei & Salmela, Jukka, 2016, New data on poorly known species of the genus Leia Meigen (Diptera, Mycetophilidae) from the Palaearctic region, Zootaxa 4103 (5), pp. 487-500 : 495-496

Leia rufiptera Ostroverkhova, 1977 .

( Figs. 5 ; 6D)

Leia rufiptera Ostroverkhova, 1977: 30 .

Material examined: RUSSIA: 1♂, Primorje territory, east slope of Sikhote-Alin ridge, basin of the river Sankobe, 43 km along river Sitsa, 1.8.1941 ( ZIN, Grunin leg., pinned).

Diagnosis. A yellow species, wings with preapical dark spot and darkened areas along veins, terminalia densely covered with strong setae.

Description. Male (n=1)

Head yellow with darkened spots around ocelli, covered with pale and brownish setae. Three ocelli, with laterals very close to (almost touching) eye margins. Clypeus, mouthparts and palpus yellow. Palpus slightly longer than head height. Scape and pedicel yellow, flagellum yellow with darker dorsal spots (more extensively darkened in apical segments). Middle flagellomeres 1.4 times as long as wide.

Thorax mainly yellow with brownish setae. Mesoscutum yellow with three darker longitudinal stripes and small brown patches above wing bases. Scutellum yellow with four strong marginal bristles. Lateral parts of thorax yellow. Mediotergite slightly darkened caudally.

Wing ( Fig. 6 D). Wing length 5.37 mm. Wing greyish with yellowish anterior margin, narrow apical cloud, dark preapical spot, darkened areas at base of median fork, along ta, CuA2 and apical portion of M1 and with small dark spot at base of anal veins. Veins yellowish-brown, all, except Sc and A2, densely setose. Sc2 near the middle of Sc. Base of M-fork well beyond the middle of ta, slightly before Rs. CuA1 not interrupted at base. R1 1.05 times as long as ta, which is 0.27 times as long as R5 and 1.07 times as long as M-stem. Haltere yellow.

Legs. Coxae yellow, fore coxa with punctiform black spot at apex, mid and hind coxa with narrowly darkened apical margins. Trochanters yellow with dark ventral spots. Femora yellow, mid and hind femora darkened at base. Tibiae and tarsi yellow. Ratio of fore femur to fore tibia: 1.13. Ratio of fore tibia to fore basitarsus: 1.01. Tibial setae black, spurs yellow. Fore tibia with one spur, that is 1.75 times as long as apical tibial diameter.

Abdomen yellow with pale setae, tergites and sternites darkened posteriorly. Terminalia ( Fig. 5 ) yellow. Gonocoxite densely covered with strong setae. Ventromedial process of gonocoxite also densely bristled, with widened apical process produced caudally. Gonostylus with strongly sclerotised hook-like ventral portion. Tergite 9 subrectangular, with slightly emarginated caudal margin, setose apically. Cerci pointed at apices, about as long as tergite 9. Aedeagus with T-shaped apical portion. Parameres short, fused, forming apical triangular incision and paired apicolateral openings. Hypoproct with smooth apicolateral corners and medial group of numerous thin setae.

Female. Unknown

Biology. According to Ostroverkhova (1979), species was found in Larch and mixed forests.

Distribution. East Russia.

Remarks. Three syntypes of L. rufiptera are located in the collection of Tomsk University, but terminalia preparations are severely damaged (E. Subbotina, pers. comm.). Nevertheless, the specimen examined by us fits the original description and male terminalia agree well. Several distinctive characters mentioned by G. Ostroverkhova (wing markings, dense bristles on gonocoxites, paired apicolateral openings in aedeagal complex), leave little doubt about the identity of the specimens. Leia rufiptera is easily distinguished from other representatives of the genus by the peculiar wing markings and structures of the male terminalia (e.g. densely setose gonocoxite, strongly sclerotized hook-like ventral portion of gonostylus and fused parameres).

Figures

FIGURE 5. Leia rufiptera Ostroverkhova, male terminalia. A. ventral view. B. dorsal view. C. lateral view. D. aedeagal complex, lateral view. E. aedeagal complex, ventral view. F. hypoproct. Scale bars = 0.2 mm. Abbreviations: aed = aedeagus, cerc = cercus, gc = gonocoxite, gst = gonostylus, par = parameres, tg = tergite, vmpg = ventral medial process of gonocoxites.

FIGURE 6. Wings of Leia males. A. Leia flavipennis. B. Leia iturupensis. C. Leia nigricornis. D. Leia rufiptera. Scale bars = 2 mm.