Amapeza amazonica (Enderlein) Marshall, 2022

Marshall, Stephen A., 2022, Amapeza and Nigripeza, new genera of Neotropical micropezid flies (Diptera, Micropezidae, Taeniapterinae), Zootaxa 5092 (3), pp. 251-272 : 255-257

Amapeza amazonica (Enderlein) new combination

Figures 2A–2H

Systellapha amazonica Enderlein, 1922:192 .

Description: Size 8–9 mm. Colour: Head and thorax mostly orange, clypeus dark brown with a strong blue sheen. Fore femur pale brown except for darkened apex, fore tibia dark brown, fore tarsus white. Basal half of hind femur white at base, otherwise pale brown with a subbasal dark brown band; distal half brown except for a pale band at middle. Pleural bristles, including katepisternal bristles, golden. Wing with a broad and complete but indistinct discal band. Pleuron of female abdomen densely golden setulose, pale brown except for a dark area on segments 4–5. Tergites 1–2 and anterior part of T3 of female orange, tergites 4–5 dark brown; tergite 6 and oviscape orange laterally and dark dorsally; male abdominal tergites 3–4 dark only posteriorly, T5 with only a small dark posteromedial area; S8 and epandrium mostly dark. Male abdominal pleuron almost bare and pale except for a small black pleural sac on dorsal third of P2.

Head: Frontal vitta slightly broadened before ocelli, then strongly tapered anteriorly with anterior margin 0.2X frontal width. Orbital plate barely differentiated from frontal vitta; epicephalon shiny. Clypeus entirely bare.

Thorax: Cervical sclerite evenly convex, simple. Proepisternum with ventral setae separated into anteroventral and posteroventral tufts, the latter conspicuously longer. Postpronotal lobe bare, slightly depressed anterior to middle so anterior margin seems slightly elevated. One dorsocentral bristle. Mesopleuron shining, anepisternum sparsely setulose. Suprahumeral bristles small and exclinate, usually 3–5 with anterior largest.

Female abdomen: Major (paired) spermathecal duct extremely broad, distally barrel-shaped with a constriction and a sphincter-like ring apically, with thick, convoluted stems running from ring to long, egg-shaped spermathecae each with a deep distal invagination. Minor duct not found in available dissections, presumably vestigial.

Male abdomen: Genital fork prominent, with long, narrow, slightly incurved and parallel-sided main arms and pairs of dorsal and inner ventral basal process (thus two pairs of prominent inner basal processes). Basal distiphallus elongate, about 1.5X as long as epandrium, ending in a ventral notch and a phallic bulb with small lateral wings and a large dorsal lobe. Distal distiphallus much shorter, strongly recurved and ending in a broad tubular swelling (glans).

Type material: Holotype (female, ZMHB, examined): BRAZIL. " Upper Amazon area ."

Other material examined: ECUADOR. Napo. Jatun Sacha Reserve, 6 km E Misahualli, 450m, Apr. 6– 8.May.2002, S.A. Marshall (6♀, DEBU, QCAZ, one female barcoded as MYCRO 609-20 ) . PERU. Madre de Dios, Los Amigos Biological Station , 2–14. June. 2006, Paiero and Klymko (1♀, DEBU) ; Cuzco, Estacion Via Carmen , 500–700m, Malaise trap VC-ML-18A, 14. June. 2014 (1♂ USNM) ; Pucallpa 10.iv.1965, J. Schunke, BM 1965-529 (1♂, BMNH) .

Comments: Amapeza amazonica is closely related to A. tricincta , with which it shares several characters including the setose abdominal pleuron, a single dorsocentral bristle, and the enlarged and capsule-like part of the paired spermathecal duct. Some previous published records of A. amazonica are probably A. hyaloptera ; see comments under that species. Like A. hyaloptera and A. camelina , A. amazonica and A. tricincta have an apically swollen distal distiphallus.

Figures

FIGURES 2A–2H. Amapeza amazonica(Enderlein).A, spermathecae andassociated ducts; B, inset, oviscapewith spermathecae and associated ducts teased out; C, apex of male abdomen, ventrolateral to show genital fork; D, genital fork, ventral; E, female showing setulose abdominal pleuron, Ecuador; F, holotype. G, male terminalia, left lateral; H, head anterior.