Sisyromyia albisquama, Li & Yeates, 2019

Li, Xuankun & Yeates, David K., 2019, Revision of the Australian bee fly genus Sisyromyia White, 1916 (Bombyliidae, Bombyliinae, Acrophthalmydini), Zootaxa 4711 (2), pp. 201-244 : 203-204

1. Sisyromyia albisquama sp. nov.

( Fig. 1 )

Type specimens. Holotype ♂ Australia, SA, 7 ml. S. of Wigunda Tank, W. of Nullarbor H.S., 3 Aug 1952, Calaby & McIntosh.

Paratype ♂ Australia, SA , ♂ 28.26S 136.58E, Bandoo Hill, 20 Jun 1991, I. Gee.

Other specimen examined. Australia, WA, ♂ Perth, 20 Jun 1917, Clark .

Diagnosis. Medium-sized fly, body with mostly yellowish hairs. Wing membrane slightly infuscated and darker on anterior half. Anterior margin of scutellum with an indistinct band consisting of short white scales. Abdominal tergites 3–7 with white scales laterally.

Description. Male. Body length 8.0– 8.7 mm, wing length 8.2–9.0 mm.

Head. Head about 2.2 x wider than long, mostly blackish with thick pale pruinescence and covered in admixed white to yellow scales and black hairs. Eyes dichoptic, narrowly separated by 0.9 x width of ocellus. Frons short, 1.5 x length of ocellar tubercle, upper narrow and black; lower half triangular, 3.2 x length of upper half, with thick pale pruinescence and covered in white scales. Ocellar tubercle slightly raised, blackish brown to black with grey pruinescence, with long black hairs admixed with few golden hairs. Face with thick pale pruinescence and long golden scales admixed with long black hairs, parafacial area with long white scales. Gena with thick pale pruinescence and long white scales. Clypeus with thick pale pruinescence and otherwise bare. Occiput with thick pale pruinescence, except dorsal area with sparse pruinescence, covered with black hairs admixed with some golden scales behind ocellar tubercle, and admixed with white hairs laterally. Posterior eye margin slightly convex. Antennal scape and pedicel black with thick pale pruinescence, scape with long black hairs, except long white scales laterally, pedicel with short black hairs; flagellum black without pruinescence, subapex with 3–5 long hairs. Scape 3.3 x as long as wide, and 2.6 x as long as pedicel, uniform from base to apex. Pedicel 1.5 x as long as wide. Flagellum 9.1 x as long as wide, 1.4 x as long as scape + pedicel, 2.0 x as long as scape, conical and slightly laterally compressed, one-segmented with apical stylus ( Fig. 1c ). Palpus long, just extending beyond oral cavity, dark yellow except brown on both ends with yellow hairs, one-segmented, without palpal pit. Mouthparts slender, 3.4 x as long as eye length, 2.3 x as long as head length, labellum thin and filiform ( Fig. 1h ).

Thorax. Integumental colour of scutum mostly black with thick brown pruinescence. Scutum covered with short golden hairs admixed with some black hairs, lateral stripe consisting of long white scales admixed with black hairs. Six brownish yellow notopleural setae present. Scutellum black with thick pale pruinescence, anterior half with an indistinct band consisting of short white scales, posterior half with long black hairs admixed with some golden scales. Pleura black with thick pale pruinescence, mostly covered in long pale yellow hairs, except dorsal half of anepisternum with brown hairs admixed with some black hairs, anepimeron, meron, laterotergite and mediotergite bare.

Legs. Legs mostly dark yellow, except femora brown but yellow apically. Femora covered in white to golden scales, ventral face admixed with long brown hairs. Mid femur with one anteroventral bristle on apical half, hind femur with one row of anteroventral bristles. Bristles and other hairs on legs brown. Fore tibia 2.1 x longer than fore basitarsus, mid tibia 2.4 x longer than mid basitarsus, hind tibia 2.4 x longer than hind basitarsus.

Wings. Wing membrane slightly infuscated and darker on anterior half. Cell r 5 open, M 1 close to R 5; cell br nearly as long as cell bm, crossvein r-m arising from base of cell dm; crossvein m-m nearly as long as crossvein r-m; cell cup open. Stump vein present on anterior margin of R 4 ( Fig. 1d ). Haltere stem brown and knob dark yellow.

Abdomen. Integumental colour of tergites black with thick grey pruinescence. Tergite 1 with dense short yellow hairs, admixed with some long black hairs laterally; tergite 2 with golden hairs and scales, posterior half admixed with long black hairs and with few white scales laterally; tergites 3–7 with short golden scales admixed with long black hairs, and with short white scales laterally; tergites 2–7 with median stripe consisting of dense, decumbent short white scales. Sternites black except posterior margin yellow, with thick pale pruinescence, covered with white scales, except pale yellow scales laterally, admixed with some black hairs. Genitalia. Epandrium anterior margin slightly concave, posterior margin slightly convex ( Fig. 1j ). Lateral margin of gonocoxite nearly straight ( Figs 1l,m ); inner and outer apices of gonocoxite short and acute; gap between inner apices of gonocoxites long and wide; phallus shorter than gonocoxite ( Fig. 1n ).

Female. Unknown.

Remarks. Sisyromyia albisquama sp. nov. is similar to Sisyromyia elongata sp. nov., but differs as follows: body hairs mostly yellowish; scutellum black; anterior margin of scutellum with a band consisting of short white scales; and abdominal tergites 3–7 with white scales laterally.

Etymology. The specific name refers to the white scales on lateral part of abdominal tergites 3–7.

Distribution. Australia (SA, WA).

Figures

FIGURE 1. Sisyromyia albisquama sp. nov. ♂ (a–i (external); j–n (genitalia)): (a) dorsal; (b) lateral; (c) antenna, lateral; (d) wing; (e) head, dorsal; (f) head, frontal; (g) head, profile; (h) head, lateral; (i) abdomen, dorsal; (j) epandrium, dorsal; (k) epandrium, lateral; (l) genital capsule, dorsal; (m) genital capsule, ventral; (n) genital capsule, lateral. Scale bars = 1 mm (a, b, d–h); = 0.1 mm (c, j–n).