Mberu Capellari & Amorim

Capellari, Renato Soares & Amorim, Dalton De Souza, 2011, Mberu, a new neurigonine genus from southeastern Brazil (Diptera: Dolichopodidae), Zootaxa 3101, pp. 38-46 : 39

Mberu Capellari & Amorim gen. nov.

Type-species: Mberu pepocatu Capellari & Amorim sp. nov. (here designated).

Diagnosis (based on males, except as noted). Antennal first flagellomere triangular, with subapical to dorsal aristalike stylus. Thorax elongate, almost as long as abdomen, posterior slope of mesonotum distinctly flattened; acrostichals biseriate, six pairs of dorsocentrals (three posteriormost conspicuously larger). Wing venation greatly modified, with reticulate aspect (MSSC). Base of FI with anterior bush-like comb of brown setae (MSSC); FII with anterodorsal row of strong brown setae on apical 2/3, decreasing in size towards apex; anteroventral row of pale setae on basal 3/4, decreasing in size towards apex, one sinuous, brown anteroventral seta (all MSSC). Tibia II with anterior row of brown setae strongly curved medially (MSSC). Basitarsus I longer than remaining tarsomeres (MSSC). Surstylus divided into two lobes (DSur and VSur). Cercus with digitiform projection. Female oviscapt with flattened T10, prolonged and fused to cerci.

Etymology. From the Tupi-Guarani native Brazilian language “mberu”, meaning “fly”. The gender is masculine.

Comments. Mberu shows a number of male secondary sexual characters, such as modified setation on the legs and conspicuously modified wing venation (the latter shown in a less remarkable condition by females). The new genus shares obvious features with genera of Coeloglutini, and is assigned to that tribe (see Discussion). It can be easily distinguished from the other members of the tribe by the striking male secondary sexual characters, but also by the absence of the comb of short spines in It5 of males, the male surstyli divided into two lobes, and acanthophorites of the female oviscapt with spines. An additional species reported from Brazil (M. Pollet, in litt.) remains to be described in the genus, so for the time being Mberu is monotypic, and the “generic” and specific diagnoses and descriptions are identical.