Copestylum xalapensis, Rotheray & Hancock & Marcos-García, 2007

Rotheray, G. E., Hancock, E. G. & Marcos-García, M. A., 2007, Neotropical Copestylum (Diptera, Syrphidae) breeding in bromeliads (Bromeliaceae) including 22 new species, Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society 150 (2), pp. 267-317 : 279-280

006. COPESTYLUM XALAPENSIS SP. NOV.

ROTHERAY & MARCOS- GARCÍA

Diagnosis – female holotype: Face dark yellow without medial vitta, mostly yellow haired; lower margin of face from mouthedge to the occiput black ( Fig. 6 ); frons darker than face with yellow hairs, and shiny, lacking pilosity; width of the vertex about 18% of width of head; mesonotum black with yellow hairs anteriorly, and black posteriorly; yellow lateral vittae present; scutellum yellow, mostly black haired; pleura entirely black; wing darker in the costal and apical margin; legs black including coxae and trochanters, except for yellow apices of femorae and bases of tibiae; mostly black haired except for posterior margin of femorae; abdomen – tergite 1 fuscous, tergite 2 with a white anterior band and narrow (third of the length of tergite) black band, tergites 3 and 4 black, each with a pair of yellow side-spots; tergites black haired except for hairs on white band of tergite 2; sternite 1 white with white hairs, and with a black apical band; sternite 3 and 4 black with a narrow yellow apical band, and black haired; male – unknown. Length: body, 9.15 mm; wing, 7.15 mm (N = 1).

Diagnosis – puparium: Suckers on abdominal segments 1–6; marginal band of fleshy lobes coated in long, fine, unbranched setae, present on abdomen only, not including the thorax; vestiture comprising soft, fine setae lying flat; ventral surface of lobes on abdominal segments 1–6 coated in short, thick, stiff setae; third pair of lappets included into the marginal band, and setulate only at base; posterior breathing tube with three pairs of spiracular openings, more or less parallel; pupal spiracles black with yellow apex, and openings clustered at widened apex.

Material examined – holotype: Female with puparium, Mexico, Veracruz State, Xalapa , Crta. Coatepec, 4 July 1999, ex water tank of bromeliad, GER, EGH and MAM ( CIBIO) .

Etymology: The name ‘ xalapensis’ is in reference to the town closest to the type locality, Xalapa, in Mexico. This species is only known from Mexico.

Taxonomic notes: This is the darkest of the oscillans subgroup species, with an abdominal colour pattern similar to elizabethae subgroup species in having tergite 2 with a pale anterior band, and most of the remaining tergites black with pairs of inconspicuous yellow side spots. The colour pattern of the abdomen readily distinguishes C. xalapensis from other oscillans subgroup adults. It is easily separated from elizabethae subgroup species by the lack of a medial vitta on the face. Within the oscillans subgroup, the early stages of C. xalapensis are distinguished by the short, thick setae on the underside of the lobes, underside of the third pair of lappets setulate only at the base, and the more or less parallel spiracular openings of the posterior breathing tube. Early stages are most similar to C. tapanti , but are separated from that species by the black pupal spiracles. In C. tapanti the pupal spiracles are yellow.

Biology: The adult was reared from a larva in a bromeliad water tank ( Bromeliaceae ), and is known only from Mexico.

Subgroup carlosii

Diagnosis – larva and puparium: Marginal band complete including both abdomen and thorax; lobes of mesothorax and metathorax each comprising one pair of lobes; first abdominal segment with two pairs of lobes; lateral and apical margins of each lobe coated with dorso-ventrally flattened setae pressed close together basally and forked apically ( Fig. 80 ); ventral surface of lobes matted with long, thin setae; sensilla 7/8 on a long thin projection; anterior spiracles present, dark brown with either two or three spiracular openings at apex; vestiture consisting of dark papillae bearing aggregated groups of setae; dark papillae lacking setae present on the ventral surface of the anal segment; mesothoracic prolegs with a group of about eight crochets on inner lobe; rim of suckers smooth and shining without setae; anterior rim of each sucker with two lateral groups of between three and five crochets ( Fig. 78 ); anal segment with first lappet pair not on a fleshy projection, reduced to sensillum and associated setae, posterior two pairs of lappets, about equally long and above, not part of, the marginal band that consists of two pairs of lobes ( Fig. 76 ); posterior breathing tube dark brown to black; long, such that transverse ridge at apex of tube; cylindrical in cross-section and parallel sided; lightly punctate above the transverse ridge; spiracular plates close together and oval in outline shape; spiracular plates not inclined, with three pairs of curved openings; pupal spiracles, short, about same length as distance apart, either yellow or black with openings either below middle or at apex on raised bands, short hairs either absent or present.

Diagnosis – adult: Face with profile concave above prominent tubercle; male eyes without enlarged facets; mesonotum with complex pattern of black and white groups of hairs (view from behind), medial strip of white hairs on each side of which, from the anterior margin to a central point, a pair of black-haired strips, at the base of the postpronotum a patch of white hairs, and behind, a strip of black hairs reaching the transverse suture, rest of the mesonotum white-haired except for a pair of black-haired strips from just behind the transverse suture to the base of the scutellum, and black hairs on the postalar callus; wings with sharply defined brown maculae; superior lobe of male genitalia with subapical pair of hooks blunt and rounded, and this pair of hooks not as defined as in other tank subgroups.

Taxonomic notes: This subgroup of two species is easily distinguished by the marginal band that includes the thorax, but not the posterior two pairs of lappets. Additional distinguishing characters include the presence of crochets on the suckers ( Fig. 78 ), marginal band consisting of only one pair of lobes each on the mesothorax and metathorax, abdominal sensilla 7/8, which are on a long projection, and the presence of anterior spiracles. The adults are readily separated from other tank subgroups by the concave face between the tubercle and antennae ( Figs 7 and 8 ). The subgroup is only known from Bolivia, and larvae were found in both epiphytic and saxicolous bromeliads.

007. COPESTYLUM CARLOSII SP. NOV.

Figures

Figures 1–6. Adult Copestylum, lateral view of the head; scale line = 3.5 mm. 1. Copestylum galantei sp. nov., male holotype; 2. Copestylum gelenita sp. nov., male holotype; 3. Copestylum oscillans sp. nov., male holotype; 4. Copestylum tacanense sp. nov., male holotype; 5. Copestylum tapanti sp. nov., male holotype; 6. Copestylum xalapensis sp. nov., female holotype.

Figures 75–81. Third stage larvae of Copestylum. 75. Copestylum oscillans, whole larva, head to the right, ventral view, length = 11 mm. 76. Copestylum carlosii, whole larva, head to the right, ventral view, length = 10 mm. 77. Copestylum elizabethae, whole larva, head to the right, ventral view, length = 11 mm. 78. Copestylum carlosii, sucker from 4th abdominal segment, anterior end to the right, ventral view, width = 1 mm. 79. Copestylum oscillans, marginal lobe from 3rd abdominal segment, dorsal view, width = 0.35 mm. 80. Copestylum carlosii, marginal lobe from 3rd abdominal segment, dorsal view, width = 0.35 mm. 81. Copestylum elizabethae, marginal lobe from 3rd abdominal segment, dorsal view, width = 0.35 mm.

Figures 7–10. Adult Copestylum, lateral view of the head; scale line = 3.5 mm. 7. Copestylum carlosii sp. nov., female holotype; 8. Copestylum volcanorum sp. nov., male holotype; 9. Copestylum barbara sp. nov., male holotype; 10. Copestylum elizabethae sp. nov., male holotype.