Egle inermoides, Michelsen, 2009

Michelsen, Verner, 2009, Revision of the willow catkin flies, genus Egle Robineau-Desvoidy (Diptera: Anthomyiidae), in Europe and neighbouring areas, Zootaxa 2043 (1), pp. 1-76 : 43-44

13. Egle inermoides sp. nov.

Figs. 121–125 , 185, 186 .

Etymology. The specific epithet ‘inermoides’ is derived from inermis, existing epithet for a closely related, Holarctic species, and ‘-oides’, a Greek adjectival suffix meaning resembling.

Description. Very close to Egle inermis but different as follows: Even smaller, wing length 2.2–2.9mm.

Male. Subgena shiny black, without dusting except narrowly towards subcranial cavity. Parafacial broader, in middle as wide as postpedicel. Fronto-parafacial angle more prominent, extended as far forward as lower facial margin. Submedian tibial setae even fewer: Fore- and mid tibiae even without ad-setae. Terminalia ( Figs. 121–125 ): Sternite V with setal tufts postero-laterally on basal plate less dense, consisting of fewer setae and setulae; surstyli in posterior view without a transverse ridge distal to middle; apical extension of cerci thicker; also gonites and phallus show some differences.

Female. Prementum shiny black, only with sporadic dusting. Subgena shiny black, without dusting except narrowly towards subcranial cavity. Parafacial in middle as wide as postpedicel. Fronto-parafacial angle more prominent, reaching as far forward as lower facial margin. Oviscapt ( Figs. 185, 186 ): Sternite VII less broad and less sclerotized on posterior two-thirds.

Material examined. Type material [ ZMUC]: SPAIN: Alicante : Nat. Park Font Roja, 5 males (including holotype), 2 females 16.iii.2007 ( V. Michelsen); Beniaia, stream bed, 7 males, 2 females 18.iii.2007 ( V. Michelsen) .

Biology. Collected in early spring on flowering Salix growing in stream beds. Males were also seen swarming.

Distribution. Only known from two localities in the Alicante province of Spain, but it has expectedly a wider distribution in southern Europe. Egle inermis and E. inermoides may credibly be considered as sisterspecies with vicariant distributions. However, Griffiths (2003) pointed to an equally credible sister-species relation between E. inermis and E. bicaudata in North America. These species appear equally close morphologically and also have vicariant distributions.

Relationships. If both species-pairs E. inermis + E. inermoides and E. inermis + E. bicaudata are real and resulting from recent speciation events, it follows that E. inermis in a cladistic context is paraphyletic!

Figures

FIGURES 121–125. Egle inermoides, male terminalia [paratype: Spain]. 121. Sternite V, ventral view. 122, 123. Hypopygium, caudal and lateral views. 124. Pre- and postgonites, lateral view. 125. Phallus, lateral view. Same scale.

FIGURES 184–186. Egle spp., female terminalia. 184. E. inermis, oviscapt, flat mounted. 185. E. inermoides, oviscapt, flat mounted [paratype: Spain]. 186. Same, spermathecae. Different scales.