Mesorhaga danbickeli, Santos & Capellari & Limeira-De-Oliveira, 2024

Santos, Ednaldo Bezerra Dos, Capellari, Renato Soares & Limeira-De-Oliveira, Francisco, 2024, Four new species of Mesorhaga Schiner (Diptera: Dolichopodidae) from Northeastern Brazil, with an identification key to South American species of the genus, Zootaxa 5519 (2), pp. 243-256 : 245-247

Mesorhaga danbickeli sp. nov.

urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:C1D8B864-1386-4994-AA11-79AEDFE8523A

( Figs 1–8 )

Etymology. Named after Dr. Dan Bickel (Australian Museum, Sydney), in recognition of his friendship and cooperative helpfulness over the years.

Diagnosis. Specimens metallic green, with golden reflections; abdomen blackish towards distal end. Legs predominantly yellow, except for base of mid and hind coxae, and tarsomeres 2 – 5 brown to dark brown. Wing ( Fig. 4 ) entirely hyaline; vein M 1 with a smooth curve toward vein R 4+ 5 in 1 / 2 distance between vein dm-m and distal end; vein dm-m about 1 / 5 shorter than distal section of vein M 4. Hypopygium ( Fig. 7 ): cerci dark yellow, robust, proximal end with slight ventral expansion in lateral view, distal third strongly sclerotized, widened, with a short subrectangular projection on dorsal margin and a tuft of strong setae on ventral surface.

Holotype ♂ ( Figs 1–6 ). Body length 3.26 mm, wing length 3.39 mm.

Variation. Male (n=3). Body length 2.74–3.35 mm, mean 3.19 mm, wing length 3.32–4.20 mm, mean 3.76 mm.

Head ( Figs 2, 3 ). Vertex deeply excavated; ocellar triangle with 1 pair of black ocellar setae, diverging, long and strong, as long and strong as notopleural setae; 1 pair of postocellar setae, divergent, short and weak, as short and as weak as presutural acrostichal setae; 3 pairs of postvertical setae, in line with row of postocular setae, inner and mid postvertical setae, subequal in length and diameter, as long and strong as postsutural acrostichal setae; outer postvertical seta about 2.0X shorter and slightly weaker than inner and mid postvertical setae; 1 pair of strong vertical setae. Postoculars near vertex, short and uniseriate, longer and multiseriate from middle. Antenna brown to dark brown; scape, pedicel and postpedicel subequal in length; pedicel glabrous, with grey-brownish pruinosity, with ring of black distal setae, dorsal and ventral setae longer and stronger; postpedicel subtriangular, slightly wider than long; arista brown to dark brown, glabrous, about 3.0X length of scape, pedicel and postpedicel combined. Frons green, face and clypeus with golden reflections and greyish-white pruinosity, denser on face and clypeus. Face narrowing ventrally. Palpus brown with strong black distal seta and some additional smaller ones, yellow. Labellum yellow with yellow setae.

Thorax ( Fig. 5 ). Green metallic with golden reflections, setae black. Chaetotaxy: 3 pairs of unaligned acrostichal setae, 1 presutural, 2 postsutural, as long and strong as dorsal pedicel seta; 1 + 4 strong dorsocentral setae, increasing in length and diameter posteriorly; 1 presutural intra-alar seta, slightly shorter and weaker than presutural supra-alar (nearly on transverse suture); 2 supra-alar setae, subqual in length and diameter, as long and strong as presutural dorsocentral; 2 notopleural setae, long and strong, subequal in length and diameter. Scutellum concolorous with mesonotum, with two pairs of macrosetae, 1st pair (lateral) slightly shorter and weaker than 2nd pair (apical). Pleurae dark green with golden reflections, grayish-white pruinosity.

Legs ( Fig. 1 ). Yellow, except base of mid and hind coxae, tarsomeres 2–5 brown to dark brown. Femora with pale elongated setae, on ventral surface, slightly shorter and sparse on fore femur, other surfaces with dark brown to black setae, these slightly short on anterodorsal surface of fore femur and slightly stronger on distal 1/3 of hind femur. Tibiae and tarsi setose with short setae, dark brown to black, slightly longer only on proximal 1/2 of mid tibia; fore leg with tarsomere 5 slightly expanded laterally. Fore leg: 28; 30; 21/ 8/ 6/ 4/ 3; mid leg: 24; 32; 21/ 8/ 7/ 5/ 3 and hind leg: 27; 32; 14/ 14/ 7/ 4/ 2.

Wing ( Fig. 4 ). Hyaline, veins yellow, except for proximal 1 / 3 of R 1 brown; M 1 with smooth curve toward R 4+ 5 in 1 / 2 distance between crossvein dm-m and apex of wing; crossvein dm-m slightly smaller than distal section of M 4. Lower calypter yellow, with fan of dark yellow to light brown setae. Halter yellow, knob yellow.

Abdomen ( Fig. 1 ). Thin, narrower than thorax, dark green, with golden and bronze reflections, sternites brown, setae dark brown to black, slightly longer and stronger on distal margins of tergites, distinctly longer and stronger on tergites 1 and 5 (series of 2 to 4 black setae, particularly longer on laterals of tergite 1); tergite 5 with lateroventral cuticular projection, bearing long and strong black setae.

Male terminalia ( Fig. 7 ). Hypopygium brown. Hypandrium thin and elongated, slightly longer than epandrium, curved dorsally, apex slightly expanded dorsoventrally. Epandrium elongated, subcylindrical, about 2.6X longer than wide, at maximum width, pale setae about half length of subdistal seta of epandrial lobe; epandrial foramen oval, positioned on medial portion of epandrium; epandrial seta short and weak at base of epandrial lobe; epandrial lobe elongated, about 4.0X longer than wide, at maximum width with 2 setae, 1 long and strong medial and 1 short and weak subdistal, almost inconspicuous; surstylus with three lobes subequal in length: anterior lobe with distinct setae distally, this slightly shorter than median lobe; robust median lobe narrowed towards apex, slightly longer than anterior lobe; posterior lobe thin and slightly longer than median lobe. Cerci dark yellow, robust, ventrally curved almost at right angles, proximal end with slight ventral expansion in lateral view; subproximal region with bifurcated appearance in dorsal view, distal 1 / 3 strongly sclerotized, distally widened, with short subrectangular projection on dorsal margin and tuft of strong setae on ventral surface; outer surface with dark setae, subequal in length, as long as medial seta of epandrial lobe, decreasing in length and diameter towards distal end; distal 1 / 3 of medial surface with dark setae.

Female. Unknown.

Type material. HOLOTYPE ♂ (pinned, good condition), deposited in CZMA: Brazil, PI [= Piauí], Piracuruca, P. [=Parque] N.[= Nacional] de Sete Cidades , Posto ICMBio , 04°05′57′′S / 41°42′34′′W \ Armadilha Malaise Gd [=grande], 1–15.i.2023, F. Limeira-de-Oliveira, A. Tôrres & E. S. Pessoa, cols [=coletores] \ FLO 5724 . PARATYPES: same data as holotype, except: FLO 5722 (pinned, terminalia in glass microtube, good condition: 1♂, CZMA); BR [= Brasil], Maranhão, Barreirinhas, P. [Parque] N. [Nacional] dos L. [Lençóis] M. [Maranhenses] , 02°39′49′′S, 42°49′54′′W, altitude 16 m, Arm. Malaise, 15–31.i.2016, F. Limeira-de-Oliveira, L.L.M. Santos, A.A.T. Sousa & D.M. Limeira, cols. [=coletores] \ FLO 6766 (pinned, terminalia in glass microtube, good condition: 1♂, CZMA) .

Distribution. Brazil: Piauí, Maranhão.

Remarks. Mesorhaga danbickeli sp. nov. keys out to couplet 10 and Mesorhaga nayaritensis in Bickel (2007), but can be differentiated by having brown to dark brown antenna and subtriangular postpedicel (antenna black and subcircular postpedicel in M. nayaritensis ), legs mostly yellow, except for brown mid and hind coxae (all coxae brown in M. nayaritensis ), epandrial lobe with two setae, one medial and one subdistal (two subdistal setae in M. nayaritensis ), epandrium with a rounded anterior end (tapered anterior end in M. nayaritensis ).

Figures

FIGURES 1–8. Mesorhaga danbickeli sp. nov., Holotype ♂, left lateral view. 1, habitus, left lateral view; 2, head, left lateral view; 3, head, frontal view; 4, wing; 5, thorax, dorsal view; 6, post-abdomen, left lateral view; 7, terminalia left lateral view; 8, terminalia illustration left lateral view. Abbreviations: C = costal vein; cerc = cercus; bm+dm = basal medial cell + dm = discal medial cell; dm–m = discal medial crossvein; ej apod = ejaculatory apodeme; epand = epandrium; epand for = foramen epandrial; hypd = hypandrium; ph = phallus; h = humeral crossvein; M1 = first branch of media; M4 = fourth branch of media; R1 = anterior branch of radius; R2+3 = second branch of radius; R4+5 = third branch of radius; Sc = subcostal vein; spm sac = sperm sac; sur = surstylus.