Manota ephippiata, Hippa, Heikki, 2008

Hippa, Heikki, 2008, Notes on Afrotropical Manota Williston (Diptera: Mycetophilidae), with the description of seven new species, Zootaxa 1741, pp. 1-23 : 10

Manota ephippiata sp. n.

( Figs 5 A, B)

Male. Colour. Except for the wing, the single specimen has been treated with KOH and is strongly faded. It is almost unicolorous pale brown, face, mouthparts, ventral part of preepisternum 2 and coxae (of legs, only coxae and femur 1 and 2 remain) seem paler brown/yellowish, the vertex dark brown; wing and haltere pale brown, the knob of haltere seems a little darker brown. All the setosity pale (postocular setae lost), yellowish or brownish, the thicker setae seeming darker than the finer setae and trichia. Head. Of the antennae, only scapus, pedicellus and flagellomere 1 remain. Palpomeres 3–5 lost. Number of postocular setae (only the sockets remain) 9–11. Thorax. Anepisternum setose, with 46 setae; anterior basalare non-setose; preepisternum 2 setose, with 17 setae; laterotergite non-setose; episternum 3 setose, with 24 setae. Wing. Length 1.8 mm. Hypopygium, Figs 5 A, B: Sternite 9 about one half of ventral length of gonocoxa, lateral margin sharply delimited, posterior margin medially notched, anterior margin deeply incised, the setae similar to ventral setae of gonocoxa. Ventral mesial margin of gonocoxa simple, slightly sigmoid. Parastylar lobe complex, with ca. 20 setae. Paraapodemal lobe not identifiable. Dorsal mesial margin of gonocoxa strongly sigmoid with a broad rounded long-setose lobe-like corner on apical half. From the latter the margin continues to an apically setose apicolateral lobe. At the corner on the mesial margin of gonocoxa with a small sparsely setose lobe lying on a more ventral level, and a larger lobe lying still more ventrally and which is broadly setose at margin. Two juxtagonostylar setae present, both being subequal stout megasetae arising from a common basal body, one from the apex, the other from the side, the basal body about twice length of megasetae. Gonostylus large, almost as long as gonocoxa, elongate subquadrangular with two small lobes at basomesial angle. Setae on ventral side of gonostylus rather fine and short, at apical margin stronger and longer, on dorsal side absent. Tegmen unusually small, broadly subtriangular, with lateral shoulders which are unusually apical in position, the apodeme of tegmen unusual, directed obliquely posteriad. Hypoproct posteriorly reaching middle of gonostylus, with ca. 20 setae on each half, in a row along mesial and anterior margin. Cerci medially separate.

Female unknown.

Discussion. M. ephippiata is not similar to, and cannot be confused with, any described Manota . The very large gonostylus with the two small lobes at the basomesial angle is enough to distinguish the species. The unusually small tegmen with the apodemes turned obliquely posteriad is similar to the Oriental M. perlobata Hippa , but otherwise the two species are very dissimilar.

Types. Holotype. Male, UGANDA, Distr. Masindi, Budongo Forest, n. Sonso, 1o45’N 31o35’E (written as W on the label), 11–20.VII. 1995, Th. Wagner; Fogging sur Teclea nobilis no 17, swamp forest. In MNHN.

Figures

FIGURE 5. Manota ephippiata sp. n. (holotype). A. Hypopygium, dorsal view. B. Hypopygium, ventral view. Scale 0.10 mm.