Pelecinobaccha alia, Miranda, 2017

Miranda, Gil Felipe Gonçalves, 2017, Revision of the Hybobathus arx and Pelecinobaccha summa species groups (Diptera: Syrphidae), Zootaxa 4338 (1), pp. 1-43 : 26-29

Pelecinobaccha alia sp. nov.

Fig. 8

Pelecinobaccha sp.04. Miranda et al., 2016 (sampled taxon).

Pelecinobaccha pandora . Miranda, 2017 (misidentification).

Description. MALE ( Figs 8a, c, d, f–h & k–n ). Head ( Figs 8f–h ). Yellow. Face white pilose and with sparse microtrichia lateral to tubercle. Gena white pilose. Lunule pale except for central black marking. Frontal triangle wholly yellow, wholly covered with ventro-dorsal oriented microtrichosity, and with black pile. Frontal prominence protuberant. Vertical triangle black, with sparse white microtrichosity, with 1–2 median regular rows of erect black pile ending dorsal to anterior ocellus; ocellar triangle separated by 1.5 times its length from the posterior eye margin. Eye contiguity same length as vertical triangle length. Eye with weak sub-triangular indentation on posterior margin positioned slightly dorsal to level of antennal insertions. Antennal insertions separate. Antenna orange, with black pile; postpedicel oval. Occiput homogenously covered by white microtrichia and with long white flattened pile, anterior rows shorter; dorsal 1/3 with 1–2 rows, anterior pile black; ventral 2/3 with 2–3 rows. Thorax ( Fig. 8a ). Scutum mostly black, yellow laterally except darker dorsal to wing base, mostly with very sparse white microtrichia except for three median vittae of concentrated microtrichia, narrow median and a wide sub-median pair that tapers posteriorly; with erect black pile, except pale laterally from postpronotum until dorsal to wing base, and with anterior row of longer white pile interrupted medially. Scutellum with basal 1/3 yellow, remaining darker, with erect black pile, shorter medially; subscutellar fringe with long white pile. Pleuron yellow, black on anterior anepisternum, anterior 1/3 of posterior anepisternum, ventral 1/2 of katepisternum, meron, and ventro posterior margin of katatergum; with pale pile on anterior anepisternum, posterior 1/2 of posterior anepisternum, on separate dorsal and ventral patches on katepisternum, anterior anepimeron, katepimeron, and metaepisternum, with very short pile on proepimeron. Plumula yellow. Calypter yellow, margin of ventral lobe with long pile, margin of dorsal lobe with short black pile. Halter yellow, capitulum light orange. Wing ( Fig. 8d ). Mostly hyaline, light brown on bc, c, sc, basal 1/3 of r1, entirely microtrichose; alula hyaline, convex, apically 3 times as broad as c cell, entirely microtrichose. Legs ( Fig. 8c ). Pro- and mesoleg yellow, femora slightly orange dorso-apically, pile short and yellow, except longer and black on a posterior row and apico-dorsally on mesofemur. Metaleg mostly orange, metafemur with a small darker area sub-apically and yellow apex, metatibia with yellow basal and apical 1/5, and metatarsus yellow; with black pile except pale on yellow regions and dorsally on metacoxa; metabasitarsomere slightly more than 1/2 of the metatibia length. Abdomen ( Fig. 8a ). Petiolate, 3 times longer than thorax, dark brown. Tergite 1 yellow on basal 1/2, brown on apical 1/2, with long erect black pile, except pale basally, and appressed and short to absent dorso-apically; sternite 1 yellow and with erect pale pile. Tergite 2 long, 3.4 times longer than smallest width, with pair of medial, sub-lateral, yellow circular markings; with hourglass-shaped medial region of dull brown microtrichia, with appressed black pile, except erect laterally; sternite 2 brown with very sparse black pile. Tergite 3 trapezoidal, as long as apical margin, and apical margin twice wider than basal margin, with a pair of central, long, oval, yellow vittae that do not reach the apical margin and are connected basally to baso-lateral, triangular, yellow markings, and with appressed black pile; sternite 3 brown and with appressed black pile. Tergite 4 rectangular, wider than long, central vittae reach apical margin, remaining characteristics as on segment 3. Tergite 5 rectangular, short, wider than long, baso-lateral triangles extend sub-laterally until the middle, remaining characteristics as on segment 4. Genitalia ( Figs 8k–n ). Cercus with 1–2 irregular rows of pile on medial margin and 2 irregular rows sub-laterally. Surstylus directed ventrally, oval and short with rounded apex, dorso-medial 1/4 as thin lamina, with around 10 ventral setulae on apex, three weaker ventral setulae centrally, and three weaker setulae basally, with few sparse pile on baso-dorsal 2/3. Subepandrial sclerite quadrate, with slightly concave basal and apical margin. Hypandrium with ventral notch extending on slightly more than anterior 1/2 and with concave basal margin. Basiphallus drop-shaped, basal acute projection distinctly shorter than anterior portion. Distiphallus with anterior surface tapering and curved anteriorly on apex, and with baso-lateral extensions that meet ventrally (forming a tube), ventro-apical membranous area bare. Phallapodeme unsclerotized only at base. Postgonite ventral surface straight, dorsal surface slightly concave but slightly convex sub-apically, apex convex anteriorly, with small sub-acute ventral extremity and acute dorsal extremity, with sparse pile on baso-ventral 2/3.

FEMALE ( Figs 8b, e, i, j & o–r ). Like male except for the following characters: Lunule with narrow dark vitta dorsal to central marking. Frons yellow with brown median vitta extending from vertex until lunule and slightly expanding apically, ventro-dorsal oriented microtrichia concentrated on dark vitta. Ocellar triangle twice its length from posterior eye margin and 1.3 times an ocelli-width from lateral eye margin, pile slightly shorter posterior to ocellar triangle. Wing light brown on basal 2/3 of r, basal 2/3 of r1 and basal 1/6 of r2+3. Abdominal tergite 2 shorter and slightly wider than on male, slightly compressed medially, 2.3 times longer than minimum width, without medial pale markings, brown microtrichose area triangular-shaped, and pile always appressed and of the same length. Tergite 3 short, shorter than apical margin and apical margin twice wider than basal margin, central markings smaller and shorter, and not connecting to baso-lateral markings. Tergite 4 rectangular and wide, remaining characteristics as on female abdominal tergite 3 except central markings are slightly larger and connect to baso-lateral markings. Segment 6 conical, divided into separate tergite and sternite inconspicuously on basal 1/3 but distinctly fused on the remaining apical region, as long as basal margin and 1.6 times as long as 5. Genitalia ( Figs 8o–r ). Tergite 7 triangular, with rounded apex, with basal apodeme extending for 4/5 of the length of segment 6, pile mostly on membranous area with only a few apically on sclerotized area; segment 7 lateral sclerite rectangular, with distinct baso-ventral apodeme; segment 7 heavily sclerotized between the tergite and the lateral sclerite, and heavily sclerotized ventrally, with triangular indentation apically, and pile mostly on membranous areas. Tergite 8 unsclerotized medially appearing as a pair of separate sclerites, basal crest with short extended ridge sub-dorsally; sternite 8 as a pair of rectangular sclerotized plates with short ventro-apical projection and less sclerotized ventro-basal rounded projection directed towards middle, which folds inward while at rest, with sparse pile medially and some on sclerotized areas. Epiproct as pair of separate sclerites fused to dorsal margin of cerci, with a few pile in a row at the fusion border; hypoproct as narrow sclerotized strip, pilose. Cercus with a row of pile on apical margin.

Length. Body: male 10.3–14.3mm (n = 10), female 9.1–14.3mm (n = 23); wing: male 8.1–11.6, female 7.1– 11.4mm.

Variation. MALE. The dorsal occiput may vary in the number of rows of pile, the anterior row might be restricted to a few pile close to the vertical triangle, some intermittent pile or be a complete row. FEMALE. The vitta on the frons may expand more than the width of the lunule central marking, going around the lunule laterally. Abdominal vittate markings might be slightly wider. Tergite 7 apex might be more acute than rounded; basoventral apodeme of the segment 7 lateral sclerite might be distinctly long (e.g. USNMENT01288156).

Distribution. Bolivia (La Paz, Santa Cruz), Brazil (Acre), Ecuador (Napo), Panama (Canal Zone), Peru (Huanuco, Madre de Dios).

Etymology. The specific epithet, alia , is an adjective that means “different” in Latin, since the specimens were originally thought to be P. cubensis but proved different in the end.

Comments. Related to P. cubensis but never with an apical darkening on the wing, with a female abdominal segment 6 as long as or shorter than its basal width, and different male genitalia (not elongated as in P. cubensis ). However, no distinguishing features were found on the female genitalia between these two species. Specimens were only found from Panama to northernwestern South America ( Bolivia, northwestern Brazil, Ecuador and Peru).

There is a noteworthy male specimen from Bolivia (USNMENT01288158) that differs from the description, it has a few black pile on the apex of the lunule, the ocellar triangle is 1.2 times in front of the posterior eye margin, the eye contiguity is slightly shorter than the vertical triangle, the postpedicel has a larger darker area, the ventral occiput may have as many as 4 rows of pile, the pile on scutum is shorter and the lateral pale pile extends only until the transverse suture, the subscutellar fringe is absent, and the ventro-apical membranous area of the distiphallus bears microtrichia. Although the pilose lunule is something unique, the remaining differing characters and its distribution do not seem to support the recognition of this specimen as a separate species from P. alia .

Type material. HOLOTYPE: Male specimen in good conditions, genitalia dissected and placed in microtube with glycerin and pinned with the specimen; “BOLIVIA: Depto. La Paz 5 km W Mapiri, Arroyo Tuhiri 750m, 15°17.8’ S 68°15.6’ W 16-III-2001, S.D. Gaimari” “USNMENT01288155” “ Ocyptamus sp. 11 det. FC Thompson 99” “Holotype Pelecinobaccha alia Miranda” [red label]. PARATYPES: BRAZIL. Acre, Rio Branco, 25.x– 8.xi.1991, leg. F. Ramos, A. Henriques, I. Gorayeb & N. Bittencourt (GFGM-MPEG0001) [1 ♀, MPEG]. BOLIVIA. Santa Cruz, Hotel Flora y Fauna, 4.xi.2003, leg. N.E. Woodley (USNMENT01288196) [1 ♀, USNM]; 7.xi.2003, leg. S.W. Lingafelter (USNMENT01288156) [1 ♀, USNM]; Potrerillos del Guenda, 25.x.2007, leg. N.E. Woodley (USNMENT01288202) [1 ♀, USNM]; Refugio Los Volcanes, 30.x.2007, leg. N.E. Woodley (USNMENT01288158) [1 ♂, USNM]. ECUADOR. Napo, Coca, Napo river, 25–30.iv & v.1965, leg. L. Pena (CNC_ Diptera 203529, 203541) [2 ♂, USNM]; Res. Ethnica Waorani, 2.x.1996, leg. T.L. Erwin et al. (USNMENT01288205) [1 ♂, USNM]; Libertad, Tena Canton, 22.v.1963, leg. L. Pena (CNC_ Diptera 203528) [1 ♂, CNC]. PANAMA. Canal Zone, Barro Colorado Island, 24.vii.1968, leg. D.Q. Cavagnaro & M.E. Irwin (USNMENT01288207) [1 ♂, USNM]. PERU. Huanuco, 16.x.1964, leg. E.I. Schllinger & E.S. Ross (USNMENT01288203) [1 ♀, USNM]. Madre de Dios, Avispas, 10–20 & 20–30.ix.1962, leg. L. Pena (CNC_ Diptera 203533–40) [7 ♀ & 1 ♂, CNC]; Manu, Rio Manu, 9–23.ix.1988, leg. A. Freidberg|W.N. Mathis (USNMENT00036075–7) [3 ♀, USNM]; Rio Manu, Pakitza, Aguajal, 19.ix.1988, leg. W.N. Mathis (USNMENT00036078) [1 ♀, USNM]. Tingo Maria, Monsoon Valley, 23.ix | 12.x | 21.x | 26.x | 3.xi.1954, leg. E.I. Schllinger & E.S. Ross (USNMENT01288153–4, 01288197–9, 01288200–1, 0 1288204, 01288206) [7 ♀ & 2 ♂, USNM].

Figures

FIGURE 8. Pelecinobaccha alia sp. nov. a. Male, holotype, habitus, dorsal. b. Female, habitus, dorsal. c. Male, holotype, habitus, lateral. d. Male, wing. e. Female, abdominal segment 1, dorsal. f. Male, lunule, dorsal. g. Male, holotype, head, oblique dorsal. h. Male, head, oblique dorsal. i. Female, abdominal segments 5 and 6, dorsal. j. Female, head, dorsal. k – n. Male genitalia: k. Epandrium, lateral. l. Hypandrium, lateral. m. Epandrium, ventral. n. Hypandrium, ventral. o – r. Female genitalia: o. abdominal segment 7, lateral. p. abdominal segment 7, dorsal. q. abdominal segment 8 and proctiger, lateral. r. abdominal segment 8 and proctiger, dorsal. bph: Basiphallus, crc: Cercus, ep: Epiproct, lscl: abdominal segment 7 lateral sclerite, oc: Occiput, pl: Apical pile on lunule, pgt: Postgonite, sscl: Subepandrial sclerite, sg 6: abdominal segment 6, srs: Surstylus.