Morellia rufipalpis, Macquart, 1855

Pont, Adrian C., 2012, Muscoidea (Fanniidae, Anthomyiidae, Muscidae) described by P. J. M. Macquart (Insecta, Diptera), Zoosystema 34 (1), pp. 39-111 : 86

rufipalpis Macquart, 1855 , Pyrellia

Pyrellia rufipalpis Macquart, 1855a: 134 ( 1855b: 114) (junior primary homonym of Pyrellia rufipalpis Macquart, 1851 ). Lectotype ♀, “de l’Amérique méridionale. M. Bigot.” (South America, actually Brazil), by present designation, in BMNH.

MATERIAL. — The 3 ♀♀ syntypes, which were seen by Brauer (1899: 527) are in that part of the Bigot collection now in the BMNH. None is in particularly good condition, and they stand over Bigot’s drawer label “ P. rufipalpis . ♀. / Brazi Macq.”. One has Macquart’s label “ Pyrellia / rufipalpis / ♀. Macq.”. It is rather mouldy, rubbed, and damp, with tarsomeres of both hind legs missing. I have labelled it and designate it herewith as lectotype. The other 2 ♀♀ are unlabelled and are also in poor condition: dirty, damp or mouldy, rubbed, and with many leg-parts missing. I have labelled them both as paralectotypes.

Also in the series of rufipalpis in the Bigot collection in the BMNH, there is a ♂ labelled by Bigot as P. rufipalpis from Minas Gerais, Brazil. This is not a syntype of either Pyrellia rufipalpis Macquart, 1855 , or of Pyrellia rufipalpis Macquart, 1851 , and must be a later determination by Bigot.

CURRENT IDENTITY. — This is a good species of Morellia Robineau-Desvoidy, 1830 , and was given the replacement name Pyrellia diversipalpis by Rondani (1863: 30; 1864: 30) (see Pont 1972: 8; Carvalho et al. 1993: 11; 2005: 17). It was not recognized by Albuquerque (1956), but has been included in Pamplona’s key (1986: 648) to Neotropical species of Morellia . The BMNH ♂ is Morellia violacea (Robineau-Desvoidy, 1830) .