Monohelea forceps Felippe-Bauer & Trindade, 2017

Felippe-Bauer, Maria Luiza, Cardoso, Erick Aragão & Trindade, Rosimeire Lopes Da, 2017, New species and new records of Monohelea Kieffer from eastern Amazon, Brazil (Diptera: Ceratopogonidae), Zootaxa 4358 (1) : -

Monohelea forceps Felippe-Bauer & Trindade sp. nov.

( Figs.1 ; 5 A–G; 9 G–H)

Diagnosis. The only Neotropical species of Monohelea in which the males have yellowish legs, hind femur with an infuscated base, paramere single, swollen, curved, gradually tapering as a forceps , aedeagus with ventral plates abruptly tapered in middle portion. Female unknown.

Male. Head: eyes widely separated ( Fig. 5 C ). Antenna missing. Palpus ( Fig. 5 D ) pale brown; 3rd segment nearly oval with small, moderately deep, sensory organ on mid length; lengths of segments 18- 28- 40- 25- 43; palpal ratio 2.0.

Thorax. Without definite pattern on slide mounted specimen. Legs ( Fig. 5 F ) yellowish; fore-, mid coxae brown, hind coxae brown on apical 1/2; trochanters brown; fore-, mid femora with basal and mesal brown bands, hind femur with infuscated basal band, two brown stripes in middle, subapical ventral brown spot; fore tibia with inconspicuous mesal brown band, hind tibia with inconspicuous subbasal ventral brown spot, mesal brown stripe; apices of tibiae dark brown; hind tibial comb with 6 bristles. Tarsi: pale, except base of basitarsi pale brown; fore-,hind tarsomere 1 with one basal and one apical spine; midtarsomere 1 with 2 basal, 2 apical spines; apical spines of fore-, mid-, hind tarsomeres 2-4: 2-2-1, 2-2-2, 1-1-1, basal spines absent; fore, mid and hind tarsal ratios 2.15, 2.42, 2.00; claws small, paired, equal-sized, 0.4X as long as 5th tarsomeres. Wing ( Fig. 5 A ): macrotrichia restricted to vein costa; microtrichia absent; 2nd radial cell nearly 1.7X longer than 1st; wing length 0.97 mm, width 0.36 mm; costal ratio 0.79. Halter stem pale; knob pale brown in distal 1/2, a pale brown spot laterally ( Fig. 5 B ).

Abdomen. Yellowish brown ( Fig. 5 E ). Genitalia ( Figs. 5 G ; 9 G–H): sternite IX spiculate except on basal portion, posterior margin with a short, convex, median lobe with 4 long setae; tergite IX tapering with a pair of apicolateral processes. Gonocoxite moderately stout, nearly 2X longer than basal width; gonostylus curved distally, 0.63X as long as gonocoxite, moderately pilose on basal 3/4. Parameres ( Fig. 9 G ) 1.15X as long as aedeagus, fused at single base; stem swollen, curved, gradually tapering, internally directed as a forceps . Aedeagus ( Fig. 9 H ) triangular, composed of 2 pointed ventral plates that abruptly tapered in middle portion, each with only delicately sclerotized apical projection which arises in the middle way to aedeagus base, and produced beyond the apices of ventral plates; basal arms slender, expanded laterally.

Female. Unknown

Distribution. Brazil, Pará State.

Type. Holotype male, on microscope slide labeled “Vila Santa Maria” (01°01’45”S, 46°57’21”W), Tracuateua, Pará, BRASIL, 27–28.II.2007, CDC light trap, peridomicile, Gorayeb I. & Guimarães, D. cols. ( MPEG).

Etymology. The specific epithet is from the Latin: forceps = forceps , referring the stem of the parameres of males of this species.

Taxonomic discussion. Monohelea forceps most closely resembles M. fairchildi Lane & Wirth , M. maya Felippe-Bauer, Huerta & Ibáñez-Bernal , M. patauateua sp. nov., and M. urracaisi Lane & Wirth by the single paramere without mesal or apical process. The new species can be easily separated by the hind femur with an infuscated base (hind femur mostly yellowish brown, without infuscated area on the base in M. fairchildi ; hind femur with base uniformely brown in M. maya and M. patauateua ; hind femur with pale base in M. urracaisi ); by the paramere swollen, curved, gradually tapering as a forceps (paramere slender, sinuous in M. fairchildi ; paramere straight, gradually tapering in M. maya ; paramere slender,flattened in M. patauateua ; paramere slender abruptly curved and tapering in the midlenght in M. urracaisi ); by the ventral plates of the aedeagus that abruptly tapered in middle portion (ventral plates of the aedeagus gradually tapering in the other species).

Figures

FIGURE 1. Distribution of Monohelea species in the Municipalities of Capitão Poço, Ourém, Tracuateua and Viseu from Northeast Mesoregion, and in the municipality of Santa Bárbara do Pará from Metropolitan Belém Mesoregion, Para State, Brazil.

FIGURE 5. Monohelea forceps Felippe-Bauer & Trindade sp. nov., male. A. Wing; B. Thorax showing halter; C. Head, anterior view; D. Palpus, lateral view; E. Abdomen, ventral view; F. Legs (left to right) of fore, mid-, hindlegs, lateral view; G. Genitalia, ventral view.

FIGURE9. Parameres and aedeagus. A–B.Monohelea barbara Felippe-Bauer& Trindade sp. nov.; C–D.Monohelea cornuta Felippe-Bauer & Trindade sp. nov.; E–F. Monohelea ema Felippe-Bauer & Trindade sp. nov.; G–H. Monohelea forceps Felippe-Bauer & Trindade sp. nov.