Molophilus (Molophilus) trispina, Billingham & Theischinger, 2022

Billingham, Zacariah D. & Theischinger, Gunther, 2022, New and Poorly Known Species of Crane Flies (Diptera: Limoniidae) from New South Wales, Australia, Records of the Australian Museum (Rec. Aust. Mus.) 74 (1), pp. 19-40 : 25-26

publication ID	https://doi.org/ 10.3853/j.2201-4349.74.2022.1775
publication LSID	lsid:zoobank.org:pub:CDE43DB9-2155-4533-845B-47053DA5FE5D
DOI	https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.7175128
persistent identifier	https://treatment.plazi.org/id/C5390483-A77B-426C-84A4-9005E706FEDE
taxon LSID	lsid:zoobank.org:act:C5390483-A77B-426C-84A4-9005E706FEDE
treatment provided by	Felipe
scientific name	Molophilus (Molophilus) trispina
status	sp. nov.

Treatment

Molophilus (Molophilus) trispina sp. nov.

urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:C5390483-A77B-426C-84A4-9005E706FEDE

Fig 13 View Figures 12–13

Holotype ♂, Australia, New South Wales, Kembla Heights, American Creek off Cordeaux Rd (34.435°S 150.796°E), 29 Sep 2017, Z. Billingham & G. Theischinger, AM (K.394961). GoogleMaps

Description ♂ (♀ unknown).

Head: pale whitish yellow, antennal pedicel and scape pale whitish yellow, antennal flagellum with basal segments pale whitish yellow, terminal segments missing, palpus pale whitish.

Thorax. Pronotum whitish. Prescutum, scutum, scutellum and mediotergite pale whitish yellow. Cervical sclerite and pleurites pale whitish yellow. Coxae and trochanters pale whitish yellow, other leg segments missing. Wing hyaline with veins pale whitish yellow. Halter with stem pale whitish yellow, knob white.

Abdomen: pale whitish yellow.

Terminalia ( Fig. 13 View Figures 12–13 ). Hypopygium pale whitish yellow with lobe of tergite 9 quadrate, caudal margin straight. Gonocoxite with ventral lobe large, edges broadly rounded and apically strongly bowed mediad, ending in a dark strongly hooked beak. Inner gonostylus about ⅔ the length of the ventral lobe, mostly straight, with three spines towards the tip; one terminal, long and faintly curving medially, one long, faintly hooked on the dorsal edge, one short, appressed on the face of the style. Outer gonostylus largely parallel sided, with apex forked into two mostly even prongs. Aedeagus long and thin.

Dimensions. Body length 4 mm, wing length 4.5 mm.

Etymology. This species is named with reference to the threespined tip of the inner gonostylus.

Discussion. Molophilus (M.) trispina is allied to numerous morphologically similar species around M. (M.) flavidellus Alexander, 1930 (see Theischinger 1992 for more details on these species). It can be distinguished from all of these species by the tip of the inner gonostylus, which bears three distinct spines.