Mermerizon mellosus, Reemer, Menno, 2013

Reemer, Menno, 2013, Taxonomic exploration of Neotropical Microdontinae (Diptera: Syrphidae) mimicking stingless bees, Zootaxa 3697 (1), pp. 1-88 : 41

Mermerizon mellosus spec. nov.

Figs 118–120 , 125 .

Studied type specimens. HOLOTYPE. COSTA RICA. Male. Label 1: " COSTA RICA. Guan. / 3 km SE R. Naranjo / 4-6 Aug 1993 / F.D. Parker"; label 2: " Ubristes / sp [male symbol] / det.: M. Hauser 2007". Coll. INBIO . Redescription (based on holotype)

Adult male Body size: 8.5 mm.

Head. Face occupying about 1/4 of head width in frontal view; yellow; yellow pilose, with narrow bare median line on dorsal half. Gena yellow. Frons black medially, yellow laterally; yellow pilose. Vertex yellow, except black at and around ocellar triangle; black pilose. Occiput yellow posteriad of vertex, black on dorsolateral half, yellow on ventral half; black pilose anteriorly on dorsal half, yellow pilose posteriorly on both dorsal and ventral half. Eye bare. Antennal fossa about as high as wide. Antenna yellow, with scape darker dorsally; antennal ratio approximately as 4:1:4.

Thorax. Scutum blackish brown dorsally, with margins widely yellow; entirely yellow pilose. Postpronotum, postalar callus and scutellum yellow; yellow pilose. Scutellum semicircular, without calcars. Pleurae yellow, except anepisternum brownish anterodorsally and katepisternum brownish dorsally. Anepisternum convex, without sulcus; yellow pilose on anterior part and along posterior margin, widely bare in between. Anepimeron yellow pilose on dorsal 1/4, with pile along dorsal margin blackish. Katepisternum bare. Katatergum long black microtrichose. Anatergum short pale microtrichose. Calypter and halter yellow.

Wing: hyaline; microtrichose, except bare on 1st costal cell, basal 1/10 of cell br, basal 1/4 of cell bm, anterobasal 1/10 of cell cup.

Legs: Yellow and yellow pilose, except: hind tibia brown on apical 1/4 and black pilose on apical 1/3; first tarsomere of hind tarsus blackish and black pilose. Coxae and trochanters yellow; yellow pilose.

Abdomen. Tergites yellow, with vague, narrow, brown vitta medially; yellow pilose. Sternites yellow; yellow pilose, except sternite 1 bare. Genitalia as in fig. 125.

Female. Unknown.

Etymology. The specific epithet mellosus is a Latin adjective meaning 'honey-coloured'.

Diagnosis. Differs from both other known species of Mermerizon by its entirely yellow femora.

Distribution. Only known from Costa Rica.

Figures

FIGURES 113 – 123. 113 – 117. Mermerizon inbio male (holotype). 113. habitus dorsal; 114. habitus lateral; 115. head frontal; 116. head lateral; 117. wing. 118 – 120. Mermerizon mellosus male (holotype). 118. habitus dorsal; 119. habitus lateral; 120. head frontal. 121 – 123. Mermerizon mesmerizus male (holotype). 121. habitus dorsal; 122. habitus lateral; 123. head frontal.

FIGURES 124 – 129. 124 – 126. Mermerizon, male genitalia. 124. M. inbio (holotype); 125. M. mellosus (holotype); 126. M. mesmerizus (holotype). 127. Stipomorpha apicula male (holotype), habitus dorsal. 128 – 129. Stipomorpha crematogastri female (holotype). 128. habitus dorsal; 129. habitus lateral.