Teuchophorus modestus, Meuffels & Grootaert, 2004

Meuffels, Henk & Grootaert, Patrick, 2004, The genus Teuchophorus in South-East Asia and New Guinea, description of new species, species-groups and their phylogeny (Insecta, Diptera, Dolichopodidae), Journal of Natural History 38 (2), pp. 143-258 : 226-228

Species 54: Teuchophorus modestus sp. nov. (male)

(figures 203–207)

Etymology. Lat. modestus , ‘modest’.

Diagnosis. Rather small species, with a pale brown stigma. Eyes separated on face. Antenna dark brown; third segment slightly deeper than long, blunt-tipped. Legs and coxae yellow. Mid tibia with two or three ventral bristles on apical third. Mid femur ventrally near base with three short bristles; some av, preceded by a row of very short av. Hind femur with two longer av near tip. Hind tibia with four or five dorsal bristles, without ventrals. Hypopygium small, brownish yellow, with dark brown surstyli.

Material examined. Type material: Indonesia, Irian Jaya: Nabire, km 61.7 road from Nabire-Unipo , in river bed in primary rain forest, 25 April 1997,    male and one      male (sample No. 97040, leg. P. Grootaert and Ph. Hoyois) .

Male

Body length 1.3–1.4 mm; wing length 1.25–1.3 mm.

Head. Frons and face with shining greenish black ground colour. Width of face about three-quarters of depth of third antennal segment. Palpi small, dark, each with a relatively strong and long apical bristle. Rostrum yellowish brown. Occiput greenish black. Chaetotaxy as usual; no postocellars. Postoculars uniseriate, black. Antenna (figure 203) dark brown; apex of third segment slightly lighter coloured. Marginal bristlets on second segment short, longest above. Third segment slightly deeper than long, with a downward shifted, blunt apex. Arista about 2.5 times as long as antenna, very shortly pubescent; basal aristal segment about as long as third antennal segment.

Thorax. Mesoscutum and scutellum shining blackish green; mesoscutum sidewards and on foreside becoming brownish. Pleurae dark brown with greenish gloss; unsclerotized parts pale brown. Chaetotaxy as usual; acr uniseriate, relatively long. Scutellum without lateral hairs. No propleural bristles or hairs.

Legs. Legs, including coxae, yellow.

Fore leg. Coxa anteriorly with short, yellowish bristly hairs that become longer and stronger towards apex of coxa. Femur posteroventrally with a few short bristly hairs, including a preapical pv. Tibia slightly shorter than femur, with a short posterodorsal serration. First tarsal segment with a tiny black spinule at ventral base. Length of tibia and tarsal segments (in mm): 0.3:0.15:0.07: 0.055: 0.05:0.06.

Mid leg. Coxa with short, pale hairs. Femur (figure 204) ventrally near base with three short bristles; a row of very short av; near tip a few longer av (nearly as long as apical depth of femur); a preapical pv, preceded by a row of very short bristly hairs. Tibia (figure 204) about as long as femur; two ad, one pd, all thin, but rather long; ventrally on apical third two or three bristles; hairs of antero- and posteroventral rows slightly lengthened, becoming bristle-like on apical third. Length of tibia and tarsal segments (in mm): 0.35:0.15:0.09: 0.07:0.05:0.06.

Hind leg. Coxa with a weak black exterior bristle. Femur (figure 205) with two longer, thin av near tip, preceded by a row of short bristle-like hairs. Tibia (figure 205) about as long as femur, with four or five dorsal bristles; no ventral bristles. Length of tibia and tarsal segments (in mm): 0.4: 0.1:0.12: 0.09: 0.05:0.06.

Wing. Wing (figure 206) feebly brownish tinged. A pale brown stigma, obliquely cut off at base, occupying basally hardly more than half the distance between r2+3 and costa, gradually tapering, and reaching beyond level of tp. r4+5 and m1+2 slightly diverging distally. Halters yellow. Squamae yellow, with a narrow brown border, and brown cilia.

Abdomen. Terga dark brown, with a feeble metallic gloss. Sterna brown. Hairs and hind-marginal bristlets on terga very short, dark. Hypopygium (figure 207) small, brownish yellow, with dark, finger-like surstyli, and pale yellow cerci.

Female Unknown.