Heteromeringia laticornis D.K. McAlpine, 1960

Lonsdale, Owen, 2009, The Heteromeringia (Diptera: Clusiidae: Clusiodinae) of Australia, Records of the Australian Museum 61 (3), pp. 229-262 : 248

Heteromeringia laticornis D.K. McAlpine, 1960

Figs 14 , 47–49 , 99

Heteromeringia laticornis D.K. McAlpine, 1960: 76 .

Type material. HOLOTYPE: New South Wales: National Park , 19.iii.1957, D.K. McAlpine (1♂, AMS) . PARATYPE: New South Wales: Otford , 12.x.1957, D.K. McAlpine (1♂, AMS) .

Additional material examined. New South Wales: E NSW, Royal national Park , E Waterfall rail.stat., 12.x.2002, 34.09S 151.01E, B. Merz, diff. types forest (2♂♂, MHNG) , Otford, 18.i.1964, D.K. McAlpine (1♂, AMS) , Mooney / Mooney Creek near Gosford, 29.ii.1975, D.K. McAlpine (1♂, AMS) , Tubrabucca, Upper Hunter Dist. , 21.xii.1975, G.Daniels (1♀, AMS) , “Lorien”, 3km N Lansdowne , rainfor. edge, Malaise, 15–22.ii.1987, G. Williams (1♂, AMS) , Carrai SF, 30°59'45"S 152°16'23"E, 930 m, E. Tasker, 3–8.xii.1997, sticky trap on E. cameroni, CS-FZ-018-2 (3♂♂ 1♀, AMS) , Carrai SF, 30°54'19"S 152°17'36"E, 1055 m, E. Tasker, 11–16.i.1998, sticky trap on E. campanula, CC-DP-018-2 (3♂♂, AMS) , Carrai SF, 30°54'19"S 152°17'36"E, 1055 m, E. Tasker, 11–16.i.1998, sticky trap on E. obliqua, CC-DP-018-4 (1♀, AMS; 1♀, USNM), Carrai SF, 30°54'35"S 152°16'26"E, 1090 m, E. Tasker, 11–16.i.1998, sticky trap on E. obliqua, CC-FK-018-5 (2♂♂, AMS) , Carrai SF, 30°54'35"S 152°16'26"E, 1090 m, E. Tasker, 11–16.i.1998, sticky trap on E.campanulata, CC-FK-127-4 (1♀, AMS) , Carrai SF, 31°00'19"S 152°16'24"E, 940 m, E. Tasker, 3–8.xii.1997, sticky trap on E. campanulata, CS-GP-018-4 (3♂♂ 1♀, AMS) , Carrai SF, 30°59'45"S 152°16'23"E, 930 m, E. Tasker, 3–8.xii.1997, sticky trap on E. campanulata, CS-FZ-127-3 (7♂♂ 2♀♀, AMS) , Carrai SF, 30°54'19"S 152°17'36"E, 1055 m, E. Tasker, 3–8.xii.1997, sticky trap on E. obliqua, CC-DP-127-5 (1♀ 1♂, DEBU) , Carrai SF, 30°58'48"S 152°17'06"E, 975 m, E. Tasker, 3–8.xii.1997, sticky trap on E. viminalia, CS-RO-127-2 (1♂ 1♀, AMS) , Carrai SF, 30°58'48"S 152°17'06"E, 975 m, E. Tasker, 11–16.i.1998, sticky trap on E. obliqua, CS-RO-018-5 (2♂♂, AMS; 1♀, DEBU), Carrai SF, 30°54'33"S 152°16'28"E, 1075 m, E. Tasker, 11–16.i.1998, sticky trap on E. campanulata, CC-CR-018-6 (2♂♂, AMS; 1♂, DEBU), Carrai SF, 30°54'33"S 152°16'28"E, 1075 m, E. Tasker , 3–8.xii.1997, sticky trap on E. campanulata, CC-CR-127-2 (1♂, AMS) , Carrai SF, 30°54'19"S 152°17'36"E, 1075 m, E. Tasker, 3–8.xii.1997, sticky trap on E. cameronii, CC-DP-127-6 (1♂, USNM) , Carrai SF, 30°54'19"S 152°17'36"E, 1055 m, E. Tasker, 3–8.xii.1997, sticky trap on E. campanulata, CC-DP-127-4 (2♂♂ 2♀♀, AMS) , Werrikimbe NP, 31°12'00"S 152°09'00"E, 1060 m, E. Tasker, 1–7.xii.1997, sticky trap on E. obliqua, WC-MR-127-2 (1♂, AMS) , Werrikimbe NP, 31°16'50"S 152°03'19"E, 1045 m, E. Tasker, 1–7.xii.1997, sticky trap on E. campanulata, WS-FC-127-1 (2♂♂, AMS) , Werrikimbe NP, 31°16'50"S 152°03'19"E, 1045 m, E. Tasker, 1–7.xii.1997, sticky trap on E.saligna, WS-FC-127-5 (1♂, AMS) . Northern Territory: East Jabiru , 24–28.v.1988, A. Wells, yellow pan trap (1♀, ANIC) . Queensland: trib. Krombit Ck., Krombit Tops SF, gully r.f. & wet sclera., 31.x–2.xi.1997, sticky trap on E. saligna, D. Bickel (1♀, AMS) . South Australia: Mt. Barker (summit), iii–iv.1988, A.D. Dustin, M/trap (4♀♀, ANIC) . Tasmania: Rosebery, ii.1977, BPBM (1♀, AMS) .

Redescription

Male. Body length 2.4–3.0 mm. Anepisternal disc present. First flagellomere recessed dorsally and lobate ventrally (as in Figs 3, 4 ). Bristles black. Arista pubescent. Vibrissa short and straight. Ocellar bristle long and thin. Two dorsocentral bristles. Gena high and sharply incurved medially at midheight. Face and buccal cavity evenly curving and velvety. Head yellow with posterior 2 ⁄ 3 of frons (excluding yellowish lateral and posterior margins), back of head, occiput, clypeus and posterior 1 ⁄ 3 of gena dark brown; first flagellomere variable, ranging from entirely yellow to entirely dark brown (excluding base); dorsal half of gena silvery tomentose; anterior 2 ⁄ 3 of frons pilose. Thorax dark brown. Fore femur dark brown on distal 1 ⁄ 3 (slightly more extensive on inner face); hind femur dark brown on distal half (excluding knee); fore tarsi dark brown, sometimes with distal segment lighter; fore tibia lighter on basal half with inner apex brownish; fore coxa white with dark yellow to light brown spot on outer base (sometimes developed into elongate brown stripe or fore coxa brown on posterior half); mid coxa dark brown on outer-dorsal half; remainder of legs yellow; sometimes legs (excluding fore coxa) dark brown with base of femora, knees and apex of mid and hind tibiae yellow, and mid and hind tarsi light brown. Fore tarsi ovate in cross section. Abdomen dark brown. M 1+2 ratio 7.3. Wing with anterodistal infuscation; remainder of wing sometimes dusky. Halter white with base and side of stalk infuscated.

Female. As described for male except as follows: first flagellomere slightly more orbicular; mid and hind femora dark brown with base and apex yellow; fore tibia entirely dark brown excluding yellow base; mid and hind tibiae sometimes dark brown excluding base and apex, or entirely yellow; mid and hind tarsi light brown to yellow; fore tarsi with slight to pronounced lateral compression; frons shiny and black with anterior margin yellow (sometimes more extensively orange or yellow on anterior and anterolateral margins); palpus occasionally brownish apically.

Male terminalia ( Figs 47–49 ). Height and length of epandrium 2 ⁄ 3 width. Cerci relatively small and rounded with shallow apical emargination. Surstylus small and rounded with numerous inner-distal tubercle-like bristles. Hypandrium+pregonite with large anterior lobe with two stout bristles, and small posterior lobe with several setulae. Phallus with thin longitudinal sclerite at midpoint, stouter laterally-projecting subapical sclerite (width varying), and large U-shaped apical sclerite with two basal processes.

Female terminalia (Fig. 99). Tergite 8 wrapping around segment posteriorly, enclosing sternite 8 distally. Ventral receptacle narrowing apically and flagellum very long and straight. Spermatheca as wide as long, smooth and with several basal wrinkles.

Comments. The species Heteromeringia laticornis , H. hardyi and H. magnicauda appear to be closely related on the basis of a number of putative synapomorphies: the vibrissae are short and straight, the gena is relatively high and sharply curved inwards, and the first flagellomere is lobate ventrally and recessed dorsally (sometimes indistinct), shifting the arista closer to the pedicel. Heteromeringia helina and H. trisetosa may be basal to this group since they share a similar gena and the male fore tarsi are similarly ovate in cross section; the distiphallus and hypandrium of H. helina are also highly similar to those of H. hardyi .

Figures

Figures 9–16.Eggs.(9) Heteromeringia trisetosa n.sp.; (10) H.hardyi McAlpine; (11) H. spinulosa McAlpine; (12) H.bisetosa n.sp.; (13) H. digitula n.sp.; (14) H. laticornis McAlpine; (15) H. australiae Malloch; and (16) H. hypoleuca McAlpine.

Figures 47–57. Figs 47–49: male terminalia, Heteromeringia laticornis McAlpine; (47) external, left lateral; (48) external, posterior; (49) hypandrial complex, left lateral. Figs 50–53: male terminalia, Heteromeringia macropa n.sp.; (50) external, left lateral; (51) external, posterior; (52) phallapodeme and phallus, anterior; (53) hypandrial complex (distal portion of distiphallus removed), left lateral. Figs 54–57: male terminalia, Heteromeringia magnicauda n.sp.; (54) external, left lateral; (55) external, posterior; (56) phallus, anterior; (57) hypandrial complex (distal portion of distiphallus removed), left lateral. Scale bar = 0.25 mm.

Figures 1–8. Figs 1 and 2, head, Heteromeringia spinulosa McAlpine; (1) left lateral; (2) anterior. Figs 3 and 4, head, H. hardyi McAlpine; (3) left lateral; (4) anterior. Figs 5–7: wings; (5) H. spinulosa; (6) H. hardyi McAlpine; (7) H. australiae Malloch; (8) H. australiae, tentatively included NSW female.