Loboplusia coreana Jaschhof & Ham, 2018

Jaschhof, Mathias, Ham, Daseul & Bae, Yeon Jae, 2018, Loboplusia coreana sp. nov. from South Korea, only the second species of a genus originally described from Costa Rica (Diptera: Cecidomyiidae, Winnertziinae), Zootaxa 4399 (1), pp. 131-133 : 131

Loboplusia coreana Jaschhof & Ham sp. nov. ( Figs 1–2 )

Diagnosis. Male genitalic characters to distinguish L. coreana ( Figs 1–2 ) from L. zurqui (Jaschhof 2016: fig. 15A) (characters in parentheses) are as follows. The basomedial lobe of the gonostylus is slightly bent and slightly swollen apically (not bent and not swollen); the gonocoxites have a roundish, setae-bearing protrusion dorsoposteriorly (no such protrusion); the posterior corners of the tegmen are both protruding and serrate (tegmen without serrate protrusions); and the ninth tergite has a posteromedial protrusion with glabrous margin and a group of about eight setae at the center (posterior section microtrichose, broadly rounded to truncate).

Other male characters. Body length 1.5 mm. Head. About 10 genal setae in a cluster. Eye bridge 2–3 ommatidia long dorsally. Scape and pedicel concolorous with flagellum, scape larger than pedicel, both setose. Flagellomeres 14. Neck of fourth flagellomere 1.3 times longer than node; node with a whorl of short setae basally, a crenulate whorl with long sensory hairs with hooded alveoli medially, a short line of such sensory hairs ventrodistally, several short hairshaped translucent sensilla distally, microtrichia only basally. Clypeus with only 2 setae. Labellum normal size and structure. Palpus slightly longer than head height, 4 subcylindrical, setae-bearing segments, first and second segments with inconspicuous, short, hair-shaped translucent sensilla. Thorax. Scutal setae sparse; scutellum with a single pair of setae; other sclerites asetose. Wing and legs as in L. zurqui (Jaschhof 2016: 231) . Genitalia ( Figs 1–2 ). Gonocoxites: ventral setae normal size, not conspicuously enlarged as in L. zurqui ; ventral bridge membranous, asetose; dorsal apodemes interconnected forming wide bridge without anterior processes. Lateroposterior lobe of gonostylus much larger than basomedial lobe, cylindrical, apex bent dorsally, with conspicuously dense setae; basomedial lobe with strong tooth apically. Tegmen small in relation to gonocoxites; apex narrow-rounded; parameral apodemes long, straight, directed ventrolaterally. Ejaculatory apodeme thin, 2.5 times longer than tegmen.

Female and larvae unknown.

Etymology. The name refers to Korea, the only distribution known of this species.

Type material. Holotype dissected and mounted in Canada balsam. Male, Republic of Korea, Gyeonggi-do, Gapyeong-gun , Buk-myeon , Jeokmok-ri , Garim , Gapyeong Entomological Research Center , 37°58´33´´N / 127°26´28´´E, 300 m a.s.l., 15 July 2016, light trap, Y.J. Bae leg. (in Entomological Museum of Korea University , Seoul) .

Discussion. The vast diversity of Diallactiini is found in the tropics rather than the temperate regions (Jaschhof 2016), a fact rendering Loboplusia coreana a remarkable discovery. Even more remarkable is the disjunct geographical distribution of Loboplusia , with one species each in the northern Neotropical and the eastern Palearctic region. Considering that the Diallactiini are a very ancient lineage (Jaschhof 2016), the present-day occurrence of Loboplusia might be relict and reflect a distribution that at some point in the past was conjunct and much more extensive. However, any attempt of interpreting the distributional pattern revealed here has to take the sparse availability of data into account: we simply don’t know yet, for instance, whether the distribution of Loboplusia in the Neotropics is confined to higher altitudes (where basically temperate conditions prevail), or whether other, still uncollected species occur in other parts of the world (as entire regions are practically unexplored for Diallactiini ). Moreover, it is rather unlikely that the distribution as presently known for both L. zurqui and L. coreana reflect the total areas of these species. We would not be surprised to see that ongoing research reveals a genus Loboplusia that is more species-rich and has a basically pantropical distribution, with single species managing to adapt to temperate conditions. More data about the diversity and distribution of Diallactiini , including Loboplusia , are needed to resolve those issues. With respect to the provenance of Loboplusia coreana it is worth noting that the fungivorous subfamilies of Cecidomyiidae , including Winnertziinae , have remained largely unstudied in Korea until very recently; and the discovery described here is a first outcome of our efforts to close this gap of knowledge. Our data, mostly unpublished, suggest that the eastern Palearctic region hosts an extremely rich and diverse fauna of fungus-feeding cecids, including a considerable proportion of supposedly Oriental elements that are absent in the better investigated western Palearctic (e.g., Jaschhof 2000). In other words, for a better understanding of the Palearctic fauna we need to allocate more resources for taxonomic study to the east of the region, where the potential for making exciting discoveries is so patently obvious.

Figures

FIGURES 1–2. Loboplusia coreana, male holotype. 1: Genitalia, ventral. 2: Ninth tergite and posterior section of gonocoxite, cerci indicated by brokenline.Scale bars 0.05 mm.