Helina discolor ( Stein, 1911 )

Patitucci, Luciano Damián, Mulieri, Pablo Ricardo & Mariluis, Juan Carlos, 2016, Taxonomic review of the species of Helina R. - D. (Diptera: Muscidae) from Andean-Patagonian forests, Zootaxa 4150 (3), pp. 281-313 : 296-297

Helina discolor ( Stein, 1911)

( Figs. 7 , 9 F)

For a complete list of references, see the catalog by Carvalho et al. (2005).

Information subsequent to this catalog: Löwerberg-Neto et al. 2011 (biogeography); Löwerberg-Neto & Carvalho 2013 (checklist), Pont 2013 (type specimens).

Redescription. Male ( Fig. 7 A). Length. Body: 6.26–7.68 mm, wing: 4.90–6.42 mm.

Head ( Fig. 7 B). Black with silver pollinosity. Holoptic, the shortest distance between eyes is 0.23–0.27 mm. 8– 10 pairs of frontal setae. Eye hairs long and sparse. Lunule dark brown; fronto-orbital plate, parafacial, gena, postgena, and occiput black with silver pollinosity. Parafrontal plate bare. Postocular setae proclinate. Antenna black; arista with its longest hairs hardly longer than its basal diameter. Palpus black.

Thorax ( Fig. 7 C). Scutum black with two poorly defined white pollinose vittae; scutellum black with grey pollinosity; anepisternum, anepimeron, katepimeron, katepisternum, proepisternum, proepimeron and meron black; anterior and posterior spiracles dark brown. Chaetotaxy: acrostichal setae 1-2+1; dorsocentral setae 2+4; humeral setae 3; notopleural setae 2, of similar size. Prealar strong, less than one fourth of the length of the anterior supra-alar postsutural seta. Scutellum with short and strong basal and subapical setae. Anepisternum with a series of 8–10 strong setae.

Wing. Yellow-brownish; costal spine little longer than the costal bristles; the transverse cross-vein dm-cu strongly curved; vein R 4+5 and vein M straight; cross vein dm-cu at middle of cell r4+5. Both calypters hyaline with yellow margins.

Legs. Coxa and trochanter black. Fore femur and tibia black; mid and hind femora with basal half black and mid and hind tibia brownish-yellow. Fore femur with rows of dorsal, posterodorsal, and posteroventral setae; fore tibia with one posterior seta, four strong preapical setae. Mid femur with 3–4 setae in the basal third on ventral surface; and 3 preapical setae on anterodorsal to posterior surface; mid tibia with 2 anterodorsal setae, 3–4 posterior setae, and one strong posteroventral seta at middle; and 4 apical setae (anterodorsal, posteroventral, ventral, and anteroventral). Hind femur with anterodorsal row and 5–7 setae in the apical middle of anteroventral surface; hind tibia with 4 anteroventral setae, 4 anterodorsal setae and 6–7 posterodorsal setae, calcar absent. Fore claws and pulvilli longer than mid and hind.

Abdomen ( Fig. 7 D). Dark brown with brown-golden pollinosity. Sternite 5 longer than wide, with several strong setae on the apical third; posterior margin with two rounded processes ( Fig. 7 E).

Terminalia . Cercal plate with a similar length and width; with a distal incision, and with two protuberances at the apex ( Fig 7 F). Surstylus short than cercal plate, broad, and curving inward distally ( Figs. 7 F–G). Aedeagus with aedeagal apodeme curved and strongly sclerotized; epiphalus sclerotized, paramere slightly bent downward with setula; gonopod with short setulae; and distiphallus tubular, slightly sclerotized ( Fig. 7 H).

Material examined. ARGENTINA: Neuquén: 3 males, Cerro Chapelco , -40.197050, -71.298453, II-2011, Mariluis leg. ( MACN) ; 1 female, Cerro Chapelco , -40.197050, -71.298453, 21-28-III-1983, Gentili leg. ( IFML) ; Santa Cruz: 1 male, El Calafate , -50.321674, -72.263421, X-1994, Mariluis leg. ( MACN) ; 3 males, PN Los Glaciares, Península Magallanes, Río Mitre , -50.418967, -72.742651, II-1995, Mariluis leg. ( MACN) , Tierra del Fuego: 1 male, Río Grande , -53.785843, -67.702577, II-1998, Mariluis leg. ( MACN) .

Distribution ( Fig. 9 F). ARGENTINA: Neuquén (new record), Río Negro, Santa Cruz (new record), Tierra del Fuego (new record). PERU: Cuzco, Potosí.

Remarks. Stein (1911) described Mydaea discolor with male and females specimens from Cuzco, Perú. Subsecuently, Malloch (1934) recorded this species from Bariloche, Argentina. We provided a redescripton of the male, and for the first time, the description the male terminalia . No females were collected. (see comments on H. neosimplex ).

Biology. The specimens captured by JCM in Santa Cruz province and Tierra del Fuego province were collected over rotten meat with a hand net.

Figures

FIGURE 7. Helina discolor (Stein), male: A. Lateral view (scale bar: 1 mm). B. Head, frontal view. C. Thorax, dorsal view. D. Abdomen, dorsal view (scale bars: 0.5 mm). E. Sternite 5 (scale bar: 0.2 mm). F. Cercal plate, posterior view. G. Cercal plate and surstylus, lateral view (scale bar: 0.1 mm). H. Phallic complex, lateral view (scale bar: 0.1 mm). (Abbreviations: aed apod, aedeagal apodeme; distiph, distiphallus; epiph, epiphallus; gon, gonopodo; par, paramere.)

FIGURE 9. Geographical distribution. A. Helina araucana sp. nov. B. Helina australis Carvalho & Pont. C. Helina bigoti Malloch. D. Helina chilensis Malloch. E. Helina connexa Malloch. F. Helina discolor (Stein). G. Helina dorada sp. nov. (Green area: Andean-Patagonian forests; orange circle: new records; blue triangle: previous distribution.)