Megaselia longianalis García-Romera, 2014

García-Romera, Carlos & Barrientos, Jose Antonio, 2014, Nine new species of Phoridae (Insecta: Diptera) from Spain, Zootaxa 3857 (2), pp. 244-260 : 252-253

Megaselia longianalis García-Romera sp. nov.

( Figs 12–13 )

Etymology. The species is named after its clearly longer anal tube in relation to dorsal face of epandrium.

Diagnosis. Palps yellow with longest bristle clearly longer than maximum width of palp; labella enlarged, but without short pale spinules below; mesopleuron with hairs, bristles absent; scutellum with an anterior pair of small hairs and a posterior pair of bristles; left side of epandrium with four long bristles stronger than hairs on cerci and proctiger; anal tube yellow and clearly longer than length of dorsal face of epandrium; posterior lobes of hypandrium vestigial; all fore tarsal segments yellowish, with only metatarsus a little enlarged and without complete longitudinal rows of hairs reduced to short blunt spines; knob of haltere brown; costal index less than 0.44; first costal section less twice longer than second and third together.

Description (male). Head. Frons light brown, about as broad as long, with 60–61 hairs. Upper supra-antennal bristles a little stronger than lower pair (missing in holotype and paratype), and they are as closer together as preocellars, which are lower on frons than mediolaterals and clearly closer together than either is from a mediolateral bristles. Upper supra-antennal bristles at about the same level on frons as antials, which are slightly lower on frons than anterolaterales, and clearly closer to these than to upper supra-antennal bristles. Gena with three long bristles and four shorter ones. Antennal postpedicel subglobose, brown, diameter 0.12 mm and without SPS vesicles. Palps yellow, 0.17 mm long and 0.05 mm maximum width, with 7–8 bristles, the longest bristle being longer than greatest width of palp. Labella enlarged, dusky yellow, without short spinules below, with only a few long hairs. Labrum yellow brown, about 0.8–0.9 × as wide as an antennal postpedicel.

Thorax. Light brown. Mesopleuron with 10 hairs, bristles absent. Three notopleural bristles and no cleft in front of these. Scutellum with an anterior pair of small hairs and a posterior pair of bristles. Propleura with four hairs on posterodorsal edge and four on posteroventral one.

Abdomen. Tergites brown, with scattered short hairs, especially on posterior half, with those of the rear margin only a little longer, apart from those of T6, which are clearly longer than the rest and so long as those on cerci. Venter yellow, with hairs on segments 3–6, longer in the latest three segments.

Hypopygium ( Figs 12–13 ). Left side of epandrium brown, about as high as long, with four long bristles longer and stronger than hairs on cerci and proctiger; anal tube yellow, nearly twice as long as dorsal face of epandrium. Hypandrium yellow brown, without posterior lobes.

Legs. Mainly brown, clearing from hind to front legs, with the fore tarse and tibia yellowish. Front legs with a posterodorsal hair palisade on tarsal segments 1–4 and metatarsus only slightly enlarged. Length ratios of fore tarsal segments 3.2:1.3–1.6:1.1–1.2:1:1, with fifth segment as wide as fourth one. Mid legs with a dorsal hair palisade on tibia extends about 2/3 of its length. Longest hairs below basal half of hind femur longer (1.3 ×) than those of anteroventral row of outer third. Hind tibia with 14 differentiated posterodorsal hairs and spinules of apical combs simple.

Wing. Length 1.84 mm. Membrane lightly tinged grey and veins light brown; with 2–3 axillary bristles. Subcosta (Sc) not reaching R1. With 0–1 hair at base of vein Rs. Costal index 0.43; costal ratios 3.8–4:1.7:1. Costal cilia (section 3) 0.12 mm long, a little shorter than longest axillary bristle (0.14 mm). Knob of haltere brown.

Recognition. In the keys to the males of the British species of Megaselia ( Disney, 1989) this species runs to couplet 91, after return of 126, where neither option applies; it differs from M. horsfieldi Disney by having the ventral hair palisade of hind metatarsus without hairs with recurved tips, and from M. protarsalis Schmitz by having all fore tarsal segments the same colour, and from both species in the hypopygium, especially in shape and hairs of epandrium. In the keys of Palaearctic Phoridae ( Schmitz et al, 1938 –81) this species runs to couplet 36 (Abteilung V, page 640) to M. criniticauda Colyer , which clearly differs from the new species in the hypopygium.

Material examined. Holotype ♂ Spain, Barcelona: Montseny, Montseny Natural Park, beech forest, UTM 31TDG530274, 1130 m a.s.l., 01–14/07/1990. Window trap. J.A. Barrientos leg ( UAB).

Paratype ♂, same locality and habitat as holotype, but 14–28/07/1990 and window trap. J.A. Barrientos leg (CCG-R).

Figures

FIGURES 12 – 13. Megaselia longianalis García-Romera sp. nov. male. 12, left face of hypopygium. 13, right face of hypopygium. Scale bars = 0.1 mm.