Culicoides soleamaculatus, Nandi, Mou & Mazumdar, Abhijit, 2014

Nandi, Mou & Mazumdar, Abhijit, 2014, Revision of the subgenus Diphaomyia Vargas of Culicoides Latreille from India with description of a new species (Diptera: Ceratopogonidae), Zootaxa 3793 (4), pp. 465-474 : 468-471

Culicoides soleamaculatus sp. n.

( FIGS.1A–K , PLATE 1G1–G3)

Type materials. Holotype ♀, Habra, 22 June 1967, Coll. S.K. Das Gupta. Paratypes ♂, data same as holotype; 2♀, 3♂, Habra, 7 April 1967, Coll. B.C. Majumdar; 5♀, 4♂, West Bengal, Bankura, 23.2500 N, 87.0667 E, 11 May 1989, Coll. P.K. Chaudhuri; 2♀, 2♂, West Bengal, Chinsura, 22.9000°N, 88.3900°E, 2 June 2003, Coll. U. Majumdar; 4♀, 6♂, West Bengal, Diamond Harbour, 22.2000°N, 88.2000°E, 19 July 1975, Coll. S.K. Das Gupta; 1♀, West Bengal, Purulia, 23.3333°N, 86.3667°E, 11June 2003, Coll. S. Nandi; 1♀, 2♂, West Bengal, Raniganj, 23.3333°N, 86.3667°E, 23 June 2001, Coll. U. Majumdar; 4♀, 2♂, Jharkhand, Dehri-on-Sone, 24.8700°N, 84.1800°E, 22 June 2002, Coll. N. Saha.

Etymology. The name “ soleamaculatus ” derives from the horse shoe shaped pale spot in cell r3 of the wing.

Diagnosis. The new species may be identified by the following combination of characters like, very narrowly separated eyes; fore and mid femur with sub-apical pale bands in addition to sub-basal pale tibial bands, hind tibial comb with 4 spines in female and 5 spines in males; wing cell r3 with distal horse-shoe shaped pale spot, proximal poststigmatic pale spot transversely meeting the wing anteriorly and vein M1 posteriorly. Male aedeagus with long, slender apical process and a pair of posteriorly directed lateral arms, parameres with sinuate stem ending in a terminal filament of 8 sub-apical spines.

Description. Adult female. Head. Frontovertex dark gray with about 15 SCh. Eyes bare and very narrowly separated or just touching at a point. Antenna ( FIG.1A ) brown, flagellar segments with pale base, SCo present on flagellomeres 1–8; length ratio of flagellomeres 1-13: 7.8-5.3-5.5-5.8-5.9-5.9-5.9-6-9.7-10-10-10.8-17.8, total length 0.31 (0.30–0.31, n=12). Maxillary palpus ( FIG.1B ) dark brown, third segment very large, strongly swollen distad with a sub apical sensory pit bearing 24–25 capitate sensilla; length ratio of palp segments I–V: 4-6.8-14.6- 3.5-5.1. Mandible ( FIG.1C ) with 9 teeth (7–10, n=10), maxillary blade with 9 teeth.

PLATE 1. Photographs of wings, eye separation and spermathecae: A1–A3. C. causeyi ; B1–B3. C. clavipalpis ; C1–C3. C. distinctus ; D1–D3. C. huffi ; E1–E3. C. mukerjii ; F1–F 3. C. similis ; G1–G3. C. soleamaculatus sp. n.

Thorax. ( FIG.1D ). Scutum dark brown with irregular median and lateral pale areas, scutellum with 4 large and 2 small bristles. Legs. ( FIG.1E ). Fore and mid femora pale basally, darkened apically with a sub apical pale band; hind femora pale basally and darkening apically but lacking a pale band, bases of all tibiae dark brown with a sub basal pale band and becoming pale apically; hind tibial comb ( FIG.1F ) with 4 unequal spines, first one from spur longest, spur tip frayed. Wing. ( FIG.1G ). Brown with contrasting wing pattern, cell r3 with distal pale spot horse shoe shaped and poststigmatic pale spot transverse, meeting the wing margin anteriorly and vein M1 posteriorly, veins M1 and M2 bordered by faint pale marking; macrotrichia rather sparse; radial cells sub equal. Halter pale.

Abdomen. Spermathecae ( FIG.1H ) well sclerotized, ovoid, slightly unequal, with long necks, rudimentary third spermatheca and sclerotized ring present.

Adult male. Similar to the female in wing ( FIG. 1I ) and usual sexual differences. Tergum IX more or less quadrate with a pair of short, slender apicolateral processes and without median notch; sternum IX with a broad, shallow caudomedian excavation, ventral membrane bare; gonocoxite stout with distinct internal roots, sharp, elongated and hooked ventral root sharp with well developed short curved and blunt anterior lobe, dorsal root long, stout slightly curved towards tip; gonostylus progressively narrowed from base to inwardly bent apex; aedeagus ( FIG.1J ) with slender, divergent arms, basal arch broad, rounded extending about half of aedeagal length, long apical process with a pair of lateral, posteriorly directed processes; parameres ( FIG.1K ) separated, each with thimble like basal cap and sinuate stem possessing a well developed ventral lobe, slender and curved distal part terminated with filament bearing 8 sub apical fringing spines.

Remarks. This species is much closer to C. similis in similar proximal poststigmatic pale spot but differ in the shape of distal most pale spot on cell r3, in distribution of SCo, absence of sub apical pale band on fore femur and greater number of mandibular teeth.

Figures

FIGURES 1 A – K. Adult of Culicoides soleamaculatus sp. n.: A: antenna, B: maxillary palpus, C: mandible, D: thorax, E: legs, F: hind tibial comb, G: female wing, H: spermathecae, I: male wing, J: genitalia and aedeagus, K: parameres.