Physiphora longicornis (Hendel, 1909)

Elena P. Kameneva & Valery A. Kroneyev, 2016, Revision of the Genus Physiphora Fallén 1810 (Diptera: Ulidiidae: Ulidiinae), Zootaxa 4087 (1), pp. 1-88 : 50-52

Physiphora longicornis (Hendel, 1909)

Figures 217–230 .

Chrysomyza longicornis Hendel, 1909: 621 ; 1913a: 35.

Physiphora longicornis: Steyskal, 1977: 167 ; Chen & Kameneva, 2007: 25; Kameneva & Korneyev, 2010: 622.

Material. Type. Syntypes 1♂, 1♀: China: Taiwan: “ Formosa / Sauter”, “Takao, 1907.1.27”, “Chrysomysa / det. F.Hendel / longicornis H.”, “Coll. Hendel”, “ Type ” [red]; 1♂: “Koshun / Formosa / Sauter VIII.08 ”, “Coll. Hendel”; “ Paratype ” [yellow]; 1♀: same labels, “ IX.08 ”; 1♀: same labels, “ I.09 ” (NHMW). (117 ex): 2♂: “ Formosa / Sauter”, “Takao / 1907. I.27 ”; 8♂, 3♀: “Koshum / Formosa / Sauter/ 89.08”; same, but “ I.08 ” (DEI); 3♂, 1♀: Sri Lanka: “ Ceylon / Periyakulam / 1.iii.1891 / L[igh]t Col. Yerbury / 1892—192”, “ longicornis H. / det. F. Hendel”, “ Syntype ” [blue-bordered circle] (BMNH).

Non-type. China: Taiwan: “ Formosa, Takao”, 7, 26. vii.1907, 3 ♂, 3♀, Kankau (Koshun), vii.1912, 3 ♂, 1♀ ( Chrysomyza longicornis H.—Hendel’s handwriting) (Sauter) (MNKB); idem, 27. i.1907, 10 ♂, 10♀ (Sauter) (HMNH); “Kankau / Formosa,” vi–vii.1912, 115 specimens (DEI; SIZK); India: Tamil Nadu, Karikal, Kurunebaganan, viii.1954, 2 ♂ (Nathan); Nilgiri Hills, S. India, Singara, 3400 ft., v.1959, 1 ♂ (Nathan) (USNM); Nepal: Rapti Tal, Monakhari Khola, Belwa, Wald, menschl. Exkr., 8. v.1967, 1 ♀ (Dierl, Forster & Schacht) (ZSSM); Pakistan: “Lyallpur, Punjab” (Faisalabad), on decaying date palm, 16. v.1928, 1 ♂, 1♀, 2 puparia (collector unknown) (BMNH); Saudi Arabia: Abu, 1♂ (leg. C. G. Nurse) (BMNH); Sri Lanka: E. Prov.: Nilaveli, 8 mls NNW Trinkomalee, loc. No 61, on salt marsh, 10.ii.1962, (Brink, Andersson, Cederholm) (ZMLU).

Diagnosis. This species can be easily recognized from the shining black frons and thorax with bluish tinge, frons with pair of small semicircular microtrichose parafrontal spots, facial carina with 3 small isolated microtrichose spots (instead of λ-shaped mark) and wing with cell r4+5 closed but not petiolate.

Description. Head ( Figs. 218–220 ) black. Frons 1.2 times as long as wide, dark brown to black, shining, sparsely and finely setulose, with round parafrontal microtichose spots and two pairs of calluses (oval swellings) posterior to its middle and slightly concave anterior half. Vertical plates dark brown to black, with faint blue sheen, bearing 2 pairs of black, short, slightly reclinate orbital setae. Ocellar triangle black.

Face dark brown to black, facial carina more or less sharply delimited, dorsal half brown and black, medially with three microtrichose streaks either separated or forming λ-shaped mark, separated from microtrichose antennal grooves. Lunule and facial ridge, parafacial and gena brown or partly dark brown, gena 1/3 times as high as eye; facial ridge and parafacial with narrow white microtrichose stripes; gena without microtrichose mark posteriorly.

Epistome entirely black. Occiput black. Medial vertical seta half as long as frons width, 1.3 times as long as lateral vertical and 3–4 times as long as ocellar, orbital and postocellar setae. Antenna brown to black; flagellomere 1 rounded apically, 1.5 times as long as wide, greyish microtrichose; arista bare, brown in basal 1/6, remainder black. Clypeus, palp and mouthparts black.

Thorax ( Figs. 218–219 ). Scutum and scutellum shining black, with faint blue or violet reflection, finely shagreened; supra-alar area and tympanal fossa matt brown to black, postscutellum black, gray microtrichose; postero-ventral margin of scutellum without microtrichose area. Mesonotal scutum with acrostichal, dorsocentral and wide intra-alar rows of setulae. One postprononal, 2 postsutural supra-alar, one intra-alar and one postalar setae strong, one shorter dorsocentral, all setae black; acrostichal setae lacking. Scutellum transversely shagreened, with faint deep blue reflection, with 3–4 fine and short black setulae and 2 pairs of black scutellar setae. Antero-ventral portion of katepisternum, and also anatergite and katatergite matt, grey microtrichose.

Wing ( Fig. 221 ). Hyaline, with yellow veins; cell r4+5 narrowly closed, costal vein between R4+5 and M slightly thickened and sometimes darkened; postero-apical extension of cell cup as long as vein A1+CuA2, and 3 times as long as transverse section of vein CuA2. Length: 3.5–4.3 mm.

Legs. Black except fore tarsus with basitarsomere creamy yellow in basal 4/5, and black in apical one-fifth, mid- and hind tarsi yellow except apical tarsomeres brown; all setae black; fore femur postero-ventrally with 3–4 thickened setae in apical half.

Abdomen. Both tergites and sternites black, finely rugulose, with bluish reflection; all setulae black; abdominal tergite 1 basally grey microtrichose; female abdominal tergite 2 with pair of dimple-like structures laterally.

Male postabdomen brown to black; epandrium as on Figs. 226–228 , phallus with stipe almost twice as long as preglans and glans ( Fig. 223 ); caecum 4–5 times as long as preglans width; preglans with area of fine spinules subapically ( Fig. 224 ); glans as on Fig. 224 , with 3–4 poorly sclerotized, apically pointed petal-like lobes, sharply pointed lobes. Cerci with widely fused, short nipple-like structures; hypandrium asymmetric ( Fig. 229 ).

Female terminalia not dissected.

Distribution: Oriental Region ( China: Taiwan; Nepal; India; Sri Lanka; Pakistan); Saudia Arabia.

Biology. Larvae feed in decaying date palm stems (possibly damaged by the palm weevil larvae).

Figures

FIGURES 217 – 222. Physiphora longicornis: 217, habitus, left; 218, head, left; 219, head and thorax, dorsal; 220, head, anterior; 221, wing; 222, label. Scale 1 mm.

FIGURES 223 – 230. Physiphora longicornis: 223, ♂ phallus; 224, glans, enlarged; 225, everted phallus pouch; 226, 227, epandrium, posterior and ventral; 228, surstili, ventral; 229, hypandrium, ventral; 230, ejaculatory apodeme.