Usia martini François, 1969

Gibbs, David, 2011, 2960, Zootaxa 2960, pp. 1-77 : 19-22

Usia martini François, 1969

(Plate I)

Usia martini François, 1969: 110 .

Type material examined. HOLOTYPE: Spain, Granada , Sierra Nevada near Padul 1300m 1 May 1966 1♀ (leg. Lyneb. - Martin-Langem)/ F. François det. Usia (Parageron) martini François / Prépar antenna N o 421 F. J. François / TYPE [♀ in ZMUC] . PARATYPE: Paratype / F. François det. Usia (Parageron) martini François / Spain, Granada , Sierra Nevada near Padul 1300m 1 May 1966 (leg. Lyneb. - Martin-Langem)/ R. I. Sc. N. B., I. G. 23.718/ Kast 35, Doos 8 [♀ in IRSNB] .

PLATE I. Usia martini François, 1969 ; a epiphallic complex ventral, b epiphallic complex lateral, c gonocoxite ventral, d gonocoxite lateral, e epandrium dorsal, f epandrium lateral, g female genitalia ventral, h furca lateral, i female sternite 8 ventral.

Other material examined. Spain, Salamanca , Las Coronas , Viller de Ciervo , yellow pan trap, 23–25 May 1999 (SA) leg. P. Tschorsnig [♀ in PCDG]; Huesca , Borau , Carretera de los Lecherinos, Valle de Aisa 1361m, N42º40'33" W0º34'30.6" 25 June 2008 leg. R. Pérez-Barrales / from Linum suffruticosum [♀ in PCDG]; Santa Elena (Jaén), 18 May 1970, [leg.] P. DuMerle [4♂ 4♀ in MNHN] .

Etymology. Named after Mr. Ole Martin who collected the original material.

Diagnosis. This unique Iberian endemic is readily distinguished from all other Usiini by the combination of dusted frons and mesonotum obscuring smooth cuticle, tergites lacking yellow apical margins, abdominal vestiture pale (not black) and anal lobe of wing very narrow, narrower than anal cell.

Redescription. Measurements. Body length. 2.1–3.0mm Wing length. 2.4–3.0mm.

Male. Head. Frons and mouth margin dark in ground colour, the mouth margin very narrow, linear, essentially disappearing below. Eyes separated at their narrowest by about one sixth head width, hind ocellus separated from the eye margin by about half the diameter of that ocellus. Ocellar tubercle subshining, thinly brown-dusted, frons in front of front ocellus parallel sided, densely matt brown dusted with vague darker mid spot. Front two fifths paler olive-grey dusted, widening out slightly before running parallel to rear of mouth opening. Brown hairs on ocellar tubercle longer than the width of the frons, narrow part of frons hairless, anterior part of frons with a few very short pale setulae. Occiput dark in ground colour covered with dense grey dust, almost obscuring ground colour but still with a dull shine, and outstanding hairs, shorter and darker above, much longer and white below, triangle behind ocellar triangle browner. Ommatidia uniform in size across the eyes. Antennae blackish, third segment vaguely reddish-brown ventrally, about twice length of scape and pedicel together, sensilla in apical sulcus whitish in some specimens thus conspicuous despite being very short. All antennal segments with very short pale brown hairs above, longest just before apical sulcus. Palps very small and difficult to see, brown to black, the pale yellow apical setae as long as the length of the palps. Proboscis relatively long, about equal to head-thorax length, black, dorsally hairless. Thorax. Blackish ground colour covered by olive-grey dust which, while complete, does not quite obscure the shine of the cuticle and is less dense than the pleural dusting. Disc of thorax with conspicuous brown-dusted paramedian lines separated by a greyer acrostichal stripe about equal to the width of a paramedian line (variable). Paramedian vittae extending from anterior slope of thorax to just beyond wing insertions, rear of this is a very vague brown prescutellar vittae. Lateral to the dorsocentral lines is an interrupted ante humeral vittae consisting of a rounded brown spot in front of the suture and a short, narrow stripe behind the suture. Mesonotum covered with moderately long, brownish-yellow hair, the longest hairs a little longer than those on the ocellar tubercle. Acrostichal hairs biserial, dorsocentrals irregularly biserial anteriorly, uniserial medially. Paramedian vittae bare, laterally mesonotal hairs uniformly distributed. Scutellum dusted as adjacent parts of mesonotum, with a few scattered hairs on the disc, long, very irregular fringe of hairs along the apical margin. Pleurae uniformly grey dusted similar to notopleuron and more dense and paler than mesonotal disc, fairly long white hairs on pronotum and posterior half of the anepimeron. Wing. Membrane brown tinged, very slightly darker basally and in first basal cell, the veins brown. Cross vein r-m at or a little beyond the middle of discal cell, conspicuously beyond dm-cu. Anal lobe very narrow, linear with straight posterior margin, conspicuously narrower than anal cell. Haltere. Pale yellow to white, base of stem slightly brownish. Legs. Coxae black with a coating of grey dust like that on the pleurae. Remainder of legs black, grey dusted more thinly so than coxae. Coxae externally and femora ventrally covered with moderately long, white hairs, on the femora about equal to the greatest depth of the tibia. Femora dorsally and tibia rather densely covered with short, white hairs. Abdomen. All tergites black with a variable dense coating of olive-grey dust, more brown on disc, sub-shining. Dusting of very similar density to that on disc of mesonotum and scutellum. Sternites grey dusted, more matt and paler grey than tergites. Tergites laterally and sternites all covered with fairly long, erect white to very pale yellow hairs, hairs on disc shorter, browner and more adpressed. Genitalia. Relatively large hanging below tip of abdomen. Epandrium compact, mostly shining black, the cuticle very smooth, with grey dusted patches medially and, more thinly so, basolaterally. Apical two thirds with fairly long white hairs, apico-lateral corners extended and truncate, in dry specimens often appearing pointed. Gonocoxite basally grey dusted similar to tergites, apically shining black gonostyli falcate.

Female. As male but frons wider, about one-fifth to one-quarter head width, lateral ocelli separated from eye margin by almost their diameter. Dusting of frons greyer with median dark spot larger, a short row of small brown hairs laterally in rear part. Mouth margin a little wider but still very narrow and linear. Occipital dusting paler grey. Mesonotal vestiture shorter and sparser. Anal lobe a little wider, posterior margin slightly convex but still narrower than anal cell. Tergite dusting variable but tends to be thinner than in male thus more shining; Vestiture shorter. Sternites can have paler yellowish margins but this not apparent in all specimens. Genitalia. Tip of abdomen coming to a rounded point; apical sternite similar in shape to that found in Usia aurata and related species, wider than long with a sharp medioapical ridge or fold and an apical notch that is sometimes visible in undissected specimens. Furca very different from other species, well sclerotised with the tip acutely folded along a distinct seam.

Discussion. A very aberrant species with features of both Usia aurata and Usia subgenus Micrusia . The possibility that the few specimens known are the result of a hybrid mating was considered, but when the paratype and Salamanca specimens were dissected, the female genitalia proved to be entire and symmetrical and not resembling any other species closely. This was confirmed when males from the DuMerle collection (MNHN) were dissected. Thus, it seems most likely to be a very atypical Usiini closest to Usia , perhaps a relict species that is morphologically closer to the common progenitor of both Parageron and Usia than it is to either genera as we now understand them.

Distribution. Spain. Known from 12 specimens from four localities ranging from the Sierra Nevada near Padul in the south, north to Borau in the Pyrenees. Thus, it has a wide distribution in Spain but seems to be very rare.