Stenophragma bickeli, Oliveira & Amorim, 2012

Oliveira, Sarah Siqueira & Amorim, Dalton de Souza, 2012, Two New Species of Stenophragma Skuse from Western Australia (Diptera, Mycetophilidae, Sciophilinae), Records of the Australian Museum 64 (2), pp. 149-158 : 150-152

Stenophragma bickeli n.sp.

Figs. 1–3, 5–13

Diagnosis. Wing with light brown maculae on sc-r, on first section of Rs, and on CuA beyond insertion of M 4; R 4 absent. Gonostyle with dorsal, median, and ventral projections bearing combs of small spines and numerous longer spines; T9 straight at anterior margin, rounded distally.

Material examined. Holotype, ♂, AUSTRALIA, Western Australia, Pilbara region. Juna Downs Station, Great Northern Highway , c. 8 km S of Karijini Dr. toff., -22:41:36, 118:42:19, 12–17 Aug 2005, LTM sites, CVA Volunteers , PILB038 /08M, [Malaise trap] ( WAMA) . Paratypes: 1♂, same data as holotype ( WAMA) ; 7♂♂, same data as holotype ( AMSA) ; 1♀, same data as holotype, except 15–19 May 2006, PILB038 /12M ( AMSA); 1♂, 1♀, same data as holotype, except 15–19 May 2006, PILB038 /12M ( WAMA); 2♂♂, same data as holotype, except Juna Downs Rd. to Packsaddle Bore, c. 5 km E of homestead, -22:52:31, 118:31:49, 15–19 May 2006, LTM sites, CVA Volunteers, PILB039 / 12M, [Malaise trap] ( MZUSP) .

Description. Male ( Fig. 1). Head. Vertex dark brown, with scattered setulae. Two ocelli separated from the eye margin by less than their own diameter. Occiput dark brown. Eye setose. Scape and pedicel light brown, rounded, with small setulae; 14 light brown flagellomeres, almost twice as long as wide, with scattered setae, first flagellomere about 1.6 the length of second one. Frons dark brown, clypeus dark brown, covered with short setae; labella brown; first and second palpomeres dark brown, almost of same length; third to fifth light brown, apical ones increasingly longer, last one almost twice the length of penultimate. Thorax ( Fig. 2 ). Scutum light brown, with four longitudinal dark brown bands, the lateral ones more diffuse than the central ones. Scutellum light brown. Pleural sclerites light brown. Pleural membrane brownish. Scutum moderately arched, covered with scattered small setae. Scutellum with many setulae, and six slight longer setae. Pronotum setose, with some stronger setae.Anepisternum and katepisternum more or less straight ventrally, bare. Mesepimeron reaching ventral margin of thorax, bare. Laterotergite slightly projected outwards, with 9–11 setae of different sizes, suture at contact with mediotergite incomplete dorsally. Mediotergite slightly curved in profile, ventral half with two longer setae laterally and smaller ones mesally. Haltere with whitish yellow pedicel and light brown knob, some few setae on pedicel, knob more densely setose. Coxae I and III whitish yellow, coxa II light brown, femora, tibiae and tarsi whitish yellow. First tarsomere more than twice the length of second one; tibiae and tarsi with erect darker short bristles along almost entire length, those on hind tibia more or less aligned dorsally Abdomen light brown, setose, slender. T8 short and wide, S8 slender, longer than wide, rounded apically. Terminalia light brown, conspicuous, rounded. Terminalia ( Figs. 5–11 ). Gonocoxites setose, fused to each other ventrally, with a pair of short, mesal extensions distally, pointed outwards at apex, besides a group of small aligned setulae; inner ventral surface with two white spines apically. Gonostyle complex, wide, with three main branches, dorsally, mesally, and ventrally; dorsal branch with one strong inner spine and four strong apical spines; median branch with one long setae apically and two rows of short spines and three strong basal spines; ventral branch wide, rounded, with short and strong apical spines and three long, very sclerotized setae on the inner margin. Aedeagus not seen; parameres membranous, straight at apex; gonocoxal apodeme well developed, sclerotized. T9 long, setose, apex as wide as base, straight at anterior margin, rounded distally, with typical waist close to apex; inner surface with many thin, long setae distally. Cercus weakly sclerotized, covered with many setulae.

Female. As male, except as follows. Wing length, 3.8 mm, width, 1.5 mm. Antennal flagellomeres not as long as in males, near each other. Body general color lighter than in males. Abdomen yellowish. Terminalia ( Figs. 12–13 ). Terminalia yellowish. Sternite 8 elongated, with a pair of posterior rounded gonapophyses, divided distally by a short medial incision, covered with fine, elongated setae on posterior margin; S9 (genital fork) not visible; S10 membranous, elongated, with microtrichia; T8 wide, short, as long as T9, covered with setae; T9 wide, short, covered with setae; T10 membranous, setose apically; Ce1 more than twice Ce2 length, covered with microtrichia and scattered setae; Ce2 ovoid, covered with microtrichia and few setulae.

Etymology. The species name is masculine, named after the eminent dipterist Daniel J. Bickel, of the Australian Museum, Sydney. He has enormously improved the knowledge on the Dolichopodidae diversity in Australasian region and elsewhere in the world, and was an excellent advisor during the time spent working at the AMSA collection.

Comments. The absence of R 4 is shared by this species and Stenophragma paponorum , from New Caledonia. In this latter species (see Matile, 1991: fig. 12) the wings have three vertical brown bands, one at the distal third, another from the apex of R 1 to the apex of M 4, a third between the mid of R 1 to the distal end of the first section of CuA. S. paponorum also shows inconspicuous brown maculae at the first section of Rs, R 4, r-m, and M 1+2. S. paponorum is known only by a female, so it is not possible at this stage to check if male features seen in the terminalia of S. bickeli n.sp. are shared with the New Caledonia species.

Figures

Figure 2.Stenophragma bickeli n.sp.thorax, lateral view,paratype. Scale 0.1 mm.

Figures 5–11. Male terminalia of Stenophragma bickeli n.sp. paratype. (5–6) Terminalia, dorsal view. (7) Detail of tergite 9 and cerci in dorsal view (left) and in ventral view (right).(8) Gonocoxite, gonocoxal apodeme, and parameres, dorsal view.(9) Gonostyle, dorsal view. (10) Detail of the ventral and dorsal projections of the gonostyle. (11) Detail of the median projection of the gonostyle. Scale 0.1 mm.

Figures 12–13. Female terminalia of Stenophragma bickeli n.sp. paratype. (12) Terminalia, dorsal view. (13) Detail of sternites 8 and 10, ventral view. Scales 0.1 mm.