Liriomyza triodanidis, Eiseman & Lonsdale & Feldman, 2019

Eiseman, Charles S., Lonsdale, Owen & Feldman, Tracy S., 2019, Nine new species of Agromyzidae from North Carolina, USA, with new host and distribution records for additional species, Zootaxa 4571 (3), pp. 301-333 : 315-316

Liriomyza triodanidis spec. nov.

( Figs. 23–24 , 49 , 98–101 )

Holotype. NORTH CAROLINA: Scotland, Laurinburg , St. Andrews University, 4.v.2016, em. 23.v.2016, T.S. Feldman, ex Triodanis biflora , # CSE2491 , CNC653945 (1♂).

Additional material examined. NORTH CAROLINA: same collection as holotype, CNC653944 (1 undeveloped ♀).

Etymology. The specific epithet refers to the host plant, Triodanis Raf. ex Greene.

Host. Campanulaceae : Triodanis biflora (Ruiz & Pav.) Greene.

Larval mine. ( Fig. 49 ) Whitish, linear, sometimes contorted to form a secondary blotch. Mines are largely on stems, continuing onto the lower surfaces of leaves; the appearance on the upper leaf surface varies from a slight discoloration to conspicuous whitish mottling, depending on the thickness of the leaf and depth of the mine. Some mines clearly terminate on the leaves but in the mines we examined it was not evident where oviposition occurred. The dark green frass is in grains and beaded strips.

Puparium. ( Fig. 24 ) Yellow; formed outside the mine.

Distribution. USA: NC.

Adult description. Wing length 1.5mm (♂). Female undeveloped. Length of ultimate section of vein M 4 divided by penultimate section: 2.5. Costa extending to M 1. Eye height divided by gena height: 3.3. First flagellomere small, rounded, with some longer apical hairs. Arista pubescent. Frons slightly projecting anteriorly. Cheek narrow, but well-defined. Notum pruinose.

Chaetotaxy: Two ori, two ors. Ocellar and postvertical (thinner) setae subequal to ors. Four dorsocentral setae, decreasing in length anteriorly, with anterior two pairs not much larger than setulae. Two rows of acrostichal setulae. Intra-alar setulae absent.

Coloration: ( Fig. 23 ) Setae dark brown. Head yellow with posterolateral corner of frons to base of outer vertical seta, back of head excluding venter, small triangular spot enclosing ocellar tubercle, posterior margin of frons and clypeus dark brown; first flagellomere with orange tint. Scutum dark brown with complete lateral yellow stripe excluding spot on postpronotum and in posterolateral corner; notum slightly pruinose with faint silvery shine. Scutellum dark brown laterally. Mediotergite dark brown, anatergite brown, katatergite yellow with posteroventral region brown. Pleuron mostly yellow; anepisternum with short oblique anteroventral brown stripe (narrower posteriorly), anepimeron with posterior margin and anterior mottling brown; meron brown with dorsum yellow; katepisternum with large ventral spot not reaching level of seta and with minute spot posterior to seta. Calypter margin and hairs light brown. Haltere yellow. Legs yellow with base of fore coxa brown, mid coxa mottled, hind coxa brownish with basal half darker, tibiae brown with anterior leg paler and posterior leg darker, and tarsi brown. Abdomen yellow with wide, ill-defined spot on tergite 1, tergite 2 with one pair of wide spots, tergites 3–5 with dorsal stripe that narrows posteriorly, and epandrium dark brown.

Genitalia: ( Figs. 98–101 ) Surstylus narrow with one subapical spine. Phallophorus shorter ventrally. Basiphallus with long, narrow left lateral sclerotization widening to dorsoapical plate. Apical section of ejaculatory duct dark and swollen, ovate. Paraphallus narrow, rod-like. Hypophallus curved, narrow, with apical hairs, Mesophallus wider than long, dark, with laterobasal emargination, with complete ventral suture, fused to distiphallus and with elongate ventral bands continuing onto distiphallus bowl. Distiphallus slightly asymmetrical; with broad, shallow, dorsally angled basal bowl with swollen left half, with small bumps on inner surface of left side, pointed extension from dorsomedial margin, and short grooved ventromedial plate (left side only); tubules of distiphallus fused along midline to form single wide tube, slightly curved to venter and angled to right. Ejaculatory apodeme large, dark, well-developed with base narrow; blade paler distally, partially striated. Sperm pump sclerotized ventrally onto base of duct, laterally with thick dark sclerotized margins.

Comments. As with most Liriomyza , some external features are useful for diagnosis (posterolateral corner of frons dark to outer vertical, two rows of acrostichal setulae, intra-alar setulae absent, scutum faintly silvery pruinose), but the male genitalia are essential for confident identification: the basal bowl of the distiphallus is asymmetrical, well-defined and angled dorsally; the apical tubules are shallowly sinuate, fused, as long as the basiphallus and pointed apically.

No agromyzid has previously been recorded from Triodanis .

Figures

FIGURES 21–25. FIGURES 21–22. Liriomyza schmidti (Aldrich); 21: male; 22: empty puparium. FIGURES 23–24: Liriomyza triodanidis spec. nov.; 23: male; 24: puparium. FIGURE 25: Phytomyza plantaginis Robineau-Desvoidy, female.

FIGURES 41–49. leaf mines; 41: Liriomyza carphephori spec. nov. on Bidens frondosa; 42: same, on Carphephorus bellidifolius, lower suface; 43: same leaf, showing terminal portion on upper surface; 44: L. helianthi Spencer on Chrysogonum virginianum; 45: L. polygalivora spec. nov. on Polygala verticillata, incomplete mines (reflected light); 46: same, leaf completely mined (transmitted light); 47: L. schmidti (Aldrich) on Gelsemium sempervirens, incomplete mine; 48: same, mine covering almost entire leaf surface; 49: L. triodanidis spec. nov. on Triodanis biflora, mine on stem and lower leaf surface.

FIGURES 98–101. Liriomyza triodanidis spec. nov., male genitalia; 98: ejaculatory apodeme; 99: external genitalia, ventral; 100: phallus, ventral; 101: phallus, left lateral.