Asphoxenomyia Felt

Kolesik, Peter & Gagné, Raymond J., 2020, A review of the gall midges (Diptera: Cecidomyiidae) of Indonesia: taxonomy, biology and adult key to genera, Zootaxa 4847 (1), pp. 1-82 : 21

Asphoxenomyia Felt

[ Figs 9 a–l]

Asphoxenomyia Felt, 1927a: 382 .

Type species: Asphoxenomyia smilacis Felt , by original designation.

Description. Adults. Wing with R 5 bent distally, joining C at wing apex; C broken at juncture with R 5; Rs not present; M 4 and Cu 1 forming fork [ Fig. 9a ]. First tarsal segment without apicoventral spur [ Fig. 9f ], last tarsal segment unusually long [ Fig. 9g ], tarsal claws strongly bent at basal third, pectinate, empodia reaching bend in claws, pulvilli minute [ Fig. 9h ]. Occipital protuberance absent. Palpus 1-segmented [ Fig. 9b ]. Number of flagellomeres unknown as terminal ones missing for all antennae of available specimens but presumably 12.

Male. Flagellomeres cylindrical, similar in size; circumfila anastomosing, irregular, dense [ Figs 9c, d ]. Terminalia (mounted laterally and compressed on both available males): gonocoxite short, stout, broadly rounded; gonostylus short, unidentate; aedeagus robust; hypoproct deeply and triangularly emarginate; cerci elliptical [ Fig. 9e ].

Female. Abdominal seventh sternite appreciably longer than sixth. Eleventh and twelfth flagellomeres missing [ Fig. 9j ]; circumfila anastomosing, irregular, simpler than in male [ Fig. 9k ]. Abdominal seventh sternite appreciably longer than sixth. Terminalia: partially obscured, only distal parts clearly visible, without apparent lobes at posterior end of eighth tergite: cerci subglobular, separated, covered with setae and microtrichia [ Fig. 9i ].

Pupa, l arva unknown.

Remarks. This monotypic genus belongs to the tribe Asphondyliini , characterized by the female seventh sternite being much longer than the sixth and a foreshortened gonostylus situated dorsocaudally on the gonoxocite. It belongs most likely to the subtribe Schizomyiina , based on the lack of an apicoventral spur on the first tarsomere and the apparent lack of large lobes at the posterior end of the female eighth tergite. It can be distinguished from other genera of Schizomyiina in the triangular shape of the apical gonostylar tooth (except Luzonomyia Felt ) [ Fig. 9e ] and the strongly curved, pectinate tarsal claws [ Fig. 9h ]. Asphoxenomyia shares with the monospecific Luzonomyia , a triangular gonostylar tooth, a robust aedeagus (see Gagné 1969 ) and a short ovipositor (see Elsayed et al. 2018a) but the relationship between these two genera can be further clarified only on properly prepared and mounted specimens, once both species have been collected again.

Figures

FIGURES 9a–l. Asphoxenomyia smilacis: a–h, male: a, wing; b, palpus; c, basal part of antenna; d, 5th flagellomere; e, terminalia (lateral; arrows indicate aedeagus (ae), cercus (ce), gonocoxite (gc), gonostylus, (gs), hypoproct (hy)); f, first tarsomere; g, last tarsomere; h, tarsal claw of midleg with pulvillus and empodium; i–k, female: i, terminalia (lateral); j, basal part of antenna; k, 9th flagellomere; l, galls on Smilax modesta (Fig. 59 of DvLR & DvL (1926)).