Paraberismyia Woodley, 1995

Woodley, Norman E., 2013, A revision of the Neotropical genus Paraberismyia Woodley (Diptera, Stratiomyidae, Beridinae) with three new species, ZooKeys 353, pp. 25-45 : 26-27

Paraberismyia Woodley, 1995

Paraberismyia Woodley 1995: 134. Type species, Paraberismyia tzontehuitza Woodley, by original designation.

Diagnosis.

Woodley (1995) fully diagnosed and described Paraberismyia within the context of the world fauna of Beridinae . It may be separated from all other world genera of beridines except Allognosta Osten Sacken and Berismyia Giglio-Tos by having distinct hair-like setae around the apical margin of the first antennal flagellomere. Paraberismyia may be separated from Allognosta because it possesses denticles on the posterior margin of the scutellum, which Allognosta lacks. Allognosta is also not known to occur in Mexico or Central America. Species of Berismyia overlap in distribution with Paraberismyia . Berismyia are drab colored flies with a brownish to black mesonotum with at most faint metallic reflections and a dark brownish to black, unicolorous abdomen, whereas Paraberismyia are more brightly colored with a distinctly metallic mesonotum and an abdomen that is bicolored. Also, all known species of Berismyia (including several that are undescribed) have the genital capsule with a very long, narrow, posteromedial process on the synsternite that is sharply acute apically ( Woodley 1995: 191, fig. 126), while in Paraberismyia this process is shorter, broader, and has a rounded apex (Figs 11, 20, 29).

Remarks.

The species of Paraberismyia are very similar in general structure, differing mainly in characters of coloration and the male terminalia. The coloration differences are very consistent and therefore can be used to accurately identify the species.

Key to species of Paraberismyia