Lordiphosa ayarpathaensis Kandpal & Singh, 2017

Fartyal, Rajendra S., Sati, Pradeep C., Pradhan, Sushmika, Kandpal, Mukul C., Toda, Masanori J., Chatterjee, Rabindra N., Singh, Birendra K. & Bhardwai, Asha, 2017, A review of the genus Lordiphosa Basden in India, with descriptions of four new species from the Himalayan region (Diptera, Drosophilidae), ZooKeys 688, pp. 49-79 : 57-62

Lordiphosa ayarpathaensis Kandpal & Singh sp. n.

Fig. 4

Type material.

Holotype. ♂: INDIA: Uttarakhand, Kumaon, Nainital district, Ayarpatha, 29°23'N, 79°27'E, 2,278 m a.s.l., 20-23 August 2009, M. C. Kandpal leg. (DZHNBGU).

Paratypes. INDIA: 5♂, 5♀, same data as the holotype; 10♂, 6♀, same data as the holotype except 3-5 September 2010 (DZHNBGU, SEHU).

Diagnosis.

Epandrium caudosubapically with large flap pointed apically, serrate on dorsal margin and covering largely surstylus (Fig. 4C, D ). Paramere broader than aedeagal basal process, apically truncate, serrated; narrow, inward recurved, apically slightly pubescent elongation present at dorsal corner; sensilla 3-5, spaced in a longitudinal row (Fig. 4F ).

Description.

Adult male. Head. Eye dark red, with sparse, interfacetal setulae. Supracervical setae 15-18, thin, apically more or less curved and pointed; postocular setae 16-19; occipital setae approximately 18, including medial tiny ones. Dorsolateral arms of tentorial apodeme divergent, nearly straight, reaching to fronto-orbital plate; dorsomedial arm half as long as dorsolateral arm. Occiput, ocellar triangle and fronto-orbital plates black; frontal vittae mat, light orange. Interspace between antennal sockets narrower than half of socket width; pedicel yellowish brown; first flagellomere grey, with only one small invaginated pouch; arista with 3-4 dorsal and two ventral branches in addition to terminal fork. Facial carina slightly elevated, narrower and shorter than first flagellomere, without setulae below. Gena and clypeus light brown. Subvibrissal seta distinctly shorter than vibrissa; additional row of oral setulae present above marginal row on anterior portion. Palpus with one prominent terminal and several short, subapical to lateroventral setae, without setulae on basal lobe. Cibarium thickened on anterior margin, not dilated laterad in anterior portion; anterolateral corners almost not projected; dorsal sclerite pear-shaped in dorsal view, anteriorly convex in lateral view; anterior sensilla two pairs, widely arranged in square behind anterior margin of hypopharynx; 32-33 medial sensilla arranged in mostly parallel but anteriorly convergent rows; sensilla campaniformia two; posterior sensilla very long, trichoid, gently curved forward, approximately 22, arranged in anteriorly divergent rows; somewhat sclerotized, thickened (in lateral view), anterior portion of hypopharynx shorter than 1/5 length of cibarium. Prementum slightly thicker in ventral than in dorsal portion from lateral view (Fig. 4A ), nearly parallel-sided in posterior view (Fig. 4B ). Labellum with five pseudotracheae per side (Fig. 4A ).

Thorax. Postpronotal lobe grey yellow, with two prominent setae: lower one longer. Scutum and scutellum glossy, light brown. Thoracic pleura greyish brown. Posterior dorsocentral seta situated nearer to anterior dorsocentral seta than to anterior margin of scutellum. Prescutellar setae absent. Acrostichal setulae in six rows. Basal scutellar setae parallel or convergent; apicals cruciate. Anterior katepisternal seta thicker than aristal branches; no setula present anteriorly to anterior katepisternal seta.

Wing hyaline. Veins light brown; crossveins not clouded; bm-cu crossvein absent; R2+3 nearly straight; R4+5 and M1 nearly parallel. C1 setae two, unequal in size. Halter opaque white.

Legs light brown; last two tarsomeres of all legs darker. Foreleg femur with approximately eight long setae in two rows on ventral and outer surfaces; tarsus without any sexual ornamentation. Foreleg tarsomere I as long as three succeeding tarsomeres together; mid-leg one slightly longer than three succeeding tarsomeres together; hindleg one slightly shorter than rest together. Preapical, dorsal setae present on tibiae of all legs; apical setae on tibiae of fore- and mid-legs.

Abdomen. Tergites I to IV medially, widely yellow, laterally brown; V and VI nearly entirely dark brown; each tergite with small setae in approximately three rows and large setae on posterior margin. Sternites light brown; setigerous VI present.

Terminalia (Fig. 4C-F ). Epandrium smoothly curved on posterior mid-dorsal margin, folded inward on caudoventral margin, nearly entirely pubescent except anterolateral margin, lower portion of ventral lobe and apical portion of caudo-subapical flap, with approximately seven setae on medial to dorsal portion, 10-11 setae on ventral lobe and sclerotized process at caudoventral apex (Fig. 4C, D ). Surstylus articulated to epandrium, distally narrowing and apically truncate, pubescent medially on outer surface; distal margin with a row of 17-18 stout, trichoid prensisetae on dorsal portion and two or three irregular rows of such setae on ventral portion; outer surface lacking peg-like seta.(Fig. 4C, D ). Cercus separated from epandrium, nearly entirely pubescent, with 24-25 setae medially to dorsally, ventro-apically truncate and with 3-4 prominent, curved setae on margin and small, apically round projection at anterior corner (Fig. 4C, D ). Membrane between cercus and epandrium not pubescent (Fig. 4C ). Lateral lobe of tenth sternite smaller than median lobe. Hypandrium anteriorly narrowing, with a pair of narrow plates connecting between bases of parameres and lateral margins of hypandrium (Fig. 4E ). Paramere very long, sclerotized process, articulated to basal part of aedeagus, basally much elongated and curved like hook; basal elongation apically pointed, subapically articulated to tip of hypandrial, lateral plate (Fig. 4F ). Aedeagus membranous, apically shaped like “funnel” with hirsute margin, apicodorsally connected with gonopod by membrane, basally fused to apodeme; basal process strongly sclerotized, slightly shorter than aedeagus, apically hamate and pointed; apodeme rod-like, as long as aedeagus (Fig. 4E, F ). Gonopods fused, forming plate situated dorsally to aedeagus (Fig. 4E, F ).

Measurements (holotype / range in 6♂ paratypes, in mm). BL = 2.59 / 2.04-2.41, ThL = 1.22 / 0.96-1.11, WL = 2.96 /2.48-2.96, WW = 1.15 / 0.85-1.26.

Indices (holotype / range in 6♂ paratypes, in ratio). FW/HW = 0.50 / 0.44-0.67, ch/o = 0.11 / 0.10-0.22, prorb = 0.60 / 0.50-0.89, rcorb = 0.20 / 0.17-0.40, vb = 0.40 / 0.50-0.67, dcl = 0.55 / 0.36-0.60, sctl = 1.33 / 1.18-1.56, sterno = 0.33 / 0.25-0.40, sterno2 = 0.22 / 0.13-0.33, orbito = 1.00 / 0.50-1.00, dcp = 0.44 / 0.30-0.57, sctlp = 1.20 / 1.20-1.33, C =3.64 /2.87-3.33, 4c = 0.67 / 0.67-0.75, 4v = 1.67 / 1.14-1.55, 5x = 1.43 / 1.17-1.67, ac = 2.00 / 2.14-2.50, M = 0.48 / 0.37-0.48, C3F = 0.23 / 0.11-0.21.

Adult female. Head, thorax, wings, and legs as in male.

Terminalia (Fig. 4G-I ). Tergite VIII short, ventrally tapering, without setae, pubescent only on dorsocaudal portion (Fig. 4G ). Oviscapt medially broad and humped in lateral view, distally narrowing and curved ventrad, with three stout, peg-like ovisensilla and ventro-subterminal, trichoid one on apical margin, and approximately six trichoid, lateral ones on distal surface (Fig. 4G ). Large, sclerotized perineal plate present between oviscapts (Fig. 4G, H ). Spermathecal capsule elongated dome-shaped, with horizontal wrinkles basally and somewhat irregular ones on apical surface; introvert half as deep as capsule height (Fig. 4I ).

Measurements (range in 5♀ paratypes, in mm). BL = 2.22-2.52, ThL = 1.04-1.41, WL = 2.85-3.15, WW = 1.04-1.37.

Indices (range in 5♀ paratypes, in ratio). FW/HW = 0.50-0.65, ch/o = 0.10-0.30, prorb = 0.50-0.70, rcorb = 0.17-0.33, vb = 0.33-0.67, dcl = 0.46-0.67, sctl = 1.20-1.36, sterno = 0.25-0.60, sterno2 = 0.13-0.33, orbito = 0.67-1.33, dcp = 0.40 -0.50, sctlp = 0.80-1.25, C = 3.13-3.85, 4c = 0.60-0.67, 4v = 1.38-1.67, 5x = 1.17-1.80, ac = 2.17-2.67, M = 0.33-0.45, C3F = 0.20-0.27.

Etymology.

Pertaining to type locality.

Distribution.

India (Uttarakhand).

Flower visitation.

Adult flies were collected from flowers of Hedychium spicatum (local name: Haldu, Kapur Kachri or Sand harlika; English common name: Spiked Ginger Lily; Fig. 5A ), a smallish, hardy, perennial herb, belonging to the family Zingiberaceae , with fleshy rhizomes, green, broadly lanceolate leaves, straight stem (up to approximately 1 m high) and large orange and white flowers. It grows throughout subtropical Himalaya in the Indian states of Assam, Arunachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand, with an altitudinal range of 1,000 m to 3,000 m.

Remarks.

This species somewhat resembles L. nigrovesca in having the sclerotized, apically pointed process at caudoventral apex of epandrium and the paramere apically truncated, but differs from it in the color of thorax and abdomen (glossy black in Lordiphosa nigrovesca ), the caudosubapical, large flap of epandrium (absent; Okada 1984: "Fig. 8", De and Gupta 1996: "Fig. 6"), the position of apically pubescent process on the paramere (subapical; Okada 1984: "Fig. 9", De and Gupta 1996: "Fig. 7"), the shape of oviscapt (distally broad; De and Gupta 1996: "Fig. 8") and the number of ovisensilla (11 marginals and six laterals; De and Gupta 1996: "Fig. 8"). Molecular data of this species are available from Sarswat et al. (2016).

Figures

Figure 4. Lordiphosa ayarpathaensis Kandpal & Singh, sp. n. (♂ ♀ paratypes from Ayarpatha, Nainital district, Kumaon, Uttarakhand, India): A, B proboscis (A lateral view B posterior view) C, D periphallic organs (C caudolateral view D caudoventral view) E, F phallic organs: aedeagal basal processes (aed b p) (E ventral view F lateral view) G, H ♀ terminalia: perineal plate (per pl) (G lateral view H ventral view) I spermatheca. Scale bars 0.1 mm.

Figure 5. Flowers visited by Lordiphosa flies: A Hedychium spicatum (Zingiberaceae) visited by L. ayarpathaensis sp. n. B, C Datura suaveolens (Solanaceae) visited by L. makaibarensis sp. n.