Dolichodema fenestratum James

Woodley, Norman E., 2010, Parameristomerinx copelandi — a new genus and species of Afrotropical Pachygastrinae and a new generic synonym of Dolichodema Kertész (Diptera: Stratiomyidae), Zootaxa 2397, pp. 41-47 : 46-47

Dolichodema fenestratum James

Dolichodema fenestrata James 1949a: 5 .

Nemodema nudibasis Lindner 1958: 122 . Syn. n.

The original description of Dolichodema fenestratum indictes that it is very similar to Lindner’s taxon, N. nudibasis . This was confirmed by examining a photograph of the holotype of D. fenestratum available on the internet (http://research.amnh.org/invertzoo/ types _db/) and comparing it to the holotype of N. nudibasis . No significant differences were found, and I regard the two taxa as conspecific. Additional specimens have been examined from other African localities, so the distribution of the species can be summarized as Afrotropical: Kenya, Liberia, Namibia, South Africa, Zimbabwe.

Dolichodema fenestratum is probably a vespid wasp mimic, and is more modified than D. africanum and one undescribed species of Dolichodema that I have seen. The fourth and fifth sternites are convex and give the end of the abdomen a more wasp-like, convex and rounded appearance compared to the other two species. Both D. fenestratum and the undescribed species have a transparent “window” on abdominal segments 2 and 3 which presumably give the abdomen a petiolate apperance in flight, similar to that found in Hermetia illucens (Linnaeus) .