Monohelea capixaba Santarem & Felippe-Bauer, 2022

Alves Santarem, Maria Clara, Aragao Cardoso, Erick, de Souza Pinto, Israel & Felippe-Bauer, Maria Luiza, 2022, New species and new records of Monohelea Kieffer (Diptera, Ceratopogonidae) from Brazil, ZooKeys 1136, pp. 175-185 : 175

Monohelea capixaba Santarem & Felippe-Bauer sp. nov.

Figs 1 , 2

Holotype.

Male, on microscope slide, labeled "Holotype Monohelea capixaba Santarém and Felippe-Bauer", “São Luiz de Baixo, Pancas, Espírito Santo, BRASIL, 19° 12'34.43"S, 40°49'13.75"W, 14.XII.2010, CDC light trap, mata, Pinto, I.S. [leg.]" (CCER#3699).

Diagnosis.

Male adult: The only Neotropical species of Monohelea with legs yellowish, hind femur with basal brown band, mesal brown stripe and subapical ventral brown spot; parameres triangular, greatly expanded at single base, tapering distally, with apical portion simple and pointed apex. Female adult: unknown.

Description.

Male. Head (Fig. 1C ): eyes separated medially by a distance of 2 ommatidia. Antenna (Fig. 1B ) brown; antennal ratio 0.95. Palpus pale brown, short; 3rd segment with small, shallow sensory pit, 5th segment darker, palpal ratio 1.29.

Thorax. Scutum brown, two median pale strips (Fig. 1F ). Legs (Fig. 1D ) yellowish; coxae and trochanters brown; forefemur with basal brown band and mesal brown stripe, midfemur with basal brown band, hind femur with basal brown band, mesal brown stripe and subapical ventral brown spot; tibiae brown apically; hind tibia with subbasal spot, mesal stripe; tibiofemoral joints yellowish; hind tibial comb with 5 bristles. Tarsi pale; fore-, hind tarsomere 1 with one basal, one apical spine; midtarsomere 1 with 2 basal, 2 apical spines; apical spines of tarsomeres 2-4 of fore-, mid-, hind legs: 1-1-1, 2-2-2, 1-1-1; basal spines absent; fore-, mid-, hind tarsal ratios 2.14, 2.43, 1.87; claws small, paired, equal-sized, 0.43-0.48 × as long as 5th tarsomeres. Wing (Fig. 1A ): macrotrichia present in wing margin; microtrichia absent; 2nd radial cell nearly 2 × longer than 1st; wing length 0.77 mm, width 0.30 mm; costal ratio 0.68. Halter pale, distal portion of knob darker.

Abdomen. Pale brown. Genitalia brown (Figs 1E , 2A-C ): sternite IX spiculate except on basal portion, posterior margin with a short, convex, median lobe with 4 long setae; tergite IX tapering, quadrate, with a pair of short apicolateral processes. Gonocoxite (Fig. 2A ) moderately stout, nearly 2.06X longer than basal width, inner margin with mesal pointed protuberance; gonostylus (Fig. 2A ) straight, tipped apex, 0.64 length of gonocoxite, basal 2/3 moderately pilose. Parameres (Fig. 2B ) 0.91 length of aedeagus, triangular, greatly expanded at single base, tapering distally; apical portion simple, pointed apex. Aedeagus (Fig. 2C ) triangular, composed of 2 pointed ventral plates; basal arms slightly expanded laterally.

Female. Unknown.

Distribution and bionomics.

This species is known only from forested areas in Espírito Santo State, Brazil.

Etymology.

This species name refers to the Portuguese gentilic name for the inhabitants of the Brazilian state of Espírito Santo, where the species occurs.

Taxonomic discussion.

The male of this species has yellowish legs with a pattern of brown patches and the brown base of the hind femur. This pattern is similar to the Brazilian Amazonian species M. patauateua Felippe-Bauer & Trindade. Also, this species keys to couplet 22 (male) of M. mayeri Ortíz and M. hieroglyphica Kieffer in the key to Neotropical Monohelea by Lane and Wirth (1964). It can be easily distinguished from these three species by the peculiar aspect of the triangular parameres with a single base, without a mesal process.

Figures

Figure 1. Monohelea capixaba sp. nov., male A wing B antenna C head, anterior view D fore-, mid-, hind legs (left to right), lateral view E genitalia, ventral view F thorax, dorsal view.

Figure 2. Monohelea capixaba sp. nov., male A terminalia, ventral view B parameres, ventral view C aedeagus, ventral view.