Malacophagomyia filamenta (Dodge, 1963)

Mulieri, Pablo Ricardo & Mello-Patiu, Cátia Antunes, 2013, Revision of the Neotropical genus Malacophagomyia (Diptera: Sarcophagidae) with description of a new species, Zootaxa 3736 (4), pp. 368-378 : 372-373

Malacophagomyia filamenta (Dodge, 1963)

( Figs 1, 4 , 7 , 10–16 )

Sarcophaga filamenta Dodge, 1963: 240 . Holotype male (AMNH; not examined). Type locality: Surinam (as “ Dutch Guiana ”), Paramaribo.

Malacophagomyia filamenta: Lopes, 1966: 316 (male, female, larvae I–III, figs 1–18); Kano & Lopes, 1968: 305 (distribution, fig. 5); Lopes, 1969: 44 (catalog); Lopes 1973: 281 (notes on biology); Lopes, 1983: 318 (larva I, fig. 88); Pape, 1996: 249 (catalog); Lopes, 2000: 172 (list); Mello-Patiu et al., 2009: 179 (distribution).

Male ( Fig. 7 ). Body length = 6.2–7.0 mm (n = 82).

Head. Head length at antennal base 1.13 head length at vibrissal level. Parafacial and fronto-orbital plate with silvery microtomentum ( Fig. 1 ); parafacial plate with setae (somewhat larger on lower part) and row of setulae on upper half; fronto-orbital plate with sparse setulae; postcranium with silvery-gray microtomentum, with row of black occipital setae parallel to postorbitals and whitish setulae; eye bare; frontal vitta blackish; front at its narrowest point 0.21 head width; 6–10 frontal setae, the row of frontals not diverging strongly anteriorly at the level of pedicel; reclinate orbital setae present; inner vertical setae strong and reclinate, outer vertical setae 0.25– 0.3X the inner verticals and divergent; ocellar triangle black with silvery microtomentum, with one pair of divergent and proclinate ocellar setae and supplementary setulae; postocellar and paravertical setae present; postocular area with silvery microtomentum; genal groove and genal dilation with silvery microtomentum; postgena with silvery-gray microtomentum and pale setae, gena with a few black setae anteriorly and pale setae on posterior part; face with silvery microtomentum; facial ridge with silvery microtomentum, with setae and stronger setulae close to vibrissa and fine setulae reaching the lower half; 9–11 subvibrissal setae; antenna brown, postpedicel with grayish microtomentum, length 0.29 head height, arista largely plumose; palpus brown with black setae on apical half.

Thorax. Black, with silvery-gray microtomentum; prescutum and scutum with dorsal and lateral stripes with silvery-gray microtomentum and three black bands; scutellum with intermediate stripes with silvery-gray; postpronotal lobe, notopleuron and anepisternum, katepisternum and anepimeron with spots of silvery-gray microtomentum; proepisternum silvery, bare; one strong proepisternal seta plus one weaker and shorter supplementary inferior seta, three katepisternal setae, postalar wall with setulae. Chaetotaxy: acrostichals 0+0, dorsocentrals 4 (not well differentiated, usually the presutural more developed in length) + 4 (spaced to four, the two anterior setae smaller than the posteriors and usually not differentiated), intra-alars 2+2, supra-alars 1–2+3 (the middle pair stronger), anterior postpronotal 1, basal postpronotal 2, postalars 2, notopleurals 4 (two larger and two smaller). Scutellum with two pairs of lateral scutellar setae, apical scutellar setae absent, and a pair of discal setae. Wing hyaline, tegula dark brown, whitish basicosta and brown veins, vein R1 basally setulose on 1/2 of its length, R4+5 setulose in proximal 0.6 of distance to crossvein r-m, costal spine not differentiated, third costal sector with ventral setae, cell r4+5 open at wing apex, lower calypter whitish. Legs with coxae, trochanters and femora with silvery microtomentum; middle femur without posteroventral ctenidium on its apical portion, 2–4 anterior and 2–4 anteroventral setae; middle tibia with 1 anterodorsal seta; hind femur with rows of anterodorsal and anteroventral setae; hind tibia with 2 anterodorsal setae well differentiated, 1 anteroventral, and 2 posterodorsal setae; hind femur somewhat villous basally; tarsi blackish.

Abdomen. Reddish-brown; sternites exposed with silvery microtomentum; T1+2–T5 with latero-ventral and dorsal spots with silvery microtomentum; T1+2–T4 each with one pair of lateral marginal setae, T4 with one pair of median marginal setae; T5 with a complete row of marginal setae; ST2–ST3 (and adjacent areas of tergites) with lateral villous setae; ST4 with tufts of black spine-like setae on posterior corners, bare medially; median margin of ST5 V-shaped, reddish-brown; arm of ST5 with several fine setae on its inner surface, and a darkened short posterior lobe ( Fig. 4 ).

Genitalia. Syntergosternite 7+8 blackish, with a median spot of gray microtomentum, having a marginal row of weak setae and some smaller black hair-like setae basally; epandrium reddish-orange with thin gray microtomentum, with black hair-like setae; cerci short, covered with setae, without cercal prong ( Fig. 12 ); cerci slightly curved in profile ( Fig. 13 ); surstylus long with apical setae ( Fig. 13 ); pregonite curved backward, bent at a right angle and pointed ( Fig. 10 ); postgonite with one strong seta ( Fig. 11 ); phallus without vesica; juxta well developed and sclerotized, curved upward at the anterior margin (lateral view), juxta bifid in ventral (or apical) view; lateral stylus well developed and complex with a pair of arms or processes, a lateral (outer) membranous arm, and a well-sclerotized curved inner arm ( Fig. 14 ); median stylus very elongated, strongly curved at the base and in apical third (lateral view); each harpes as a flat and membranous lobe ( Fig. 14 ).

Female. Body length = 5.5–7.2 mm (n = 57).

Head. Differs from male in being wider, front at its narrowest point 0.35 head width; two well differentiated proclinate orbital setae; postpedicel larger, length 0.34 head height.

Thorax. Similar to male. Hind femur with 2–3 posteroventral setae.

Abdomen. Similar to male, somewhat broader.

Genitalia. Tergite 6 (VI + VII of Lopes) reduced to a narrow sclerotized band with anterior margin adjacent to spiracle 7 (located in a large membranous area); epiproct (or anal tergite) membranous and represented by a few setae, cerci with setae ( Fig. 16 ). ST5 long and narrow; ST6 and ST7 united but with a distinct streak between them, with rows of marginal setae especially laterally, and with a concave longitudinal median area; ST8 composed of two lateral plates, rounded on posterior margin, covered with microtrichiae and a membranous median area with setae on posterior part; vaginal plate conspicuous and well sclerotized, broad and exposed on posterior margin; hypoproct membranous, broad with longer setulae on posterior margin ( Fig. 15 ).

Material examined. Bolivia: 69 males, 47 females, Santa Cruz de la Sierra, XII 56 M. Alvarenga leg. (MNRJ). Brazil: 5 males, Belem, Pará, 25.VIII.65 H.S. Lopes leg. (MNRJ); 1 male, Rio de Janeiro, 04-IV-93 A. Khouri leg. (MNRJ); 7 males, 10 females, Rio de Janeiro, Mendanha, Campo Grande, I-52 H.S. Lopes leg. (MNRJ).

Distribution. Bolivia, Brazil (Pará, Rio de Janeiro), Surinam.

Remarks. Lopes (1966: 319) described for the first time the female of M. filamenta and defined the genital tergites as “Tergito 6 + 7 inteiramente ausente, representado pelos dois estigmas que se implantam na membrana, havendo um único tergito genital constituído por estreita faixa quitinosa que corresponde ao 9° esternito [sic]…”. Lopes (1966: 318, figs 9–10) illustrated this species, although without specifying any structures. We observed that the unique and narrow sclerotization is located in a posterior position but adjacent to spiracle 7, and hence we assume that this structure constitutes the posterior remains of tergite 6 (VI + VII according to Lopes’s usual nomenclature). Following the description of the female, Lopes (1966) provided interpretations of the functional morphology of male and female structures of the genitalia based on a fixed mating couple.

Figures

FIGURES 1 – 6. Malacophagomyia species, males. 1 – 3. Head, fronto-lateral view. 1. Malacophagomyia filamenta (Dodge). 2. Malacophagomyia kesselringi Kano & Lopes. 3. Malacophagomyia rivadavia n. sp., holotype. 4 – 6. Sternite 5. 4. Malacophagomyia filamenta (Dodge). 5. Malacophagomyia kesselringi Kano & Lopes. 6. Malacophagomyia rivadavia n. sp., holotype (MACN). Abbreviations: Lb, lobes of sternite 5; ST 4, sternite 4 ST 5, setae on inner surface of arms of sternite 5. Scale bars 1 mm.

FIGURES 7 – 9. 7. Malacophagomyia filamenta (Dodge), male habitus. 8 – 9. Malacophagomyia kesselringi Kano & Lopes. 8. Male habitus, holotype (MNRJ). 9. Original labels of the holotype. Scale bars 1 mm.

FIGURES 10 – 14. Malacophagomyia filamenta (Dodge), male genitalia. 10. Pregonite, left lateral view. 11. Postgonite, left lateral view. 12. Cerci, posterior view. 13. Cercus and surtylus, left lateral view. 14. Phallus, left lateral view. Abbreviations: Bph, basiphallus; Dph, distiphallus; iaLs, inner arm of lateral stylus; H, harpes; J, juxta; Ms, median stylus; oaLs, outer arm of lateral stylus. Scale bars 0.1 mm.

FIGURES 15 – 16. Malacophagomyia filamenta (Dodge), female genitalia. 15. Genitalia, ventral view. 16. Genitalia, posterior view. Abbreviations: Cer, cercus; Ep, epiproct; Hyp, hypoproct; ST, sternite; T, tergite; Vp, vaginal plate. Scale bars 1 mm.