Smeryngolaphria pallida Bromley, 1935

Jason G. H. Londt, 1989, Afrotropical Asilidae (Diptera) 18. The genus Smeryngolaphria Hermann, 1912 (Laphriinae), Annals of the Natal Museum 30, pp. 147-157 : 151-152

Smeryngolaphria pallida Bromley, 1935

Figs 1 , 3 , 6 , 8-9 , 15-21 , 28 Smeryngolaphria pallida Bromley, 1935: 410 ; Hull, 1962: 333; Oldroyd, 1970: 235; Oldroyd, 1980: 355

. Redescription: Based on holotype ♂ ( Fig. 1 ).

Head: Dark red-brown but colour largely masked by pruinescence. Antenna ( Figs 8-9 ) dark brown: Setae of scape and pedicel yellow and dark red-brown mixed; scape with long yellow ventral bristle; flagellomere uniformly covered with microtrichia except for anterocentral depressed area containing more tightly packed microtrichia (this may be a sense organ); tip with narrow pit containing a single spine. Face width: maximum head width (measured anteriorly) ratio 4,9: 1 ( Fig. 6 ). Face silver pruinose and uniformly covered with silvery glistening dorsoventrally flattened scale-like setae (longer in ventral half); normal setae confined to a row of shiny white setae along lower facial margin and a pair of long shiny white setae at about midway between antennal bases and lower facial margin. Vertex and frons uniform silver pruinose with tiny dark red-brown setae laterally along eye margins. Ocellarium prominent with a pair of long black ocellar bristles. Occiput red-gold pruinose centrally, silver pruinose adjacent to hind margins of eyes; upper occipital bristles black, directed vertically; other occipital setae mostly of moderate length, shiny silver-white. Proboscis and 2-segmented palpi yellowbrown with fine silver-white setae.

Thorax: Brown-yellow, uniformly fine silver pruinose. Postpronotal lobes with gold-yellow setae. Mesonotum with tiny gold-yellow and black setae; acrostichal setae undifferentiated; dorsocentrals weakly defined postsuturally; 1 strongish notopleural bristle accompanied by 2-3 longish black setae; 3 gold-yellow supraalars; 2 gold-yellow postalars accompanied by 1 long black seta. Scutellum with small black and gold-yellow setae on disc, 5 gold-yellow marginal bristles accompanied by shorter yellow and black setae. Anatergites with well-developed gold-yellow setae. Pleura fine silver pruinose; all setae and bristles gold-yellow. Hind margin of anepisternum with 3 well-developed gold-yellow bristles; katatergum with many long gold-yellow bristles. Postmetacoxal area membranous. Wing length 7,0 mm (from humeral crossvein to tip); venation as in Fig. 3 ; except for small narrow areas of cells br, bm, cup and a1 wing covered with microtrichia; r 1 closed and with long stalk; r 5 open; m3 closed and stalked; r-m crossvein at about one-third the distance along anterior margin of dis cal cell; membrane transparent. Legs brown-yellow; setae longish gold-yellow; hind femora without obvious distal bristles; pulvilli pale yellow, well developed.

Abdomen: First four obvious terga (1'2-5) brown with most setae short black, lateral ones gold-yellow; T6-7 yellow, all setae yellow. Gold-yellow dis cal bristles present on all terga; all terga fine gold pruinose. Sterna yellow with gold-yellow setae. Genital bulb yellowish, rotated through 90°. Genitalia (Nigerian ♂ 0' illustrated) as in Figs 15-17 ; aedeagus with three long terminal filaments.

Female: Agrees well with ♂ except for following features: Antennae entirely missing. Shiny silver scale-like facial setae limited to 2 small laterally situated groups in lower third of face; most facial setae black, of moderate length; mystacal bristles present on lower facial margin as in ♂ but 4 major central ones broken off leaving sockets. Wing 7,0 mm long; cell r 5 of left wing closed at wing margin. Genitalia as in Figs 18-19 ; cercus with acute apex. Egg (dissected from body cavity) with shape as in Fig. 20 ; surface with fine pattern of hexagonal reticulation, tiny spine-like structures present at each intersection of reticulation ( Fig. 21 ).

Variation: The Nigerian ♂ agrees in all important ways with the holotype. Minor differences are as follows: All but one scutellar bristle are black. Wing 5,5 mm long.

Material examined: ZAIRE: 1 ♂ holotype, Congo,. Walikale , 1° 25' S: 28°E [1 ° 25'S: 28°03'E], 7.i.1915, J. Bequaert ( MCZ Type 20137 ) . CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC: 1 ♀,

La Maboke (Rep. Centrafr.) [Maboke-stream 3°54'N: 17°53'E], 6.vii.1964, J. Carayon rec. ( MNP). NIGERIA: 1 ♂, W. Nigeria, Illaro Forest [lIaro Forest Reserve- 6°47'N: 3°04'E], 24.iii.1974, M. A. Comes, 4075 ( NMWC) . Distribution as in Fig. 28 .

Other recorded material: Oldroyd (1970: 235) records: 1 ♀,

' W. Kivu, Lubongola, pro Shabunda , 1939, Dr Hautman' housed in KMT. I have not seen this specimen, illustrated (head and tip of tarsus) by Oldroyd, but am confident that it was correctly identified. The locality 'Lubongola' cannot be found in available gazetteers and two places by the name of 'Shabunda' have been found [1 ° 41'S: 28°48'E & 2° 42'S: 27°20'E]; the first listed has been used to plot this record on Fig. 28 .

Figures

Fig. 1. Smeryngolaphria pallida Bromley, holotype o.

Fig. 28 Distribution of Afrotropical Smeryngolaphria species, - = S. pallida Bromley. • = S. bromleyi sp, n.

Figs 2-4. Smeryngolaphrill species, wing venation. 2. S. melanura (Wiedemann). 3. S. pa/lida Bromley. 4. S. bromleyi sp. n.

Figs 5-11. Smeryngolaphria species. 5-7. Anterior aspect of head. 5. S. me/anura (Wiedemann). 6. S. pallida Bromley. 7. S. bromleyi sp. n. 8-11. Antennae. 8-9. S. pallida Bromley. 10-11. S. bromleyi sp. n. Scale lines = 1 mm.

Figs 15-21. Smeryngolaphria pal/ida Bromley. 15-17. 0 (Nigeria, IIIaro Forest). 15. Lateral. 16. Dorsal. 17. Ventral. 18-19. 'i' (Central African Republic, La Maboke). 18. Dorsal. 19. Ventral. 20-21. Egg. 20. Outline shape. 21. Reticulated surface (diagrammatic). Note: Aspects do not take rotation into account. Scale = 1 mm.