Stipomorpha zophera, Reemer, Menno, 2013

Reemer, Menno, 2013, Taxonomic exploration of Neotropical Microdontinae (Diptera: Syrphidae) mimicking stingless bees, Zootaxa 3697 (1), pp. 1-88 : 75

Stipomorpha zophera spec. nov.

Figs 225–227 , 251 .

Studied type specimens. HOLOTYPE. FRENCH GUYANA. Male. Label 1: " FRENCH GUIANA / Montagnes Tortue / 4°15.007'N 52°21.512'W / leg. V. Soon 11.01.2003 "; label 2 (red): " HOLOTYPE / Stipomorpha zophera / M. Reemer". Coll. RMNH.

PARATYPES: FRENCH GUYANA: 1 male same locality & leg. as holotype, but with date 9.IX.2002; 1 male, Kaw Mountains, 04°32.893'N- 52°10.245'W, 8.XII.2002, leg. V. Soon, coll. RMNH.

Additionally studied specimens. ECUADOR: 1 male, Napo, Limoncocha, 15.VI.1977, leg. P.J. Spangler & D.R. Givens, coll. USNM. GUYANA: 1 male, Mazaruni-Potaro District, Takutu Mountains, 6°15'N, 59°5'W, 9.XII.1983, leg. W.E. Steiner, coll. USNM.

Description (based on holotype)

Adult male. Body size: 7 mm.

Head. Face occupying 1/4 of head width in frontal view; shining yellow with a blackish brown median stripe from antennal fossa to slightly below middle; face with yellow pilosity, replaced by longer black setae around oral margin, except bare on median stripe. Gena brown. Occiput black; black pilose dorsally, getting white laterally and ventrally. Oral cavity with lateral margins not produced. Frons and lunula black, short black pilose, except for bare triangular part posterior to lunula. Vertex black; black pilose. Eye very sparsely and short pilose, with pili about as long as ommati diameter, appearing bare under low magnification. Antennal fossa about as wide as high. Antenna brown; scape and pedicel dark pilose; antennal ratio 6:1:8; basoflagellomere with apical 1/3 clearly narrower than basal 2/3, with sensory pit located at about 3/5 from base, within a vague groove; arista slender, about 3/5 of length of basoflagellomere, very shortly pilose, appearing bare under low magnification.

Thorax. Scutum black; black pilose, except for medially interrupted fascia of yellow pile along transverse suture. Postpronotum and postalar callus pale brown; black pilose. Scutellum brown; black pilose.

Anepisternum more or less flat, black pilose anterodorsally, bare posteriorly. Anepimeron black pilose dorsally. Katepisternum and katepimeron bare. Calypter grey, halter yellowish.

Wing: hyaline; microtrichose except bare along vein RS on basal part of cell r1, entirely on cell br, on basal 4/ 5 of cell bm, anterobasal 1/4 of cell cup, basomedially on alula.

Legs: brownish black, except anterior four tarsi yellow and hind tarsi with last three tarsomeres yellowish brown. Legs black pilose, except hind coxa and trochanter mixed black and white pilose. Pile on metatibia a little longer than half the width of the tibia. First tarsomere of posterior tarsus as long as 2/5 of length of metatibia, a little wider than apex of tibia, twice as long as wide (dorsal view).

Abdomen. Blackish brown. Second segment wider than thorax, widest point at half the length; third and fourth tergites strongly narrowing. Tergites pale pilose, except tergites 1 and 2 laterally black pilose. Sternite 1 bare, other sternites pilose. Genitalia as in fig. 251.

Female. Unknown.

Etymology. The specific epithet zophera (Gr., dusky, gloomy) refers to the dark colour of this species.

Diagnosis. From other Stipomorpha- species with a black thorax, S. zophera can be recognized by the following characters: face largely yellow with narrow median brown stripe, basoflagellomere longer than scape, alula partly bare, anepisternum black pilose anterodorsally, bare posteriorly, katepisternum bare, structure of male genitalia.

Very similar to S. inarmata , from which it differs by: basoflagellomere longer than scape, anterior part of anepisternum black pilose, front- and mid-tibiae black pilose,

Notes. According to the label, the studied specimen from Guyana was collected "at blacklight in forest clearing near streams".

Distribution. Known from Ecuador, Guyana and French Guyana.

Figures

FIGURES 222 – 232. 222 – 224. Stipomorpha wheeleri. 222. male (paratype), head frontal. 223. female (holotype), habitus dorsal; 224. female (holotype); habitus lateral. 225 – 227. Stipomorpha zophera male (holotype). 225. habitus dorsal; 226. habitus lateral; 227. head frontal. 228 – 229. Stipomorpha, tergites 1 & 2 dorsal. 228. S. mendax; 229. S. mixta. 230 – 232. Stipomorpha, male genitalia lateral. 230. S. apicula (holotype); 231. S. elcopala (holotype); 232. S. fallax (holotype).

FIGURES 246 – 251. Stipomorpha, male genitalia latera. 246. S. simillima (holotype); 247. S. spuria (holotype); 248. S. tenuicauda (Bolivia, coll. RMNH); 249. S. trigoniformis (holotype); 250. S. wheeleri (paratype); 251. S. zophera (holotype).