Psilota zophos Young, 2020

Young, Andrew D., Skevington, Jeffrey H. & Steenis, Wouter Van, 2020, Revision of the Psilota Meigen, 1822 flower flies (Diptera: Syrphidae) of Australia, Zootaxa 4737 (1), pp. 1-127 : 94

Psilota zophos Young sp. nov.

(Species plate: Fig. 39 ; Genitalia: Fig. 47 A–B; Map: Fig. 66B )

Diagnosis: Very similar to P. femoralis , differing in abdomen colour and male genitalia. Face black, densely grey pollinose, with white pile. Thorax black. Hind femur with a distinct rounded apicoventral setulose carina. Hind tibia with basoventral spur. Calypter with dark brown border. Halter orange-brown to dark brown. Abdomen black, with faint metallic blueish-green sheen. Outer lobe of surstylus only slightly curved back towards base of surstylus at apex. Body length: 7.9–13.6 mm.

Description: MALE Head: Head black, face densely grey pollinose. Face white pilose, frons and vertex black pilose. Scape and pedicel orange-brown, postpedicel brown. Postpedicel oval, approximately 1.5 times as long as wide. Eye densely white pilose. Thorax: Thorax black. Legs mostly black, with extreme apices of femora and most of tibiae orange-brown. Hind femur with a distinct rounded apicoventral setulose carina. Hind tibia with a basoventral spur. Pleuron densely grey pollinose. Pile on pleuron white. Pile on scutum and scutellum mostly black, with some shorter yellow hairs on the scutum. Wing colourless, bare on anterior half of cells bm and cua. Cells c, dm, r 1 with small bare patches at base. Alula completely microtrichose. Halter orange-brown to dark brown. Calypter with border dark brown. Abdomen: Abdomen black, with faint metallic blueish-green sheen. Tergite 2 mostly white pilose, with posterior fifth black pilose. Tergite 3 white pilose anteriorly, black pilose posteriorly. Tergite 4 with mixed black and white pile. Sternites black, and white pilose. Genitalia: Epandrium compact, about as long as tall. Cercus approximately triangular. Outer lobe of surstylus inserted just below mid-height of inner lobe, curved downwards on basal third, with apex of lobe thickened and slightly curved backwards towards base of surstylus. Inner lobe of surstylus more strongly broadened over entire length, with apex rounded. Ejaculatory apodeme with small ventral projection. Gonostylus not darkened.

FEMALE: Identical except for normal sexual dimorphism.

Etymology: The specific epithet zophos is derived from Greek, meaning “darkness, or gloom”. This is in reference to the gloomy black colouration of this species.

Specimens examined: HOLOTYPE: AUSTRALIA: Western Australia: Cape Le Grand Nat Park ; -33.966667

122.116667; 11.I.1987; G. and A. Daniels, GDCBReg_19526, (1♂, AM). PARATYPES: Western Australia: 3 km N of Hopetoun , -33.916667 120.133333, 13.i.1987, G. and A. Daniels, GDCBReg_19728 (1♂, GDCB) ; 5 mi. E.

of Nornalup, -35.004314 116.880339, 8.x.1970, D.H. Colless, USNM_ ENT_00249825 (1♂, USNM); same data as holotype, GDCBReg_19525; GDCBReg19523 (2♀♀, GDCB) ; Cape Le Grand Nat. Park , -33.966667 122.116667, hilltop, 10.i.1987; 12.i.1987, G. and A. Daniels; C.J. Burwell, GDCBReg_19521 (2♂♂, GDCB, QM) ; Yallingup, -33.694952 115.044812, 14.ix–31.x.1913, R.E. Turner, Jeff _ Skevington _ Specimen 43911 (1♂, BMNH) ; Kelmscott, -32.104082 116.030021, x.1958, J. Baldwin, SAMA29003350 , SAMA29003354 (2♀♀, SAMA) .

Discussion: Nothing is known about the biology of this species.

Figures

FIGURE 39. P. zophos sp. nov., A) male dorsal habitus, B) male anterolateral face, C) male lateral habitus. Scale bar =1 mm.

FIGURE 47. Lateral and dorsal male genitalia of A, B) P. zophos sp. nov.; posterior view of metafemur of C) P. nigripila sp. nov.; d) P. auripila (Macquart). Scale bar =1 mm.

FIGURE 66. Known range of A) P. xanthostoma sp. nov.; B) P. zophos sp. nov.