Swammerdamella grogani, Huerta, Herón & Ibáñez-Bernal, Sergio, 2008

Huerta, Herón & Ibáñez-Bernal, Sergio, 2008, New records of Scatopsidae (Diptera) from southeastern Mexico, and descriptions of new species of Swammerdamella Enderlein and Colobostema Enderlein, Zootaxa 1720, pp. 57-65 : 62-64

Swammerdamella grogani sp. nov.

( Figs. 13–17 )

Type material. HOLOTYPE male, labeled: MEXICO, Yucatan, Ria Lagartos Reserve, Municipio Tizimin, 1 km E Biological Station El Cuyo (21º 30’ 35” N, 87º 40’ 43” W), mangrove, 8-VII-1996, Malaise trap, HH, PMS, RPR, cols. ALLOTYPE female. Labeled: MEXICO, Yucatan, Reserve Ria Celestun, coastal dune (20º 54’ 46” N, 90º 22’ 49” W), 14-19-VII-1998, NTP trap, CNC, RPR, cols.

Description. Male. Head: Eyes with interfacet pubescence; narrowly separated medially by 4–5 facet diameters. Antennae brown with 7 flagellomeres, with abundant sensillae; distal flagellomere club-shaped, length 0.06 mm; flagellomeres 1–7 length 0.18 mm. Maxillary palpus brown, length 0.083 mm. Thorax: brown, scutum covered with sparsely short setae; supra-alar setae 10; anterior spiracular sclerite with 26 setae; anepisternum with 16 setae. Legs brownish; all femora and front and mid tibiae uniformly brown; hindtibia with basal brown band until midlength, the rest pale brown; all tarsi pale brown and claws strongly curved; empodia present. Wing length 0.97 mm, width 0.46 mm; membrane densely micropilose on whole surface ( Fig. 13 ). Veins R1 and R4+5 with irregularly arranged rows of short setae on dorsal surface ( Fig. 14 ); fork of M typical of the genus; CuA1 and CuA2 not reaching wing margin, CuA2 curved; false vein present. Halter brown, with two setae on stem. Abdomen: tergite and sternite 6 unmodified; tergite 6 length 0.20 mm, width 0.26 mm; tergite 7 length 0.11 mm, width 0.15 mm ( Figs. 15–16 ), concave bearing a large median distally pointed spine-like process, and with a shorter upper process with sclerotized tip slightly expanded and truncate; sternite 7 length 0.15 mm; width 0.24 mm, anterior margin heavily sclerotized with shallow caudomedian excavation; a pair of spiracles on lateral lobes; coloration pattern and setae as figured. Intersegmental membrane with lateral groups of not specialized setae, and small horny projections in the middle; aedeagal plate spatulate, longer that wide, apically rounded; aedeagal-parameral complex with setose lateral arms anterolaterally directed; distinctive median process acute and convergent ( Figs. 17 ) (penis valve of Cook, 1956a); lateral lobes setose, slightly developed (gonocoxite of Cook, 1956a); distal portion arquate, pointed apically.

Female. Similar to male, but with the usual gender differences. Antennae brown with 7 flagellomeres, covered with abundant sensillae; distal flagellomere club-shaped; flagellomeres 1–7 length 0.13 mm. Maxillary palpus brown, length 0.10 mm. Wing length 0.97 mm; width 0.45 mm; membrane densely micropilose on entire surface. Veins R1 and R4+5 with irregularly arranged rows of short setae on dorsal surface. Tergite 8 band-shaped with the pair of spiracles; sternite 8 divided in two lateral lobes; sternite 9 apically rounded and situated between the lobes of sternite 8; genital fork triangular shaped; cerci small; spermatheca spherical, length 0.07 mm.

Comments. This Mexican new species closely resembles Swammerdamella obtusa Cook and S. pusilla (Walker) by the segment 7 of male. The Mexican species has the tergite 7 concave, bearing a shorter upper process with sclerotized tip slightly expanded and distally truncate; sternite 7 has anterior margin heavily sclerotized with a shallow caudomedian excavation and a pair of spiracles located laterally to lobes; in other species these characteristics are different. Another difference is that S. obtusa Cook and S. pusilla (Walker) have a modified tergite 6, while in S. grogani sp.nov. is simple. Other similar Neotropical species is S. glochis Cook , with a pair of spiracles located laterally on sternite 7, but without lateral lobes. Swammerdamella approximata Edwards (1924) has the tarsi white, except for the last one or two blackish tarsomeres, while S. grogani sp.nov. present a different pattern. The male terminalia are similar to other species, but some differences can be seen in the gonocoxite and the aedeagal plate. As pointed out by Cook (1956a:17), the male terminalia are small, and homologies are quite obscure. Maes (1993) referred an unidentified species of Swammerdamella Enderlein from Nicaragua.

Distribution. Mexico (Yucatan).

Etymology. This species is named in honor of Dr. William L. Grogan Jr., Salisbury State University, Maryland ( USA), for his important contribution to the world knowledge of the family Ceratopogonidae .

Figures

FIGURES 10 – 13. Fig. 10: Parascatopse flavida Cook, male genitalia, ventral aspect. Fig. 11: Parascatopse sp., male genitalia, ventral aspect. Fig. 12: Thripomorpha chaboti Haenni & Rapp, male genitalia, ventral aspect. Fig. 13: Swammerdamella grogani sp. nov., male wing, dorsal aspect. Scales in millimeters.

FIGURES 14 – 17. Swammerdamella grogani sp. nov. Fig. 14: Anterior veins of wing, dorsal aspect. Figs. 15 – 16: Segment 7, ventral aspect. Fig. 17: Genitalia, ventral aspect. Scales in millimeters.