Meuffelsia, a new genus of long-legged flies from South Africa, with a key to Afrotropical peloropeodine and allied genera (Diptera: Dolichopodidae) Author Grichanov, Igor Ya. Author Mostovski, Mike B. text African Invertebrates 2008 2008-12-31 49 2 159 159 http://www.bioone.org/doi/abs/10.5733/afin.049.0209 journal article 10.5733/afin.049.0209 2305-2562 7910334 Meuffelsia erasmusorum Grichanov , sp. n. Figs 1–6 Etymology: The species is named in honour of Thea and Cobus Erasmus, on whose property the types were collected. Description: Colour (dry paratypes ): Frons and face weakly shining bronze, brownish pollinose. Palpus and proboscis blackish brown; thorax bluish black; legs with coxae, femora and tarsi from apex of basitarsus mainly light brown; other podomeres mainly reddish yellow; abdomen black with brown sternites. Male . Head : Frons and face with black ground colour. One strong but short postvertical seta positioned far from postocular setal row; postocular setae all dark; 1 or 2 upper and 1 lower setae slightly longer than the others. Face under antennae 2× as wide as height of postpedicel. Antenna black, slightly longer than head height. Scape small, vase-like, with projecting inner angle forming distal denticle; pedicel larger, globular, with ring of short setulae and elongate apicodorsal seta; postpedicel subtriangular, as long as high at base, densely haired; stylus inserted dorsally at 2/3 from postpedicel base, 2× as long as main segments of antenna combined, shortly pubescent, with short thick segment 1 and filiform segment 2. Ratio of lengths of scape to pedicel to postpedicel to stylomere 1 to stylomere 2, 3:3:4:1:20. Palpus and proboscis yellow-brown, palpus subtriangular, with dark pubescence and dark short bristle. Thorax : With dark bristles, mesonotum blackish brown, pleura dark brown. One long and 1 short intra-alar, 1 humeral, 1 supra-alar, 2 notopleurals, 1 sutural, 1 presutural; 6 (2+4) dorsocentrals, with first slightly shorter and last slightly longer than others; 5th seta not shifted towards lateral margin; 6 or 7 pairs of biserial acrostichals extending to well-developed posterior mesonotal flattening. Upper propleuron without setae; proepisternum with 1 strong seta and 1 short hair above fore coxa. Legs : Mainly dirty yellow; mid and hind coxae, hind femur and apical segments of all tarsi distinctly brownish. Fore and mid coxae with dark anterior and apical cilia; hind coxa with 1 black bristle at middle. Fore leg without extraordinary setae; fore femur with just 1 or 2 short posteroventrals at apex; fore tibia simple, without strong setae; fore tarsus simple, with ordinary setulae. Length ratio of fore femur to tibia to tarsus (segments from first to fifth), 19:23:10:4:3:3:4. Mid femur simple, bearing 1 strong anterior subapical bristle and 1 fine posteroventral seta; mid tibia simple, with 1 very strong anterodorsal and 1 fine posterodorsal setae at basal third and 3 apical setae; no ventral setae; mid tarsus simple; segments 1–4 each with circlet of short apical spinules. Length ratio of mid femur to tibia to tarsus (segments from first to fifth), 30:31:14:5:4:3:4. Hind femur with 1 strong anterior subapical seta; hind tibia simple, with 1 strong anterior at basal 1/3, and 3 short posterodorsal, 2 or 3 very short ventral, 3 simple short apical setae, with only anterior apical seta somewhat longer, without strong dorsal subapical seta; hind tarsus simple; hind basitarsus with 1 short basoventral and 1 or 2 short apicoventral setae, with very small basal tooth posteriorly directed towards apex of hind tibia. Length ratio of hind femur to tibia to tarsus (segments from first to fifth), 35:35:15:14:6:4:5. Figs 2–6. Details of Meuffelsia erasmusorum Grichanov , sp. n. : (2) antenna; (3) wing; (4) oviscapt, dorsal aspect; (5, 6) hypopygium, left and right lateral aspects. Scale bars: 0.5 mm in Fig. 3, otherwise 0.1 mm. Wing : Entirely greyish, veins brown. Costa simple, with simple costal setulae reaching R 2+3 . Ratio of part of costa between R 2+3 and R 4+5 to that between R 4+5 and M 1+2 , 18:12. R 2+3 , R 4+5 and M 1+2 practically straight; R 2+3 and R 4+5 slightly diverging towards wing apex; R 4+5 and M 1+2 parallel in distal half. Ratio of apical to basal part of M 1+2 , 70:27. Ratio of m–cu to apical part of CuA 1 , 6:32. Crossvein m–cu somewhat weaker than adjacent longitudinal veins,forming right angles with M 1+2 and CuA 1 .Anal vein distinct,short; anal lobe developed, narrow. Lower calypter small, brownish, with short dark cilia. Haltere brown. Abdomen : Dark brown, with black hairs and marginal setae, cylindrical; sternites 2–4 large, light brown; sternites 5 and 6 small. Segment 7 short, with tergum broad and sternum reduced; segment 8 brown, large, covering about half of left lateral surface of epandrium, bearing numerous short cilia; epandrium brown, globular, asymmetrical, slightly longer than high, as wide as high, longer than tergite 5; hypopygium with rounded-ovate, densely haired cercus; hypandrium concealed, with large triangular lobe on right side at 2/3 of its length; aedeagus with small ventral subapical excavation and short thin process before excavation; ventral surface of epandrium bare; distal epandrial lobes asymmetrical, short and broad, bare, without projections; surstyli asymmetrical, with left dorsal arm half the length of right one, both broad, bearing a few short setae, and ventral arms of surstyli subequal in length, thin, directed ventrad, bearing a few short setae at apex. Measurements (mm): Body length 1.7, antenna length 0.4, wing length 1.65, wing width 0.65, hypopygium length 0.4. Female . Similar to male except lacking male secondary sexual characters; each hemitergite arcuate, narrow, with four short black setae (acanthophorites); cercus short, widened distad; anal plate broad, wider than long. Measurements (mm): Body length 1.2–1.3, antenna length 0.35, wing length 1.5, wing width 0.55. Holotype (in glycerol): ơ SOUTH AFRICA : KwaZulu-Natal : Louwsburg , Sanyati Farm , 27°34'00"S : 31°17'57"E , alt. 1090 m , 18.xii.2005 – 6.ii.2006 , Malaise trap , M. Mostovski. Paratypes : SOUTH AFRICA : KwaZulu-Natal : ^same data as holotype, but apparently teneral, with lightened and shrunken body; ơ (in glycerol) ^(on pin) Clifton Canyon , Gillitts , nr Hillcrest , 2930 Dd , 17.x.1976 , R . M. Miller & P. Stabbins . Habitat: The type specimens from Sanyati Nature Farm were collected in the primarily indigenous riverine bush ( Fig. 7 ). The surrounding vegetation includes Magic guarri ( Euclea divinorum ), Thorny elm ( Chaetachme aristata ), Flame thorn acacia ( Acacia ataxacantha ), Wild mulberry ( Trimeria grandifolia ), Pink dombeya ( Dombeya burgessiae ), Lemon thorn ( Cassinopsis ilicifolia ), Broom-cluster fig ( Ficus sur ), Waterberry ( Syzygium cordatum ), Horsewood ( Clausena anisata ), Thorny rope ( Dalbergia armata ), Climbing flatbean ( Dalbergia obovata ), Bladdernut ( Diospyros whyteana ), Silky fibre-bush ( Englerodaphne pilosa ), False assegaai ( Maesa lanceolata ), Rhus spp. , Silkybark ( Maytenus acuminata ), Turkeyberry ( Canthium inerme ), Wild pomegranate ( Burchellia bubalina ), Tree fuchsia ( Halleria lucida ), Zulu spurflower ( Plectranthus zuluensis ), Traveller’s joy ( Clematis brachiata ), Wild iris ( Dietes iridiodes ), and Wild impatiens ( Impatiens hochstetteri ). Temperatures ranged between 16–32°C during Dec. 2005 – Jan. 2006 , and the precipitation was about 350 mm . Fig. 7. Habitat at Sanyati Farm where the holotype and one of the paratypes of M. erasmusorum sp. n. were collected. (Photo courtesy Th. & C. Erasmus.) As reported by Dr R . M. Miller , the collecting site of the other two paratypes was most probably along the small river that runs down the valley with indigenous forest .