New species of Gymnochiromyia Hendel, 1933 (Diptera: Schizophora: Chyromyidae) from Southern Africa
Author
Ebejer, M. J.
Research Associate, Entomology Section, Department of Biodiversity & Systematic Biology, Amgueddfa Cymru National Museum Wales, Cathays Park, Cardiff, CF 10 3 NP, UK
martin.ebejer@btinternet.com
text
African Invertebrates
2008
2008-06-30
49
1
77
77
http://www.bioone.org/doi/abs/10.5733/afin.049.0102
journal article
10.5733/afin.049.0102
5ea004d3-b10b-47bf-aeae-575e2fa44bcb
2305-2562
7649425
Genus
Gymnochiromyia
Hendel, 1933
Gymnochiromyia
Hendel, 1933: 43
.
Type
species:
Peletohila minima
Becker, 1904
(=
Antophilina flavella
Zetterstedt, 1848
), by designation of Hendel.
Diagnosis: The following combination of characters not previously noted by earlier workers separates
Gymnochiromyia
with greater confidence from other genera in the family. The
ocp
is flat or concave when viewed from above. This character is shared with other genera including
Aphaniosoma
, but not
Chyromya
. The disc of the
ocp
is entirely or largely bare, quite unlike
Chyromya
which is strongly setose. Only
Aphaniosoma
has an intrahumeral seta or setula and this is usually incurved.
Gymnochiromyia
usually has no
pra
and no posterior
ia
; these are present separately or together in some other genera.
Gymnochiromyia
has oval eyes with the longest axis positioned horizontally or only slightly obliquely (
Chyromya
has round eyes;
Aphaniosoma
and undescribed genera have very obliquely placed oval eyes). The frons in most species of
Gymnochiromyia
protrudes above the antennae so that it is clearly visible in profile, often markedly so and thus, in most species, the head is longer above than it is below. In
Aphaniosoma
, an apicoventral seta on the mid tibia is always clearly longer than the diameter of the tibia at apex. This seta may be present in
Somatiosoma
and a closely related undescribed genus, but it does not exceed the diameter of the tibia and is generally less conspicuous. It is absent in
Chyromya
and
Gymnochiromyia
. There are only two exceptions to this combination of character states. In the species treated below,
G
.
pretoriella
and
G
.
maculipennis
have a weak
pra
(in the latter species it is only present in the
holotype
). None of the Palaearctic species of
Gymnochiromyia
has a
pra
. In all other respects these two species fit in
Gymnochiromyia
.
Description:
Head
(
Fig. 6
): Predominantly yellow,
fr
protruding beyond anterior eye margin, sides converging towards antennae; gena wide with rounded lower margin, vibrissal angle poorly differentiated; face depressed, poorly sclerotised, except for a narrow median line, carina never properly developed although this sclerotised median line may give the impression in some specimens that a shallow carina exists;
ocp
flat to concave when viewed from above, in profile usually barely visible behind eye margin, on lower part, behind gena with a distinct pale seta directed downwards; chaetotaxy: 3 welldeveloped
orb
, anterior inclinate; 1 strong
vti
and 1 strong
vte
,
oc
divergent,
pvt
distinct and convergent or crossed;
fr
, across middle, often with very fine pale setulae, short setulae also on post
oc
margin, but none on disc of
ocp
; gena finely, but distinctly setulose; 2 to 3 short vibrissal setulae. Antenna with round third segment, first and second segments short, latter with seta dorsally; arista 3-segmented, usually bare, sometimes very short pubescent.
Thorax
: Ground colour predominantly yellow;
msn
with or without stripes;
mtn
often dark; pleura sometimes with brown on
stpl
and
hypl
; chaetotaxy: 1–2
hu
, 1
psthu
, 0+1 to 1+4
dc
,
acrs
in 4–8 rows with a strong prescut pair, 1
sa
and 1
pa
, 2
ntpl
,
ia
and
pra
usually absent, if a posterior
ia
present this is always shorter than prescutellar
acrs
; 1
mspl
at middle of hind margin and 1
stpl
at upper posterior corner, pteropleurals absent.
Wing (
Fig. 1
): Hyaline (pigmented patch in one species), uniformly microtrichose except for basal half of subcostal cell; costa broken at weakly sclerotised humeral crossvein and at R 1; subcosta merges with R 1 just before this reaches costa; veins R 4+5 and M 1+2 parallel to wing margin or very slightly convergent; costa ends almost exactly at end of vein R 4+5; costal setulae very short and of uniform length, sometimes a few setulae are longer than others at base of wing along anterior edge just before R 1 merges with costa; mixed in randomly amongst the pale costal setulae are darker and thicker setulae appearing as minute spines, reminiscent of the costa of
Heleomyzidae
; 6–12 dark setulae set at intervals along dorsal aspect of costa between R 1 and apex of R 2+3.
Legs: Yellow and short setulose except front femur where longer posterodorsal and posteroventral setae may be present; mid tibia never with long apicoventral seta; claws black in apical half or more, pulvilli normal.
Abdomen
: Predominantly yellow in most species; sparse short setulose on all segments; tergites well sclerotised;
st
from poorly sclerotised to wholly membraneous and very thinly and microscopically setulose.
Male postabdomen:
tg
6 distinct from
ep
, but narrower than
tg
5 and ventral margin may be narrowed almost to a point; pregenital
st
not modified;
prg
always distinct and most often distinctly setulose, fused to hypandrium or joined to it by a short membrane, never with an intermediate sclerite;
psg
and
bac scl
not always discernible, but in those species where these structures have been identified, they are small and simple when compared to other genera;
ej apd
often sclerotised and tubule to basiphallus sometimes visible; distiphallus usually large and of complicated structure, mostly membranous, but with several sclerotised plates; cercus always small, narrowly separated and finely setulose; surstylus usually separated from
ep
.
Female postabdomen: Segment 8 with only
st
sclerotised and in most species this is divided into two lateral plates; subanal plate (
sap
) present, small, poorly sclerotised and often with very fine setulae on minute papillae; supra-anal plate not developed; 2 small (
0.04–0.07 mm
) spermathecae dark coloured (grey, brown or black) lying deep to lateral aspect of
tg
6 or 7; spermathecal ducts not sclerotised or pigmented.
Length
:
♂
and
♀1.2
–2.2 mm
; wing 1.2–2.0 mm.