Neozygoneura virgatoalata

Taxonavigation

Ordo: Diptera
Familia: Sciaridae
Genus: Neozygoneura

Name

Neozygoneura virgatoalata (Mohrig, 2003) – Wikispecies link – ZooBank link

Leptosciarella (Protosciarella) virgatoalata Mohrig, 2003^[1]: 8-9; fig. 4 a-e

Type material

Holotype: ♂, in PWMP, Malaise trap, leg. Gould & Janzen, 26-27.09.1986

Type locality

Costa Rica, Guanacaste Province, Santa Rosa National Park, 10.95°N, 85.62°W

Material studied

Costa Rica: 1 paratype ♂, from locus typicus, same data as holotype, PKHH 8216.

Description (male)

Head. Eye bridge 5 rows of facets. LW-index of 4^th antennal flagellar segment 3.6–4.3; neck 0.26–0.36 of segment width; Transition of basal part to neck bottle-neck like. Colour of neck unicolour. Antennal hairs longer than segment width; sparse; salient. Palps bright, or darkened; normal; palpomeres 3. First palpomere of normal shape; with 3–4 bristles; with only some sparse sensillae. Second palpomere shortly oval. Third palpomere as long as first segment. Thorax. Colour brown. Notum unicolorous. Thoracic setae normal; darkened. Mesonotum with some weaker central bristles. Posterior pronotum bare. Laterotergite bare. Legs. Colour yellow. Hind coxae of same colour as femora. Hairs on fore coxae darkened, or bright. Front tibia apically with a patch of setae. Front tibial organ bright. Front tibial organ not bordered. Tibial setae on hind legs normal, shorter than tibial width, or very strong, as long or longer longer than tibial width. Tibial spurs of equal length. Claws untoothed. Wings. Wings bicolour; reduced, with weakly developed anal lobe. Wing membrane without macrotrichia. Wing venation weak, with faint m-base. M-fork bulged. R₁ inserting clearly before base of m-fork; posterior veins bare; bM bare; r-m bare; bM:r-M 1.22–1.33; st-Cu:bM 1.05–1.4; r₁:r 0.6–0.74; C:w 0.5–0.62. Halteres dark; of normal length. Abdomen. Abdominal setae strong and dense; dorsally dark; ventrally dark. Hypopygium brighter than abdomen, or bicolour; 0.6–0.72 × longer than wide. Base of gonocoxites with normal, weak hairs; gonocoxites fused; inner margin of gonocoxites V-shaped; inner part of hypopygium bare; elongated setae on valves of hypopygium absent. Gonostylus elongate; 3.2–3.8 × longer than wide; Inner margin straight; apex tapered. Apical tooth present; 2.4–2.7 × longer than broad; strong. Awl-like setae short, or absent; below apex present. Megasetae on inner part of gonostylus absent. Whiplash-hair absent. Tegmen 0.95–1.2 × longer than broad; equally rounded; normal; Central process absent. Length of aedeagus/hypopygium 60–75 %; Aeadeagal apical structure present. Measurements. Body size 2.2–2.7 mm. Hind tibia 1.07–1.3 mm. Wing length 2–2.35 mm.

Diagnosis

Neozygoneura virgatoalata is the type species of Protosciarella. It differs from the other described species of the genus by the very strong apical tooth at the gonostyles and the patterned wings with a bulged m-fork.

DNA Barcoding

COI sequences are assigned to the following BINs:

BOLD:ACE8074 (average distance 0.31%, max. 1.29%, n=112, K2P: 2.78%)
BOLD:ACD6061 (average distance 0.00%, max. 0.00%, n=2, K2P: 2.78%),

Etymology

virgatus lat. = braided; alatus lat. = winged. No explanation given.

Ecology

Neozygoneura virgatoalata was found in large number in a dry tropical forest. It seems to be a common species.

Discussion

It is probable, that the type species of Neozygoneura, Ne. fasciatella is identical with Ne. virgatoalata. However, as the type material of Ne. fasciatella could not be studied and the diversity of this Neotropical genus is not yet known, the synonymy is not established now. In that case Neozygoneura fasciatella Lengersdorf, 1942 would be the valid name for this species.