Sonderdru* aus: Bonner Zoologisde Beitrtige, Heft 4 (1969)

Three undescribed Pediciine crrrne flies
lrom the Eagtern Himalayas (Tipulidae, Diptera)
By CHARLES P. ALEXANDER"iHeft 420l196e

335

Three undescribed Pediciine crane flies

from the Eastern Himalayas (Tipulidae, Diptera)
By CHARLES P. ALEXANDER
This paper is dedicated to my dear friend Doctor Bernhard Mannheims,
distinguished student of the Diptera, on the occasion ol his sixtieth birthday.
I am highly honored to be invited to contribute a paper in commemoration of the sixtieth birthday of Bernhard Mannheims, my long timefriend and fellow student of the Dipterous families Blepharoceridae andTipulidae.
The three species discussed herewith belong to the tribe Pediciini,
smallest in number of species of the four major tribes in the vast subfamily Limoniinae. The Pediciini are chiefly Holarctic in distribution, witha few further representatives in the extreme southern hemisphere, including New Zealand, Australia, and southern South America. There arenumerous Palaearctic species, with many occurring in the Himalayas
and adjoining ranges, chiefly at moderate to higher altitudes. References
to several such species will be found in the literature cited at the conclusion of this paper. The species here discussedare from Kameng, Assam,
India, where they were collected in 1961by Dr. Fernand Schmid, to whom
I am indebted for unusually valuable materials in this group of flies.
Types of the new species are preserved in my personal collection ofWorld Tipulidae.
Nipponomyia mannheimsiano sp. n.
Thorax yellow, the praescutum, scutum and parascutella with conspicuous black markings; legs yellow, extreme tips of femora and tibiae
and the proximal three tarsal segments brown; wings patterned as in thegenus, cell C without transverse or oblique darkened lines or spots, with
about four isolated pale brown longitudinal areas; abdominal segments
conspicuously patterned with brown; male hypopygium with the elevatedlobe of dististyle bearing three or four blackened spinoid setae, interbase
long and slender, narrowed gradually into a spine.
Male. - Length about 11 mm; wing 11.5mm; antenna about 0.9 mm.
Female.- Length about 13 mm; wing 12 mm.
Rostrum above brownish bladr, sides yellowed; palpi long, black.
Antennae with scape yellow, remainder paler yellowish white; proximal
flagellar segments subcylindrical, terminal segment longer and slightly
more darkened. Head yellow, faintly tinged with brown.
2

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Ch,p.Alexande,!Bonn.

z o o l .B e i t r .

IThorax yellow, mesonotum patterned with black, including an arcuated row of four spots on posterior third of praescutum before suture;each scutal lobe at suture intensely bordered by black, with an extensive
pale brown suffusion on posterior half of lobe; parascutella with a conspicuous intensely black line, extending from the scutellum toward thewing root. Halteres pale yellow. Legs with coxae and trochantersyellow;
remainder of legs yellow, extreme tips of femora and tibiae, and proximal three tarsal segmentsbrown, outer segmentsbrownish black. Wings(fi9. 1) with the pattern usual in the genus, the subcostal yellow band
reaching the wing tip, paler beyond the stigma, bordered posteriorly bypale brown; four isolated longitudinal pale brown clouds in cell C, withthree comparable ones in basal two-thirds of cell Sc, the last above theorigin of Rs; wing disk with a pale oblique pattern that includes a linefrom Rs to vein Cu, with a comparable marking over the cord, and afurther line extending from below the stigma to vein Ms behind, the threelines together forming an N-shaped pattern; a small marginal cloud. onvein Znd A; veins light yellow, only slightly darker in the patternedareasrprearcular veins darker. Venation: r-m at or shortly before forkof Rs, vein Rz+s+npresent;
cell lst Mz long, m obliquE;rn-cu at or shortly
before fork of M.
Abdomen yellow, each intermediate tergite with four brown spots on
basal half, posterior area clear yellow, lateral borders of tergites two to
six each with a narrow black line; each sternite with a pair of separate
brown longitudinal dashes on basal half, eighth segment yellow; in male
ninth segment dark brown, styli yellowed. Male hypopygium (fig.4) withthe elevated lobe of dististyle, d, tipped with three or four blackened
spinoid setae. Interbase, i, long and slender, narrowed gradually into aterminal spine.
Holotype, 6, Bomdi La, Kameng, North East Frontier Agency, BB00feet,July 15, 1961(Schmid).
Allotopotype,?, pinned with type.
The only regional member of the genus Nippono myia Alexander thathas the pattern of the costal cell of the wing approximately as in thepresent fly is the otherwise quite distinct Nipponomyia khasiana Alexander. This is readily told by the small size, open cell Mz of. the wings,and the very different male hypopygium. The four previously describedregional members of the genus have been figured in an earlier paperby the writer (Procs.R. Ent. Soc.London [B] 36: 61-68, figs.6-9; 1967).
I take unusual pleasure in dedicating this interesting fly to Dr. Mannheims. It has been my further privilege to have named three other speciesof Tipulidae for him in earlier years, these being Tipula (Acutipula)mannheimsiana, from Assam, India (1953), Austrolimnophila (Austrolimnophila) mannheimsi, from Peru (1960), and Phyllolabis mannheimsi,
fr o m K u m ao n , In d i a (1 9 6 1 ).

Heft 420/1969

New crane flies from the Himalayas

337

Z^8',AWing venation and male hypopygium.
Figs. 1, 4. Nipponomyia mannheimsiancsp.n.; 2, 5. Pedicia (Tricyphona) kehama
sp.n.; 3, 6. Dicranoto (Rhaphidolabis)separato sp.n. (Symbols: b, basistyle; d,dististyle; g, gonapophysis;i, interbase; p, phallosome; l, ninth tergite)
2.

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C h . P .A l e x a n d e rBonn.
zool.Beitr.

Pedicia (Tricyphona) kehama sp. n.
Allied to magra; size relatively large (wing 7 mm or more); mesonotalpraescutum brownish yellow, with four conspicuous brown stripes,
posterior sclerites of notum paler brown; antennae with proximal three
flagellar segments short and crowded; legs yellowed; wings tinged withpale brown, proximal two-thirds of cell C strongly darkened, stigma uniformly pale brown, whitened spot in cell Rz conspicuous; male hypopygium with outer margin of dististyle convex.
Male. - Length about 5-5.5
1.1-1.2mm.
Female.-rlm; wing 7-7 .5 mm; antenna about

Length about 6-6.5 rrrl; wing 7-7.5 mm.

Rostrum and palpi light brown. Antennae relatively short; scapepedicel large, proximal threeyellow, the remainder brown, 1S-segmented;
flagellar segmentsshort and crowded, transverse,partially fused but withthe sutures evident; succeeding segments longer, the outer ones longcylindrical, a little shorter than their verticils. Head small, light brownish
gray.
Pronotum, including the pretergites, chiefly yellowed. Mesonotal praescutum brownish yellow with four conspicuousbrown stripes, the intermediate pair separatedby a narrow ground vitta, not attaining the suture
behind, lateral stripes broader, crossing the suture to include the scutallobes; posterior sclerites of notum yellowish brown to light brown. Pleurawith propleura yellow, mesepisternum dark brown, posterior pleurites
somewhat paler brown. Halteres with stem pale brown, base narrowly
yellowed, knob brownish bladr. Legs with fore coxae and trochanterslight yellow, remaining pairs dark brown; remainder of legs yellowed,
outer tarsal segmentsslightly darker. Wings (fig.2) tinged with pale brown,
prearcular field and proximal two-thirds of cell C strongly darkened;stigma brownish yellow, encircled. by slightly darker brown, center ofcell Rz conspicuously whitened; very narrow inconspicuousdarker brown
seams over cord, origin of Rs and outer end of cell lst Mz, extreme wing
tip darkened; veins brown. Venation: Prearcular field very short; Rz
longer than Rr*zi r-rn about opposite one-third Ra*r; cell Mt subequal toits petiotei lrr-cuat or shortly beyond fork of M.
Basal abdominal tergites obscure yellow, patterned with dark brown,
outer segmentsand hypopygium dark brown. Ovipositor very long, cerci
yellow. Male hypopygium (fig.5) with median area of posterior borderof tergite, l, strongly produced into a semioval lobe, lateral arms slender,
their tips frayed. Basistyle, b, with interbase, i, a pale flattened blade,narrowed at apex into a small point. Dististyle, d, partly connate withthe basistyle, appearing as a stout lobe that narrows slightly outwardly,
apex obliquely truncate. Phallosome with gonapophyses appearing as

Heft 42011969

New crane flies from the Himalayas

flattened blades, apex of each with four or five strong erect reddish
bristles.
Holotype, 6, Bomdi La, Kameng, North East Frontier Agency, 8800
feet, July 11-15, 1961 (Schmid). Allotopotype, ?, pinned with type.
Paratopotypes,3 6 6, 1 ?, with the types.
The specific name, kehama, was suggested by Robert Southey's epic
poem, "The curse of Kehama", 1810. The closest relative is Pedicia(Tricyphona) magra (Alexander), formerly placed in the subgenus
Rhaphidolabino Alexander of. Dicranota Zetterstedt. The larger size andcoloration of the wings readily separatesthe present fly.
Dicra.nota (Rhaphidolabis) separata sp. n.
General coloration of body brown or brownish black, praescutum withthree darker stripes; antennae short, 13-segmented;legs brownish black;wings subhyaline, vein Sc short; male hypopygium with posterior borderof tergite bearing two widely separated lobules, the intervening central
area slightly convex; basistyle with two slightly separated apical lobes,
with groups of blackened spinoid setae; dististyle a broad pale blade, its
basal lobe with abundant short yellow setulae.
Male. - Length about 3.8-4 mm; wing 4.8-5.2 mm; antenna about
0.5-0.6 mm.
Rostrum dark brown, palpi biad<. Antennae l3-segmented, short, blad<throughout; proximal flagellar segments long-oval, the outer ones shorter.
Head dark brown.
Pronotum dark brown. Mesonotal praescutum with three nearly confluent dark brown stripes, the central one broad, sides paler brown;
remainder of notum and the pleura almost uniformly dark brown tobrownish black, metapleural region more yellowish brown. Halteres withstem pale, the large knobs darker. Legs with coxae and trochanters darkbrown, remainder of legs brownish black. Wings (fi9.3) subhyaline tofaintly tinted, stigma pale brown; veins light brown. Venation: Sc short,Scr ending about opposite one-third the length of the strongly arcuatedRs; R ll2shorter than Rz; Rz+3+4 nearly three times the basal section of
R s im - c u a t n e a r o n e -th i rd Ms+1 .
Abdomen brownish bladr, hypopygium slightly paler. Male hypopygium (fi9.6) with the tergite, f, distinctive, posterior border with slender
lateral arms, the broad intervening space with two widely separated
lobules, each provided with a few weak setae, the central space slightly
convex. Basistyle, b, with two slightly separated apical lobes, each withblackened spinoid setae, together with a more basal group of somewhat
longer setae; interbase, i, very long, curved, apex truncate. Dististyle, d,

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zool. Beitr.

including an outer lobe with abundant short yellow setulae and a broad
pale outer blade with sparselonger setae.
Holotype, 6, Lifakpo, Kameng, North East Frontier Agency, 3100 feet,
March 15, 1961(Schmid).Paratopotypes,5 d d on three pins.
Other regional species having unpatterned wings and short vein Sc
include Dicranota (Rhaphido,lobis) brachyneura Alexander, D. (R.)
khumyarae Alexander, and D. (R.) perproducta Alexander, all differingfrom the present fly in hypopygial characters, the most evident being
the arrangement of the lobules on the posterior border of the tergite.

Literature
Alexander,
C . P . : N e w s p e c i e so f J a p a n e s ec r a n e - f l i e s- P a r t I V ( D i p t e r a ,Tipulidae). Insec. Inscit. Menst., 12: 158-159; 1924.Description of Nipponomyia.
- Records and descriptions of JapaneseTipulidae (Diptera), Part VI. Philippine
Jour. Sci.,86: 281-330, I plates,with 66 figures; 1958.
- New or little-known Tipulidae from Eastern Asia (Diptera), XLIX. Philippine
Jour. Sci.,90: t55-214,6 plates,with 76 figures; 1961.
- Classification and synonymy of the crane-flies described by Enrico Brunetti(Diptera: Families Ptychopteridae,Trichoceridae and Tipulidae). Rec. IndianM u s . , 5 9 : 19 -3 4 ; 1 9 6 3 .
New or little-known species of exotic Tipulidae (Diptera). VIII. Proc. R. Ent.
Soc.London, (B) 29: 160-164, 10 figures; 1960.
The same.IX. Ibid., (B) 30: 167-172, 12 figures; 1961.
The same.X. Ibid., (B) 32: 25-31, 11 figures; 1963.
T h e s a m e.X I. Ib i d ., (B ) 3 3 : 1 5 1 - 156, 13 figur es;1964.
The same.XII. Ibid., (B) 34: 98-104, 16 figures; 1965.
The same.XIII. Ibid., (B) 35: 65-71, l5 figures; 1966.
The same.XIV. Ibid., (B) 36: 61-68, 16 figures; 1967.
Anschrift des Verfassers:ProfessorEmeritus Dr. Charles P. Alexander, University
Amherst, Massachusetts,U.S.A.
of Massachusetts,