Scipopus (Parascipopus) Lindsay & Marshall 2023, subgen. nov.
Creators: name: Lindsay, Kate
name: Marshall, Stephen A.
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2023
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Diptera
Micropezidae
Scipopus

description: Scipopus (Parascipopus) subgen. nov.
urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act: 75B16026-19C0-4736-9B53-7C2715029568
Type species
Calobata manifesta Wulp, 1897: 370.
Diagnosis
Scipopus (Parascipopus) is differentiated from other subgenera in Scipopus s. lat. by a shiny, clearly delineated orbital plate and a strongly tapered anterior frontal vitta (except in S. (Pa.) fenestratus sp. nov., the most basal species of the group, which can be recognized by the absence of the apical scutellar seta, a character state only occurring in some species of S. (Parascipopus) and not found elsewhere in Scipopus s. lat.). The single spermathecal duct arises from a rugose common spermathecal duct extending beyond the bursa copulatrix, or from the side of a smooth paired duct. The distal distiphallus is usually long and narrow but is absent in S. (Pa.) alturas sp. nov. Scipopus (Phaeopterina) fraudator sp. nov. has all of the external diagnostic character states of S. (Parascipopus) but is resolved as S. (Phaeopterina) on a molecular phylogeny and differs from S. (Parascipopus) by the single and paired spermathecal ducts arising separately from the bursa. This species can be further distinguished from similar species of S. (Parascipopus) by the presence of apical scutellar setae and other characters in the key.
Description
LENGTH. 10–15 mm.
COLOUR. Varies widely between species.
HEAD. Antenna orange to black. Palpus narrow or wide (length 3.0–5.0× height) and nearly parallel-sided, rounded or pointed apically, setulose and pale microtrichose. Clypeus short, 1.7–2.4× as wide as high, orange and/or brown, or black, white microtrichose on entire surface. Frontal vitta dull microtrichose, strongly pointed or ending in a rounded point posteriorly (Fig. 43D) (except in S. (Pa.) fenestratus sp. nov.); orbital plate shiny and clearly delineated (Fig. 43A) (except in S. (Pa.) fenestratus). Epicephalon shiny, wide (width ⅔ or more of upper frontal vitta width at inner verticals), clearly delineated from upper frontal vitta, bare. Paracephalon shiny. Head chaetotaxy always including inner vertical, postocellar, and 1–2 lower fronto-orbital setae; outer vertical and upper fronto-orbital setae present or absent.
THORAX. Mesothorax tapered anteriorly. Thorax stout or elongate (length/height ≥ 0.93). Cervical sclerite subquadrate, often slightly convex. Anterior edge of mesonotum vertical, scutum relatively flat (Fig. 39F). Postpronotal lobe distinct, raised, approximately parallelogram-shape, elongate (length ~3.0–4.0 × height). Scutellum with or without two long, strong apical setae (2.0× length of scutellum) and 0–3 pairs of short, lateral discal setulae.
WING. Uniformly black-brown infuscate, or with preapical hyaline spots, or hyaline with apical and/or discal infuscation.
ABDOMEN (J+ ♀). T1 with fine, white, yellow, black or dark brown setae, remainder of abdomen with short dark brown or black setulae. Pleuron orange, off-white or pale grey, usually with darker orange or dark brown on dorsal half of P2–6.
FEMALE ABDOMEN. T1+2 2.2–3.0× length of T3. Oviscape variable in dimensions but tapered distally, sparsely covered in short black setulae and white microtrichose basally. Common spermathecal duct arising from apex of bursa, roughly textured and ranging from very short (⅛ of entire duct length) (Fig. 38C) to long (½ of entire duct length) (Fig. 36A), clearly delineated from paired duct. Paired spermathecal duct smooth, usually narrow (Fig. 39E), strongly swollen distally in S. (Pa.) kubus sp. nov. (Fig. 38C). Paired spermathecal stem usually swollen, often sinuate, limit between end of stem and beginning of spermatheca usually not clearly delineated. Single spermathecal duct arising from either base or distal half of common duct, or base of paired duct, smooth and narrow, swollen distally, single spermatheca usually smaller than paired, bulb- or finger-like.
MALE ABDOMEN. T1+2 1.4–3.0 × length of T3. Genital fork arm with inner basal process, length and shape of arm and process variable. Epandrium elongate (length ~2.0 × height). Basiphallus small, usually frame-like or crescent-shaped when viewed ventrally. Basal distiphallus very short (⅓ epandrium length) to long (≈ epandrium length), ending in phallic bulb. Phallic bulb approximately round and small (Fig. 42E) to large and irregular or ovoid (Fig. 41E). Distal distiphallus (absent in S. (Pa.) alturas sp. nov.) short to long, usually narrow (Fig. 43E). Phallapodeme narrow or broad, usually expanded apically (Fig. 36D). Ejaculatory apodeme varying in size, usually with a fan-like apodeme attached to a bulbous sperm pump (Fig. 36D).
description: Published as part of Lindsay, Kate & Marshall, Stephen A., 2023, A revision of Scipopus Enderlein including the subgenera Scipopus s. str., Phaeopterina Frey and Parascipopus subgen. nov. (Diptera, Micropezidae, Taeniapterinae), pp. 1-189 in European Journal of Taxonomy 904 on pages 85-86, DOI: 10.5852/ejt.2023.904.2323, http://zenodo.org/record/10123238