Suragina zombaensis Muller 2024, sp. nov.
Creators: name: Muller, Burgert S.
name: Swart, Vaughn R.
name: Snyman, Louwrens P.
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2024
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Diptera
Athericidae
Suragina
Suragina zombaensis

description: Suragina zombaensis Muller sp. nov.
Figs 35, 36, 54, 72, 74, 87
Type material examined.
Holotype: Malawi • 1 ♂; Zomba; 1535 Ad; [15°23.00'S, 35°20.00'E]; 24–27 Nov. 1980; J. G. H. Londt & B. R. Stuckenberg leg.; (NMSA - DIP 158422).
Paratypes: 3 ♂ 4 ♀; Same data as holotype; (♂: NMSA - DIP 158420, 158421, 158450; ♀: NMSA - DIP 158417, 158418, 158419, 158451) • 1 ♀; Ntchisi Forest reserve; 1334 Ac; 13°22.00'S, 34°00.00'E]; 1500 masl; 3–4 Dec. 1980; J. G. H. Londt & B. R. Stuckenberg leg.; Montane forest, woodland; (NMSA - DIP 158415).
Holotype and paratypes deposited in NMSA.
Diagnosis.
Suragina zombaensis Muller, sp. nov. has its thorax almost entirely brown with bluish-grey pruionosity, the scutellum with apical margin yellow. The males and females are similarly coloured (Figs 35, 36), except for the males having the lateral margins of tergites 3 and 4 yellow compared to dark brown in the female. Tergite 2 in both sexes has dark vitta medially, flanked by brownish-yellow colouration, giving it a fenestrated appearance. The wing of S. zombaensis Muller, sp. nov. is most similar to that of S. dimidiatipennis, being brown suffused on apical half (Fig. 54 vs Fig. 43). Suragina zombaensis Muller, sp. nov. (Figs 35, 36), however, differs from S. dimidiatipennis (Fig. 18) in being a much darker species, with mostly dark abdominal tergites with grey dusted apical margins, compared to S. dimidiatipennis having a mostly orange-yellow to brown abdomen without any dark markings. Suragina freidbergi Muller, sp. nov. is also similar to S. zombaensis Muller, sp. nov. (see S. freidbergi Muller, sp. nov. diagnosis).
Description.
Measurements (♂ n = 2, ♀ n = 2): Wing span: ♂ 7.7–8.7 mm (avg. 8.2 mm); ♀ 8.7–9.8 mm (avg. 9.3 mm); body length: ♂ 8.3–10.5 mm (avg. 9.4 mm); ♀ 8.9–9.6 mm (avg. 9.2 mm); wing span to body length ratio (avg.): ♂ 0.97; ♀ 0.99.
Male (Fig. 35).
Head: Blackish-brown ground colour, with bluish-grey pruinosity on majority of head; eye bare; holoptic; ommatidia on lower and upper quarter of eye smaller than those on rest of eye; lateral edge of eye with slight indentation, and an apparent tubercle next to indentation; ocellar tubercle barely visible in profile, blackish-brown in colour with slight brownish- to bluish-grey pruinosity and short dark setulae; vertex blackish-brown with bluish-grey pruinosity and long dark setulose; anterior ocellus larger than posterior pair; ocellar tubercle in front of dorsal margin of eye, not placed as deeply towards middle of head as in ♀; dorsal inner edge of eye abutting ocellar tubercle; occiput with same bluish-grey pruinosity as rest of head; paired narrow subrectangular black markings with short dark setulae on upper occiput, widening only slightly towards lateral margin of head in some specimens, abutting posterior margin of eyes, flanking vertex; upper occiput with pale setulae; lower occiput with long pale setulae, these continue ventrally on head to mouthparts that have similar long ventral setulae; frons bluish-grey pruinose, velvety-black from ocellar tubercle to before lower half of eye when viewed anteriorly, when viewed anteroventrally entire frons appears blackish-brown with a slight velvety appearance; frons widening from where eyes touch down to antennal base; frons with long dark setulae (setulae can appear pale depending on viewing angle); face and gena bluish-grey, lateral margins of face with long pale setulae, gena with long dark setulae; clypeus dark brown with bluish-grey pruinosity, bare; face separated anteriorly from clypeus by a deep transverse suture, similar to lateral sutures; face not appearing to bulge laterally when viewed in profile; clypeus visible in profile, face not; antennal bases separated ca 0.7 × width of scape, with slight longitudinal groove running between; scape dark brown and pedicel orange-brown, both with silvery pruinosity; 1 st flagellomere orange-yellow, with sparse silvery pruinosity; 2 nd flagellomere dark brown; scape 1.5 × length of pedicel; 1 st flagellomere reniform, ca 1.5 × size of pedicel; 2 nd flagellomere arista-like; pedicel with dark dorsal and ventral setulae, similar in size, scape with only dark dorsal setulae; palpus orange-yellow with dense bluish-grey pruinosity, with dark setulae throughout; palpus ca 0.5 × length of proboscis; proboscis slightly shorter than head height; proboscis brown to dark brown in colour, prementum brown, proboscis with long pale setulae basoventrally and dark setulae on rest of ventral and dorsal surfaces, except for short pale setulae apically.
Thorax: Scutum brown, mostly with short dark setulae, with two dorsocentral whitish-brown pruinose vittae running from posterior half of postpronotal lobes to transverse suture; prescutellar area bluish-grey pruinose; pronotum brown with bluish-grey pruinosity and short pale setulae; postpronotal lobe orange-brown, appearing slightly browner dorsally, with sparse bluish-grey pruinosity, setulae pale; notopleuron bluish-grey pruinose with long pale setulae anteriorly and long dark setulae posteriorly; postalar wall dark brown and postalar callus orange-brown, both with slight bluish-grey pruinosity, supra-alar area with dark setulae, postalar callus with some short pale setulae interspersed between dark setulae; scutellum dark brown with a brownish- to orange-yellow apical margin with long dark setulae; majority of pleura brown with bluish-grey pruinosity, except for anepimeron, anatergite, katatergite and katepimeron orange-brown with bluish-grey pruinosity; proepisternum and proepimeron, katatergite and katepisternum with long pale setulae; anatergite and meron bare; anterior and posterior spiracles whitish-yellow, bare; postspiracular scale orange-brown; postscutellum orange-brown.
Legs: Fore coxa yellowish-brown, mid and hind coxae brown, all three coxae with bluish-grey pruinosity, hind coxa much less pronounced; fore coxal setulae long pale on anterior surface, with dark setulae apically; mid coxal setulae long pale on anterior surface, dark apically; hind coxal setulae dark on anterior edge surrounding well-developed anterior apical point with some scattered short setulae, lateral apical edges with a mix of long pale and dark setulae; all trochanters yellowish-brown with short pale setulae; fore femur almost entirely yellow, except for brown apex; mid femur entirely yellow; hind femur yellow with brown to dark brown median band; fore and hind tibiae brown to dark brown, mid tibia yellow; fore and hind tarsi brown to dark brown, mid tarsi yellow except for terminal 3 segments that are brown; fore tarsal claws asymmetrical, outer claw much larger than inner claw, foreleg empodium ca 2 × size of inner pulvillus, outer pulvillus ca 2 × length of inner, approaching size of outer claw; fore femur overall with short pale setulae, with long pale setulae on posteroventral surface; mid femur with long pale setulae on ventral surface, otherwise with short pale setulae; hind femur with a mix of pale and dark setulae on dorsal and ventral surfaces, base of femur with pale setulae; fore tarsi covered with long sensory setulae along antero- and posteroventral surfaces, sensory setulae ca 2 × as long as tarsal segment is wide; hind leg overall stouter than remaining legs; hind tarsal segments 0.9–1.0 × as long as hind tibia; tibial spur formula 0: 2: 2.
Wing: Brown suffused on majority of surface; dark brown stigma over area of veins R 1 and R 2 + 3 and cell r 1, difficult to discern due to surrounding brown suffusion on apical half of wing; preapical parts of cells br, bm hyaline, most of cell cua and anal lobe, and apical two-thirds of discal cell only lightly brown suffused; some specimens with cells r 2 + 3 and m 4 having a small hyaline marking in each of their centres; veins dark brown; costa without distinct downward flexure over stigma; cell cua closed at wing margin, cell m 3 open, veins M 1, M 2, M 3 present; haltere stalk (except for yellow basal half) and knob dark brown, with a few short dark setulae.
Abdomen: Overall brownish-yellow colour; tergite 1 light brownish-yellow with a dark brown subtriangular dorsal marking surrounded by bluish-grey pruinosity up to lateral margins; tergites 2 and 3 with a dark brown longitudinal rectangular marking, otherwise brownish-yellow, tergite 3 also with a grey pruinose posterior band; tergite 4 with a dark brown subtriangular marking running towards a dark posterior band with greyish pruinosity; tergite 5 entirely dark brown with posterior grey pruinose band; remaining tergites dark brown; tergite 1 medially without a longitudinal suture; tergites with dark setulae dorsally, and long pale setulae laterally up to margins; sternites mostly yellowish, except sternites 4 and 5 dark brown; sternites with short and long pale setulae.
Terminalia (Figs 72, 74): Epandrium and cercus dark brown with dark setulae; gonocoxite, hypoproct and hypandrium with pale setulae; gonostylus almost parallel shaped with truncated apex, outer edge of gonostylus with short setulae, inner edge with protrusion with 4 setulae, apex of gonostylus sparsely covered in microtrichia; gonocoxite widening and appearing more rounded on apical half, apex somewhat flattened, gonocoxite outer and ventral medial surface with long setulae, inner and median surface of upper half with short setulae, lower ventral surface comparatively less setulose; gonocoxite with microtrichia between setulae; parameral apodeme with truncated apex, not reaching base of gonocoxite in ventral view, parameral sheath including parameral apodeme ca 0.7 × length of gonocoxite; gonocoxal apodeme similar in length to gonocoxite and slightly shorter than ejaculatory apodeme; aedeagal tine curvature barely extending down past gonocoxites, apex of tines extending out slightly past parameral sheath; endoaedeagal process apically truncated and widened.
Female (Fig. 36): Similar to ♂ except for the following:
Head: Dichoptic; ommatidia of similar size except for those on upper quarter that are somewhat smaller; lateral edge of eye without any indentation, but also with apparent tubercle as in ♂; anterior ocellus similar in size to posterior pair; ocellar tubercle placed deeper in front of dorsal margin of eye compared to ♂; dorsal inner edge of eye separated from ocellar tubercle by paired silver-grey markings, appearing to extend down from vertex; upper occiput with some short dark setulae below black rectangular markings (♂ without); frons bluish-grey pruinose between lower half of eye down to antennal base, velvety-black from ocellar tubercle to lower half of eye when viewed anteriorly; frons running almost parallel down to antennal base; frons densely covered with dark setulae on velvety-black upper half, with dark setulae on lateral margins of lower half; face separated anteriorly from clypeus by transverse suture, (less prominent than in ♂); antennal bases separated ca 0.6–0.8 × width of scape, with slight longitudinal groove running between; scape 1.7 × length of pedicel; 1 st flagellomere ca 2 × size of pedicel; proboscis ca same length as head height.
Thorax: Overall similar to ♂; scutum similar to that of ♂, except two dorsocentral vittae are bluish-grey pruinose compared to whitish-brown in ♂.
Legs: Similar to ♂ in colour; fore tarsal claws symmetrical; overall leg setation similar to ♂ except generally shorter and coxal setulae all pale except for dark setulae surrounding anterior apical point of hind coxa; hind tarsal segments 0.98–1.01 × as long as hind tibia
Wing (Fig. 54): Similar to ♂.
Abdomen: Tergite 1 with a narrower, rectangular (♂ subtriangular) dark brown marking, more widely bluish-grey pruinose than in ♂, medially with a longitudinal suture; tergite 2 with similar dark longitudinal marking, but surrounded by bluish-grey pruinosity instead of brownish-yellow ground colour; tergites 3–5 dark brown, posterior margins with similar grey pruinose bands as in ♂; tergite 1 with long pale setulae on pruinose surface, and short dark setulae on dark brown surfaces, tergites 2–5 with short pale setulae on posterior pruinose bands and short dark setulae on rest of surface; tergites 6 and 7 with short dark setulae; tergites 1–5 with long pale setulae on lateral margins, tergites 6 and 7 with dark setulae laterally; sternites all yellow, compared to sternites 5 and 6 dark brown in ♂.
Terminalia (Fig. 87): Cercus yellowish-brown with some greyish pruinosity, with pale setulae; genital fork with distal apodeme ending broadly truncated; median lobe with narrow emargination; paired apical lobes with somewhat slender appearance, inner surface with clustered microtrichia at apex; arms gradually rounded; three ovate and sclerotised spermathecae.
Etymology.
Named after the type locality, the Zomba Plateau, Malawi. Feminine adjective in the nominative singular case.
Distribution.
Malawi.
description: Published as part of Muller, Burgert S., Swart, Vaughn R. & Snyman, Louwrens P., 2024, Revision of Afrotropical Suragina Walker, 1859 (Diptera, Athericidae), pp. 247-327 in African Invertebrates 65 (2) on pages 247-327, DOI: 10.3897/afrinvertebr.65.140524