Eucelatoria charapensis
Creators: name: Burington, Zelia L.
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2022
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Diptera
Tachinidae
Eucelatoria
Eucelatoria charapensis

description: Eucelatoria charapensis (Townsend, 1919)
(Figs 8–9, 30–31, 53–54, 75–76, 98, 113, 127, 143, 160, 174)
Urodexodes charapensis Townsend, 1919: 572. Holotype, Peru, Charape River (USNM). Other references: Guimarães (1971: 151).
Eucelatoria charapensis: Wood (1985: 40).
Type material examined. Holotype ♂, labeled “R Charape Peru / 4500ft 16.IX.11 [1911]”, “CHTTownsend/ Coll”, “Type No./ 22229/ U.S.N.M.”, “ Urodexodes / charapensis/ ♂ DetCHTT T.”, “USNMENT/ 01384158” (USNM).
Other material. 4 ♀♀ and 11 ♂♂. Bolivia — Cochabamba: 1 ♀, “ BOLIVIA Cbba Chapare / VillaTunari –Cochabamba/ road - km 358 - 1300m / Pruett & Wood 23.III.95”, “ZLB_E.Ferox 00400” (DMW). 1 ♀, as previous locality, but “km 365 - 1800m / G. & M. Wood 3–10.XII.96”, the specimen ID “00393” (DMW). Costa Rica — Guanacaste: 1 ♂, “LEGS AWAY/ FOR DNA”, “DHJPAR0015022”, “ Voucher: D.H. Janzen & W. Hallwachs / DB: http:// janzen.sas.upen.edu/ Area de Conservacion Guanacaste,/ COSTA RICA./06-SRNP-56039”, “ZLB_E.Ferox 00005” (CNC). San José: 2 ♂♂, “ COSTA RICA S Jose [sic]/ Cerros de Escazu / Alto Granadilla 1600m / 9.I.99 G. & M. Wood ”, the specimen IDs “ZLB_E.Ferox 00168” and “00169” (DMW). Ecuador — Orellana: 1 ♂ and 1 ♀, “ECUADOR: Orellana Prov / nr. El Bigal Reserve / 00°38′ S 77°20′W / 25-xii-2012 450m / J.O. Stireman III”, “[blank pink label]”, the tissue voucher labels “KMP15” and “KMP11”, the specimen IDs “ZLB_E.Ferox 00395” [♂] (JOSC; to be deposited in MECN) and “00394” [♀] (JOSC). Jamaica: 1 ♂ and 1 ♀, “ Jamaica, B.W.I./ St. Andrew / FERRY/ 24 July 1955 / T. H. FARR”, USNM numbers “USNM ENT 00040053” and “00040054”, and the specimen IDs “ZLB_E.Ferox 00316” and “00317” (USNM). Mexico — Chiapas: 2 ♂♂, “MEXICO Chiapas / Lagunas de Monte-/ bello 21.IX.1991 / D.M. Wood 1580m ”, the ID labels “ZLB_E.Ferox 00167” and “00202” (DMW). 1 ♂, “MEXICO Chiapas / 6 km N Bochil / 19.IX.1982 / M. Wood 1300m ”, “ZLB_E.Ferox 00295” (DMW). Panama — Coclé: 1 ♂, “ El Valle / Panama / I-1947 ”, “ N. L. H. Krauss ”, “USNM ENT 00040016”, “ZLB_E.Ferox 00341” (USNM). USA — Puerto Rico: 1 ♂, “Arecibo/ P.R. 4-17-34”, “Grapefruit/ Grove”, “Faxon. Mills/ Anderson”, “San.Juan/ No5364”, “all Bl abd-/ pd+p br. on t1/ erect abd. hairs/? ♂ Xiphomyia ”, “USNM ENT/ 00875981”, “ZLB_E.Ferox 00353” (USNM). 1 ♂, “Mayaguez, P.R./ Feb. 1937 / Coll: L. Colón ”, “Maldonado/ 55-9020”, “28”, “ Xiphomyia?/ ♂ ”, “USNM ENT/ 00875978”, “ZLB_E.Ferox 00354”the [terminalia in vial under specimen] (USNM).
Recognition. This species is similar to other large bodied species such as E. gladiatrix, E. falcata sp. nov., and E. yanayacu sp. nov. in that the ocellar setae are small, the thoracic vittae are V-shaped, the head tomentum is largely yellow, and the piercer is more than half the length of the abdomen, but differs from these in that the ventral setae on abdominal T1+2 are pale, not entirely black. The male cercus, unlike most E. ferox group species, is mostly linear in lateral view, without a basal expansion and distal narrowing. It is most similar to the close relative, E. fordlandia sp. nov., which also has white setulae ventrobasally on the abdomen, but which has a pale gray, more parallel sided parafacial and thinner thoracic vittae. The terminalia of E. fordlandia sp. nov. and E. charapensis are nearly identical, except that the cercus upper lobe is shorter and the inner margin rounder in E. fordlandia sp. nov. than in E. charapensis.
Redescription. [Redescribed from 4 ♀♀ and 11 ♂♂. Head measurements from 3 ♀♀ and 3 ♂♂.] Length 6.4–10.5 mm (mean = 8.5 mm).
Head. Fronto-orbital plate, vertex, dorsal half of post-ocular plate, and vibrissal angle tomentum light to dark yellow, appearing golden in light; lower half of post-ocular plate, genal dilation, and parafacial yellow. Postgena and occiput tomentum ash-gray. Pale occipital setae gray on postgena, ranging to yellow, sometimes light yellow, on dorsal part of occiput. Ocellar setae minute to apparently absent, usually indistinguishable from surrounding clothing setulae of ocellar triangle. Gena with 3–6 setae, subvibrissal ridge with 2 setae. Facial ridge with setulae on lower third or less. Postocellar setae one-half length of posterior reclinate orbital setae. Paravertical seta one-half to two-thirds length of postocellar seta. Outer vertical seta indistinguishable in length from post-ocular setae. Reclinate orbital setae 2–3. Frontal setae 5–11, last frontal seta level with arista base. Eye apparently bare. Eye height to head height ratio 0.85. Postpedicel length 0.35–0.40 (mean = 0.39) height of head. Facial ridge length 0.45–0.50 (mean = 0.48) height of head. Parafacial width 0.1 lateral length of head. Pedicel 0.30–0.40 (mean = 0.33) length of postpedicel. Postpedicel 1.4–2.3 (mean = 1.8) times width of parafacial in lateral view. Vertex 0.20–0.40 (mean = 0.25) width of head in dorsal view. Palpus tan to dark brown; subcylindrical; slightly dilated at apex, more so in females; with dense short, stout black setae dorsally on apical half in females [less in males]; several long thin setae laterally at mid length; several thin black setae ventral near apex; and few to many thin ventral setae from near apex to mid length.
Thorax. Dorsomedial length subequal to 1.25 times width of thorax. Lateral tomentum gray, merging to yellow on upper half. Dorsal tomentum yellow to gray. Presutural outer vitta triangular to irregular bar-shaped, usually connected to anterior margin. Postsutural outer vitta bar to oval shaped, wider near anterior apex, distinctly disconnected from anterior vitta. Inner thoracic vittae divergent, linear, extending to level of first or second postsutural dorsocentral seta; separated from outer postsutural vittae by thin lines of tomentum or fused. Scutellar dorsal tomentum yellow to gray, extending over one-fourth to one-half of surface. Postpronotum with 3 setae, occasionally with an additional seta. Presutural area with 2 supra-alar setae. Postsutural area with 3 dorsocentral setae. Scutellum with 1 pair discal setae. Fore tibia with 2–3 posterodorsal setae, the most distal largest, the basal two smaller and subequal. Wing hyaline, at most lightly infuscated around apex of radial sector.
Abdomen. Cuticle entirely black in female, black with tan basolateral spots on T 3–4 in male; ventral setulae on S1, S2, and T1+2 pale, on remainder of abdomen black, rarely with pale setulae extending onto T3. Dorsal tomentum bands yellow to gray, extending one-half to two-thirds length of T3–5. Ventral tomentum bands ash-gray, extending over two-thirds to three-fourths ventral surface of T3–5, usually with some gray tomentum ventrally on T1+2. T4 with apparently 2 pairs medial marginal setae and 2–4 pairs erect lateral marginal setae; females with fewer, weaker lateral setae; in males, appearing as a widely spaced row of marginal setae.
Male terminalia (Figs 127, 143, 160). Sternite 5 basal plate blunt, apparently without median teeth; apical lobes 0.9 times length of basal plate. Postgonite broadly and bluntly angled on posterior margin, rounded on anterobasal margin, narrowed slightly to digitiform apex, posterior emargination subequal width of postgonite at mid length. Surstylus paddle shaped, blunt angled on posterior margin, gradually rounded on anterior margin, apex blunt, basal lobe margin with blunt obtuse angle. Cercus in lateral view subdigitiform, slightly dilated at base of basal lobe, slightly narrowed at mid length, slightly broader near apex; in caudal view lateral margins roughly angled, apex blunt. Upper lobe subtriangular, apex blunt, inner margin sublinear and angled to base; 0.35 length of cercus. Median section 0.3 length of cercus. Apical cleft narrow, subparallel, 0.35 length of cercus. Syncercus apex width in caudal view 0.46 width of syncercus base.
Female terminalia (Figs 98, 113). Piercer generally extending past apex of T3, in lateral view gradually curved to slightly bent apex; in posterior view margins straight, angled to apex. Aculeate lobe 2.4 times height of segment 7 base. End tergite halves fused at base, with basomedial projection; forked apically, the pointed halves each 1.8 times the width of the fused base. Cercus with 5 setae, ventral elongation 3 times length of cercus, extending more than half the distance to the apex of the end tergite forks. Postgenital plate with 8 setae.
Host(s). One male has been reared from Diaphania plumbidorsalis (Guenée) (Crambidae) feeding on bitter melon (Momordica charantia L., Curcubitaceae) in Costa Rica (Janzen & Hallwachs 2008).
Geographic extent and seasonal occurrence. Individuals have been collected from southern Mexico to Bolivia, with intermediate records from Jamaica, Puerto Rico, Costa Rica, Panama, Ecuador, and Peru, at elevations from 1800 m to nearly sea level (Fig. 174).
Discussion. Given the large geographic range and apparent color and size variability, it is probable that E. charapensis is a species complex; only E. fordlandia sp. nov. (described separately) is currently distinguishable. Among the variants, the two individuals from El Bigal Reserve are overall darker in coloration, with a broader thorax and wider parafacial (Figs 9, 31, 54, 76). However, the El Bigal individuals are in poor condition and CO1 sequences do not seem to differ substantially from the Costa Rica individual (Fig. 1). The sequence for “T789” refers to the female El Bigal specimen (ZLB_E.Ferox 00394); the long branch is due to base pair ambiguities caused by contamination. Further collecting will be needed to determine whether these are separate species or distinctive populations. The genetic data do not give any indication of a sister species, nor is there any apparent population structure (Fig. 1). There is strong support for E. charapensis as sister to the rest of the E. gladiatrix subgroup (Fig. 1).
The single reared specimen parasitized a caterpillar feeding upon bitter melon. This introduced food crop is native to Asia and widely cultivated in Central and South America and the Caribbean. The host, Diaphania plumbidorsalis, is native to Central and South America, and is likely a typical host for E. charapensis. The typical plant host for D. plumbidorsalis is another curcubit (Janzen & Hallwachs 2008), Sycidium tamnifolium (Kunth.) Cogn. Thus, there is a possible route for dispersal via caterpillars advantageously feeding on bitter melon to the Greater Antilles islands of Jamaica and Puerto Rico. This dispersal route suggests that E. charapensis should be present on other Caribbean islands and explains the otherwise strange occurrence of E. charapensis individuals on islands separated from the mainland by 500 miles of ocean but otherwise identical to mainland individuals. The unique character of pale setulae ventral on abdominal S1 and T1+2 distinguishes males and females from species other than E. fordlandia sp. nov. in the E. ferox group.
description: Published as part of Burington, Zelia L., 2022, A taxonomic revision of the Eucelatoria ferox species group (Diptera: Tachinidae), pp. 1-104 in Zootaxa 5143 (1) on pages 26-28, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.5143.1.1, http://zenodo.org/record/6601404