Helina marisha Pont, 2012, sp. nov.
Creators: name: Pont, Adrian C.
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2012
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Diptera
Lonchaeidae
Helina
Helina marisha

description: Helina marisha sp. nov.
(Figs. 3, 11–13)
Holotype. Male, ARMENIA: Gegharkunik: Karmir Pass, N40o33.784' EO45o17.785 ', 2179 m, 22.vi. 2010 (A.C. Pont), in BMNH.
Paratypes 23 2Ƥ. Data as for holotype, 13 (BMNH). Aragatsotn: River Kasakh at Alagyaz, N40o40.633' EO44o17.414', 2060 m, 12.vi.2005 (D. Werner), 13 (OUMNH); Sipan, N40o42.671' EO44o16.482', 2101 m, 18.vi.2010 (A.C. Pont), 2Ƥ (BMNH).
The holotype was photographed (Fig. 3) and the Karmir Pass paratype was dissected (Figs. 11–13).
Description. A species with considerable sexual dimorphism in colour and pattern, the male very dark (Fig. 3) but the female densely yellowish-grey dusted.
Male. Length of body, 5.0– 5.5 mm. Length of wing, 3.5–4.0 mm.
Head. Dichoptic. Ground-colour black. Eye virtually bare, with a few tiny scattered hairs. Fronto-orbital plate, parafacial, face, gena and occiput dull matt black, with only a narrow strip of grey pruinosity at lower posterior eye angle. Frons at middle 0.3 times width of head at this point, and each fronto-orbital plate 0.43 times width of frontal vitta. Frontal vitta matt black, brownish-grey pruinose when viewed from in front and below; without trace of a frontal triangle. Ocellar, inner vertical and outer vertical setae strong. 3–4 pairs of frontal setae with 1–2 fine interstitials, without setulae outside them; 2 pairs of strong reclinate orbital setae. Antenna black; postpedicel 3 times as long as broad. Arista plumose, the longest individual hairs very slightly longer than width of postpedicel. Parafacial at broadest point narrower than width of postpedicel. In lateral view, facial edge behind level of profrons. Gena broad, depth below lowest eye-margin 1.3 times width of postpedicel. Vibrissa long and strong. Palpus black, slen- der. Mentum of proboscis dusted.
Thorax. Ground-colour black. Scutum with a pair of grey to yellowish-grey vittae running through the dorsocentral rows and with a brownish-grey band running along suture from dorsocentral line on to the notopleuron, postpronotal lobes also brownish-grey dusted; the holotype additionally with a brownish-grey vitta covering the presutural acrostichal rows, and a median grey vitta on posterior half of the postsutural area. Pleura subshining black, with a little grey dust around proepimeral area. Acrostichal setae absent, the presutural setulae in 2–3 irregular rows, dorsocentrals 2+3, intra-alars 1+2, supra-alars 1+2, the posterior one very short; 2 postpronotals; prealar well developed, almost as long as 2nd notopleural. Spiracles brown to black. Prosternum bare, notopleuron without setulae, proepisternal depression bare. Katepisternals 1+2, the lower one equidistant from the upper two. Meron and katepimeron bare. Scutellum grey dusted, with 1 strong preapical, 1 strong lateral and 1 weak basal lateral setae; lateral margins and ventral surface bare.
Legs black. Fore femur with rows of posterodorsal, posterior and posteroventral setae. Fore tibia in apical half with 2 long posterior and 1 fine posteroventral setae, at apex with strong anterodorsal, dorsal, posterodorsal, posteroventral setae and a short anteroventral. Fore tarsomere 1 with long fine wavy hairs on posteroventral and anteroventral surfaces, twice as long as tarsal depth. Mid femur without anteroventral setae, on posteroventral surface with 1 seta near base, as long as femoral depth, and (2–)3 short stout setae in apical half; 1 short anterior and 2–3 dorsal to posterior preapical setae. Mid tibia with 2 short anterodorsal, 3 posterior and 1 posteroventral setae. Hind femur with a complete anterodorsal row; posteroventral surface bare; anteroventral row complete, the setae strongest in apical half. Hind tibia with 1 posterodorsal, at basal third, 2 strong and 1 short anterodorsals, and 2 anteroventrals; dorsal and anterodorsal preapicals strong; 1 anterior and 1 anteroventral but no posteroventral apical setae.
Wing yellowish tinged, especially basally, the crossveins r–m and dm–cu very weakly clouded. Basicosta and tegula black. Vein M straight, diverging slightly from vein R4+5 towards wing-tip. Crossvein r–m slightly beyond the point where subcosta enters costa; crossvein dm–cu upright, straight. Costal spine very long and strong, much longer than crossvein r–m. Stem-vein and base of vein R4+5 bare. Calypters creamy white. Knob of haltere yellow.
Abdomen. Elongate-cylindrical. Ground-colour black. Densely grey dusted, with black dots at the bases of some of the strong setae; sternites 2–4 dusted. Tergites 3 and 4 each with a pair of black paramedian spots, those on tergite 3 oval and occupying only half of tergal length, those on tergite 4 more subtriangular and occupying just over half of tergal length; tergite 5 with a broad black crescent-shaped band across posterior half. Syntergite 1+2 and tergite 3 with some lateral marginals, and tergite 3 with some lateral discals; tergites 4 and 5 each with a complete row of strong discal and marginal setae. Sternite 1 bare. Sternite 5 as in Fig. 11.
Terminalia as in Figs. 12–13.
Female. Length of body, 6.0 mm. Length of wing, 4.5 mm. Differs from the male as follows:
Head. Frons at middle 0.47 of head-width at this point. Fronto-orbital plate, parafacial, face, gena and occiput light grey pruinose, tinged here and there with yellow. At middle of eye, each fronto-orbital plate almost half as wide as frontal vitta. Frontal triangle narrow, grey, reaching lunule. 3 pairs of strong inclinate frontal setae, with a few interstitials and a few setulae outside them. Parafacial broader, at broadest point wider than width of postpedicel, without a matt patch opposite insertion of postpedicel.
Thorax. Scutum densely yellowish-grey dusted, becoming more grey laterally, with a pair of narrow, weak, brownish vittae running between the acrostichal setulae and dorsocentral setae, from neck to just after first postsutural dorsocentral; dusting thin around presutural intra-alar and supra-alar. Pleura grey to yellowish-grey dusted. Scutellum wholly yellowish-grey dusted.
Legs. Fore tibia with 1 posterior seta and 1 short anterodorsal, the anteroventral apical absent. Fore tarsomere 1 with the fine hairs present but shorter and sparser. Mid femur ventrally with only a strong posteroventral around middle and a weaker one at base. Mid tibia with the anterodorsals as long and strong as the posterior setae.
Wing. Basicosta and epaulet orange-brown. Cross-vein dm–cu weakly sinuous. Calypters with the margins yellow.
Abdomen. Tergites entirely yellowish-grey dusted, only in extreme posterior view with traces of small indistinct dark spots on tergites 3 and 4. Dark bristle-dots conspicuous. Setae reduced: syntergite 1+2 and tergite 3 with only 1–2 setae at sides; tergites 4 and 5 with a discal row, and tergite 4 with a marginal row.
Distribution. Known only from Armenia, from a few localities over 2000 m.
Etymology. Named for the co-organiser of my 2010 and 2011 field trips in Armenia, and the manager of ISTC project A-1662, Maria (“ Marisha ”) Harutyunova. The species-epithet is a noun in apposition.
Relationships. The new species is similar to the group of Helina species with a broad male frons and with 2 reclinate orbital setae, such as Helina obtusipennis (Fallén, 1823). The male runs to couplet 53 and the female to couplet 71 in Hennig’s (1957) key to Palaearctic species, and H. marisha sp. nov. (and the female of H. edita sp. nov.) can be incorporated as follows:
Males
53 (56) Frons with 2 pairs of strong reclinate orbitals.
54 (55) Mid tibia with 2–3 anterodorsal setae.
54a (54b) Prealar present but short. Katepisternals 1+2. Fore leg with the tarsomeres black, and tarsomere 1 with long fine wavy hairs on anteroventral and posteroventral surfaces......................................... H. marisha sp. nov.
54b (54a) Prealar absent. Katepisternals 2+2. Fore leg with tarsomeres 2–4 partly or wholly yellow, and tarsomere 1 without long fine hairs................................................................ H. obtusipennis (Fallén, 1823)
55 (54) Mid tibia without anterodorsal setae............................................ H. atlantica (Tiensuu, 1939)
In addition, the male of H. obtusipennis has a small pair of prescutellar acrostichals, which are absent in H. marisha sp. nov., and also has downcurved setulae on the lateral edges of the scutellum, which are absent in H. marisha sp. nov.
Females
71 (62) Katepisternals 1+2.
72 (73) Arista plumose. Mid tibia with 1–2 posteroventral setae.
72b (72a) Scutellum with soft hairs ventrally at tip. Arista with the longest individual hairs much shorter than the width of postpedicel. Abdomen with a shifting chequerboard pattern............................. H. flavisquama (Zetterstedt, 1849)
72a (72b) Scutellum bare ventrally. Arista with the longest individual hairs equal to the width of postpedicel. Abdomen evenly yellowish-grey dusted, with or without faint paired spots on tergites 3 and 4.
72c (72d) In lateral view, facial edge projecting forward beyond level of profrons.......................... H. edita sp. nov.
72d (72c) In lateral view, facial edge behind level of profrons....................................... H. marisha sp. nov.
73 (72) Arista pubescent. Mid tibia without posteroventral setae............................................................................................ H. fulvisquama (Zetterstedt, 1845) and H. luteisquama (Zetterstedt, 1845)
description: Published as part of Pont, Adrian C., 2012, Distribution records of Helina Robineau-Desvoidy, 1830 (Diptera: Muscidae) from the Caucasus Mountains, with the descriptions of three new species, pp. 30-46 in Zootaxa 3409 on pages 38-43, DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.211219