Phasioormia pallida Towns
Creators: name: Nihei, Silvio S.
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2015
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Diptera
Tachinidae
Phasioormia
Phasioormia pallida

description: Phasioormia pallida Towns end
(Figs 13–20, 33–35, 39)
pallida Townsend, 1933: 448. Holotype female (BMNH). Type locality: Singapore.
Phasioormia pallida; Crosskey, 1976: 185 (cat.); Dear & Crosskey, 1982: 119 (key, list, Philippines); Preston, 1993 (misidentification, = Ormia ochracea sec Evenhuis, 2003: 34); Nishida, 1997, 2002 (misidentification, = Ormia ochracea sec Evenhuis, 2003: 34); Chao & Xue, 1998: 1955 (cat., China); O’Hara et al. 2009: 161 (cat., China). Distribution (Fig. 39). China, Philippines, Singapore, and Sri Lanka.
Redescription. Male. Body length: 9.5–10.2 mm (n=2) (paratype 10.2 mm), wing length: 7.2–10.3 mm (n=3) (paratype 10.3 mm).
Coloration (Figs 13, 15, 17, 19): Head brown with whitish pruinosity on face, parafacial, fronto-orbital plate, facial ridge and gena; lower margin of face and facial ridge yellowish-brown (Figs 17, 19). Scape and pedicel light brownish, postpedicel dark brown, arista brown (Figs 17, 19). Palpus and proboscis light brownish (Figs 17, 19). Thorax reddish-brown (Figs 13, 15) but tending to reddish-yellow on postpronotal lobe and notopleuron and also on some lateral parts. Claws light brown with black apex; pulvilli yellow. Abdomen reddish-yellow on tergites 1+2, 3 and 4, with the last two with dark brown posterior margins (concolorous to tergite 5), with whitish pruinosity apparent on all tergites (Figs 13, 15).
Head: Frons extremely narrow, on upper half as eyes approach each other only fronto-orbital plates visible as quite narrow strips, but frons broadening ventrally (Figs 13, 17). Setae and/or setulae on frontal vitta and frontoorbital plate not apparent due to fungi covering paratype’s head dorsally, but on additional non-type specimens with about 9 pairs of frontal setae on lower 2/3, shortening dorsally. Ocellar triangle extremely constricted and not recognizable (Fig. 17). Fronto-orbital plate as narrow as pedicel width at lowermost level, without setulae (Fig. 17). Ratio of frons width/head width 0.02 at vertex level; ratio of frons width/head width at level of lunula 0.18 (Fig. 17). Parafacial bare and as wide as fronto-orbital plate (Fig 17). Facial ridge rather broadened, about 2x pedicel width at vibrissal level, and with dense fine long setulae on lower portion (Fig. 17). Antenna short; postpedicel about 1.3x pedicel length; arista elongate and slender, about 3.5x postpedicel length (Figs 17, 19). Antenna inserted below mid height of head in frontal view, and also below mid height of eye (Fig. 19). Antennal axis/head height ratio 0.68 (Fig. 19). Antennal axis/vibrissal axis ratio 1.13; antennal axis/oral (epistomal) axis ratio 1.13; vibrissal axis/oral axis ratio 1.00 (Fig. 19). Genal dilation not apparent, but gena densely covered with short black setulae. Genal height/head height ratio 0.12 (Fig. 19). Occiput strongly concave middorsally.
Thorax: Acrostichal setae 1+2, presutural pair anteriorly placed and not close to suture (a third anteriormost postsutural seta weakly developed or undeveloped), prescutellar pair stronger. Dorsocentral setae 2+3. Notopleural setae 2, subequal and close to each other, with dense short black setulae. Mesothoracic spiracle conspicuously exposed, with light brownish branched hairs on whole anterior and posterior edges, anterior hairs becoming longer towards upper second quarter, spiracle is exposed dorsally and ventrally with just the middle somewhat covered; metathoracic spiracle not exposed, completely covered by anterior lappet of short light brown branched hairs and opercular posterior lappet of brown branched hairs.
Wing (Fig. 13): Rs node setulose dorsally and ventrally, with setulae extending at most on basal sixth of R4+5 (these setulae not always recognizable).
Legs: Legs of male paratype covered with fungi, for leg features see below under female description.
Terminalia (Figs 33–34): Cerci with posterior apex subtruncate in dorsal view (Fig. 33), and acuminate and curved in lateral view (Fig. 34). Surstylus slightly arcuate inwards (Fig. 33), elongate and tapering at apex in dorsal view (Fig. 33), with subparallel margins in lateral view (Fig. 34), and with basomedial lobes bearing fine setulae hidden behind the cerci (Fig. 33). Pregonite narrow and long.
Female. Body length: 9.4–9.6 mm (n=4) (holotype 9.6 mm), wing length: 9.6–10.0 mm (n=4) (holotype 9.6 mm).
Differs from male by the following: Coloration (Figs 14, 16, 18, 20). Head pruinosity grayish on upper portion and tending to pale light yellow on lower portion (Figs 16, 18, 20). Gena and frontal vitta reddish-brown (Figs 18, 20). Scape and pedicel yellow, postpedicel dark-brown but yellow at base, arista yellow (Figs 18, 20). Head. Frons broad, subparallel-sided from level of antennal insertion to vertex (Fig. 18), swollen on lower half (Fig. 20). About 16 pairs of frontal setae irregularly sized and spaced, not forming linear row and not strongly developed, with two pairs below level of antennal insertion (Figs 18, 20). Frontal vitta narrowing towards vertex, about twice pedicel width at lowermost level and subequal to pedicel width at uppermost level (Fig. 18). Two pairs of proclinate frontoorbital setae on upper half, and one reclinate pair before ocellar triangle (Figs 18, 20). Ocellar triangle hardly recognizable as narrow slightly protuberant strip, with some weak setulae, and bearing no ocelli (Fig. 18). Frontoorbital plate broad, about 2.5x pedicel width at lowermost level (Fig. 18). Fronto-orbital plate with weak setulae on its entire length (Figs 18, 20). Ratio of frons width/head width at vertex level 0.31; ratio of frons width/head width at level of lunula 0.37 (Fig. 18). Parafacial bare and narrower than fronto-orbital plate, about 2.0x pedicel width above and narrowing towards gena (Fig. 18). Facial ridge rather broadened, over 2x pedicel width at vibrissal level, and with dense fine long setulae on lower portion (Figs 18, 20). Antennal axis/head height ratio 0.61 (Fig. 20). Antennal axis/vibrissal axis ratio 1.08; antennal axis/oral (epistomal) axis ratio 1.13; vibrissal axis/oral axis ratio 1.05 (Fig. 20). In profile, anteroventral margin of head (bearing vibrissal, subvibrissal and subcranial setae/setulae) subparallel to anteroventral margin of eye (Fig. 20). Antenna inserted clearly above mid height of head in frontal view, and about mid height of eye (Fig. 20). Genal height/head height ratio 0.28. Genal dilation not apparent; gena covered with short black setulae. Legs: Fore tibia with 2–4 differentiated anterodorsal setae; 2–4 differentiated posterodorsal setae; one submedian posteroventral seta. Mid tibia with 2 anterodorsal setae on apical half, and 2 posterodorsal setae on apical half. Hind femur with dorsal row of setae, with longer setae at base; and anteroventral and posteroventral rows of weak setae. Hind tibia with 2 anterodorsal setae on median third, 3 posterodorsal setae on median third, and 1 anteroventral seta at apical third.
Terminalia (Fig. 35): Tergite 6 separated into hemitergites, with row of spiniform straight setae on median third of inner margin and two isolated spiniform setae on apical third, and with single spiracle on each hemitergite. Tergite 8 formed as a single narrow arc (fused medioventrally), and basally connected and partially fused with sternite 10. Sternite 10 (postgenital plate or hypoproct) covered with fine setulae, bearing two spiniform lateral setae and medial row of 4 spiniform setae decreasing inwards.
Type material examined. Holotype female (BMNH), “Holo- / type ” (white round label with red border), “Syngapore. / H. N. Ridley. / 1904-160”, “ Phasioormia / pallida TT ♀ / Holotype ”; specimen in good condition. Paratype female (BMNH), “Para- / type ” (white round label with yellow border), “Syngapore. / H. N. Ridley. / 1904-160”, “ Phasioormia / pallida / Det. DA Barraclough, 1995”, “ Phasioormia pallida 26.n”; specimen in reasonably good condition, but the head detached from body and glued on a pinned paper triangle, and the right foreleg and all left legs missing. Paratype male (BMNH), “Para- / type ” (white round label with yellow border), “Syngapore. / H. N. Ridley. / 98-114”; specimen in good condition, but left postpedicel and forelegs missing and the ventral side with some fungi. Paratype female (BMNH), “Para- / type ” (white round label with yellow border), “Syngapore. / H. N. Ridley. / 1903-231”; specimen in good condition.
Additional material examined. SRI LANKA, Kan. Dist., Kandy, Udawattakele, 1 male, 1–3.x.1973, black light, K.V. Krombein, P.B. Karunaratne & P. Fernando leg. (USNM); same locality, 2 females, 6–8.vi.1978, black light, K.V. Krombein, P.B. Karunaratne, T. Wijesinhe, V. Kulasekare & L. Jayawickrema leg. (USNM); same locality, 2 females, 26–30.vii.1978, black light, K.V. Krombein, P.B., T. Wijesinhe, V. Kulasekare & L. Jayawickrema leg. (USNM); Kan. Dist., Peradeniya, upper Hantane Hill, 2300ft, 3 females, 12–16.i.1970, Davis & Rowe leg. (USNM); Mon. Dist., Angunakolapelessa, 1 male, 17–19.vi.1978, Malaise trap, K.V. Krombein, P.B., T. Wijesinhe, V. Kulasekare & L. Jayawickrema leg. (USNM). [One male from Udawattakele and one female from Peradeniya were dissected and examined.]
Remarks. With previous records from the Philippines and Singapore, this species was newly recorded in the Chinese provinces of Hainan and Jiangxi (O’Hara et al. 2009). I have not seen Chinese material to confirm its identity, but so far those are the northernmost records for P. pallida. Here the species is also recorded in Sri Lanka.
description: Published as part of Nihei, Silvio S., 2015, Systematic revision of the ormiine genera Aulacephala Macquart and Phasioormia Townsend (Diptera, Tachinidae), pp. 1-26 in Zootaxa 3931 (1) on pages 14-17, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.3931.1.1, http://zenodo.org/record/288102