Physiphora smaragdina Loew
Creators: name: Morgulis, E.
name: Freidberg, A.
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2014
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Diptera
Ulidiidae
Physiphora
Physiphora smaragdina

description: Physiphora smaragdina (Loew)
(Figs. 8, 47, 70, 87, 101)
Ulidia smaragdina Loew, 1852: 659 Ulidia rufifrons Walker, 1871: 345
Material examined. ISRAEL: Central Coastal Plain: Tel Aviv University, on Erythrina corallodendrum, 9.viii.2011, A. Freidberg (1♀); Tel Aviv, 23.vi.2007, W. Kuslitzky (1♀); Dead Sea Area: Qalya, 28.ix.1995, A. Freidberg (1♂, 1♀), 9.x.1995 (1♀), 22.xi.1995 (5♂, 2♀), 19.ix.1995 (1♂), 1.vi.1996, I. Yarom and A. Freidberg (3♂, 2♀); Nahal Qidron [Nahal Qidron], 7.vi.1996, A. Freidberg (2♂, 2♀); Nahal Qidron, Rt.90, – 365 m, 31º40.3'N 35º26.9'E, 7.iv.2011, A. Freidberg (5♂); Nahal Hever, 31º24.403'N 35º23.177'E, 22.v.2009, A. Freidberg (2♂, 1♀); Northern Negev: Be`er Sheva', 31º13'N 34º48'E, 1.x.2001, A. Freidberg (2♀); Nahal Ye'elim, 13.iv.2009, A. Freidberg (1♂); Central Negev: 'En zin, 14.x.1997, A. Freidberg (2♂, 1♀); 'En 'Aqrabbim, - 36 m, 31º53.691'N 35º09.889'E, 7.iii.2010, A. Freidberg (1♀); 'Arava Valley: Hazeva Field School, 30º43'N 35º15'E, 26.iv.1998, E. Ashkenazi (1♀); zomet 'Iddan, - 145 m, 30º48.9'N 35º15.4'E, 7.iv.2011, A. Freidberg (5♂); Nahal Nemiyya, Rt.90, - 62 m, 30º40.503'N 35º13.097'E, 8.iii.2010, E. Morgulis (1♂, 1♀); Samar, 29º50'N 35º02'E, 3.vii.2007, N. Ketner (1♂, 1♀), 26.iv.2007 (1♀); Sappir pond, 28.ix.1999, A. Freidberg (1♂).
Redescription. Head (Fig. 8; as in Fig. 14): Structure: 1.22–1.44 times as high as long. Frons of same width posteriorly and at lunule level, 1.08–1.16 times as wide as long, medially concave and with medial and lateral longitudinal protrusions. Eye 1.03–1.16 times as high as long. Gena 0.29–0.32 times as high as eye, slightly corrugated. Fronto-orbital plate at antenna insertion level 0.11–0.15 times as long as eye. First flagellomere 1.52– 1.93 times as long as high. Color and vestiture: head mostly dark brown. Occiput mostly black, except median occipital sclerite orange-yellow. Vertex orange-brown medially, black laterally. Ocellar triangle black. Frons often with medial orange line (barely noticeable). Orbit black posteriorly, brown anteriorly, with 3 triangular white microtrichose spots: 1 at mid-frons and 2 at antenna insertion level; fine microtrichose white line present ventrally and posteriorly along the eye. Facial carina with longitudinal-mediodorsal and transverse lines of white microtrichia; facial ridge white microtrichose. First flagellomere orange, apically infuscate, gray-white microtrichose; arista orange to brown, bare. Palpus black, gray-white microtrichose. Setae and setulae: all setae black. Medial vertical seta 1.36–1.54 times as long as lateral vertical seta; ocellar seta and postocellar seta each 0.3–0.4 times as long as medial vertical seta; posterior orbital seta 1.1–1.2 times as long as anterior orbital seta and 0.28–0.32 times as long as medial vertical seta. Vibrissal angle and frons with short, fine, yellow setulae. 1 genal seta; postgena with several long, black setulae. Palpus with long black setulae; labellum with mixed black and white setulae.
Thorax: Color and vestiture: subshiny metallic golden-gray to green sometimes with violet shade, densely shagreened; anatergite, mediotergite, katatergite and postalar wall slightly silvery-white microtrichose. Setae and setulae: all major setae black. 1–2 anepisternal setae and rarely 1 dorsocentral seta (0.4 times as long as postalar and intra-alar setae) present. Postpronotal lobe with short, black setulae; setulae 0.20–0.25 times as long as postalar seta; proepisternum, anepisternum and katepisternum with longer, black setulae (0.3–0.4 times as long as postalar seta); 1 dorsocentral and 2 medial (between acrostichal) mostly regular, sometimes posteriorly irregular, lines of short (0.05 times as long as postalar seta), yellowish setulae; few short, yellowish setulae present on scutellum.
Legs: Foreleg entirely dark brown to black; mid and hind femora and tibiae brown to black, mid and hind tarsi entirely yellow or with 1–4 basal tarsomeres yellow.
Wing (as in Fig. 29): Venation: veins yellow to orange. Crossvein R-M aligned basal to apex of vein R1. Ratios: cell r4+5 0.04–0.07; vein Cu2 3.0–4.3. Calypteres white. Halter base and stem brown, knob white to yellow.
Abdomen: Shiny reddish-brown to black. Tergites shagreened. Tergite 1 laterally and tergites 5 and 6 posteriorly setulose; tergites 5 and 6 microsetulose; remaining parts bare.
Male terminalia: Epandrium (Fig. 47) 1.33–1.45 times as high as wide; cerci triangular, separate; lateral surstylus short, apically pointed and medially inclined, slightly setulose. Phallus flat and slim at basal 0.33, gradually thickened and widened at apical 0.66; phallus with lateral pair of sclerotized teniae, widened at apical 0.66 of phallus length. Phallus with 1 caecum at apical 0.33. Glans (Fig. 70) elongate, with long basal posteroclinate spine.
Female terminalia: Aculeus 9–10 times as long as wide. Cercal unit (Fig. 87) oval, slightly rhombic, apically rounded to slightly pointed. Sensilla: BV present apical to BD. Pair of short lateral setulae present slightly distal to BV. Spermathecae globulose (Fig. 101) with smooth surface.
Measurements (mm): Body length 3.2–5.5, wing length 2.9–4.5.
Type locality. Mozambique.
Distribution. Israel, most of Africa except South Africa.
Adult activity in Israel: April to November.
Diagnosis. This species differs from its congeners in the following combination of characters: three lateral microtrichose spots on the frons, foretarsus with all tarsomeres black and elongate glans, with long basal posteroclinate spine.
Comment. This species was first collected in Israel in 1995, in Qalya (Dead Sea Area), and since then it is encountered almost on a yearly basis. As intensive collecting in Israel, including in this area has been carried out since at least the 1960s, it is likely that the species arrived in Israel (perhaps from North Africa) not long before its first record there.
description: Published as part of Morgulis, E. & Freidberg, A., 2014, The Ulidiini (Diptera: Tephritoidea: Ulidiidae) of Israel, with a key to the world species of Ulidia and description of five new species, pp. 201-247 in Zootaxa 3780 (2) on pages 211-212, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.3780.2.1, http://zenodo.org/record/228269