Scatellini
Creators: name: Costa, Daniel N. R.
name: Savaris, Marcoandre
name: Marinoni, Luciane
name: Mathis, Wayne N.
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2016
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Diptera
Ephydridae

description: Tribe Scatellini Wirth and Stone
Scatellini Wirth and Stone 1956: 466. Type genus: Scatella Robineau-Desvoidy 1830.─ Mathis and Zatwarnicki 1995: 254 –288 [world catalog].─ Mathis et al. 2014: 561 –576 [review of genera and species from Brazil].
Diagnosis. Specimens of Scatellini may be distinguished from other Ephydridae by the following combination of character states: Head: Mesofrons subquadrate, slightly wider posteriorly, appearing dull, densely microtomentose or shiny with metallic luster; lacking interfrontal setae; usually 2 lateroclinate, fronto-orbital setae (most genera) or 1 (Limnellia Malloch, most Scatophila Becker). Antenna relatively short; arista essentially bare, macropubescent (most genera) or bearing long dorsal rays (Philotelma Becker). Face projected, setulose to moderately densely pilose, marginal setae usually larger; dorsum of interfoveal hump usually similar to rest of face, dark colored in a few species, not shiny; eye bare, usually as wide as high, nearly round to obliquely oval, generally oriented obliquely to plane of epistoma; gena short to high, usually bearing a genal seta (most genera) or lacking (Haloscatella Mathis, Lamproscatella Hendel, Philotelma, Thinoscatella Mathis); oral opening moderately large, gaping, usually concealing clypeus. Thorax: Dorsocentral setae 2–3 (0+2, 1+2), some setae sometimes weakly developed, the posteriormost seta displaced laterally from alignment of others; intrapostalar seta lacking or weakly developed; presutural supra-alar seta variable, subequal or larger than anterior notopleural seta (Scatella (Parascatella) Cresson) or greatly reduced, weakly developed (most genera); postsutural supra-alar seta often reduced or lacking; 2 notopleural setae, placement of posterior seta variable, usually at same level as anterior seta; proepisternum lacking setae but often with a few setulae; prosternum bare of setae or setulae; anepisternum bearing 1 large seta just dorsad of midheight along posterior margin, several smaller setulae may also be present; anepimeron, meron, and metapleuron bare of setae. Wing hyaline to conspicuously infuscate with or without white spots; costal vein extended to vein M (most genera) or to vein R4+5 (Scatophila); vein R2+3 usually long, terminating at approximately same distance from vein R4+5 as tip of vein M is from vein R4+5. Hindcoxal strap not setose; pulvilli normally developed; tarsal claws short, curved. Abdomen: Male with 5 visible abdominal tergites, tergite 5 distinctly trapezoidal or triangular; female with 6, sometimes 7, visible tergites, tergite 5 subtrapezoidal, not triangular. Male terminalia: Surstylus usually fused with ventral margin of epandrium and not evident (most genera) or evident as lobes, perhaps secondarily developed (Lamproscatella, Limnellia); aedeagus usually a sclerotized structure (apparently basiphallus) (Amalopteryx Eaton, Haloscatella [other than New Zealand species], Lamproscatella, Limnellia, Scatella, Scatophila, Thinoscatella) or with a sclerotized basiphallus and a membranous distiphallus invested with short, sharp scales or scale-like thorns (some Haloscatella [species from New Zealand], Philotelma); ejaculatory apodeme lacking (Amalopteryx, Haloscatella, Lamproscatella, Limnellia, Philotelma, Scatophila, Thinoscatella) or present as an L-shaped, flattened (dorsoventrally) structure (Apulvillus Malloch, Neoscatella Malloch, Scatella, Synhoplos Lamb, Teichomyza Macquart); phallapodeme rudimentary, rodlike, lacking a keel (Amalopteryx, Haloscatella, Lamproscatella, Limnellia, Philotelma, Scatophila) or greatly reduced or lacking (Apulvillus, Neoscatella, Scatella, Synhoplos, Teichomyza); gonites and hypandrium fused forming a single structure (“gonal arch”) (Amalopteryx, Haloscatella, Lamproscatella, Thinoscatella, Apulvillus, Neoscatella, Scatella, Synhoplos, Teichomyza, ground plan of Limnellia) or separated into medial sclerite “hypandrium” and lateral structures representing gonites (Philotelma, New Zealand Haloscatella, most Scatophila) or separated medioventrally into 2 lateral structures “gonites” (most Limnellia) (2 separate gonites are present also in some Scatophila (avida group), in which the “hypandrium” is reduced.
Discussion. Olafsson (1991) suggested that the tribe Scatellini, as characterized here, is monophyletic. We are less confident of the monophyly of this tribe, and the senior author is now re-examining and reanalyzing evidence to test this hypothesis.
Many of the eight included genera (Amalopteryx, Haloscatella, Lamproscatella, Limnellia, Philotelma, Scatella [subgenera: Apulvillus, Neoscatella, Scatella, Synhoplos, Teichomyza], Scatophila, Thinoscatella) are found throughout the world in temperate and tropical zones. Although largely undescribed, there is considerable species diversity at higher elevations associated with the Andes in South America, where we have collected specimens at localities above 5000 m (Colombia).
Worldwide there are over 245 species in Scatellini (Mathis and Zatwarnicki 1995 and electronic updates), and in the Neotropical Region there are records of four genera and nearly 70 species with a majority being classified in the genus Scatella and its included subgenera.
description: Published as part of Costa, Daniel N. R., Savaris, Marcoandre, Marinoni, Luciane & Mathis, Wayne N., 2016, Two new, brachypterous Limnellia species from the Venezuelan Andes (Diptera: Ephydridae), pp. 301-315 in Zootaxa 4144 (3) on pages 302-303, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4144.3.1, http://zenodo.org/record/255192