Antillocladius atalaia Mendes & Andersen 2008, sp. n.
Creators: name: Mendes, Humberto Fonseca
name: Andersen, Trond
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2008
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Diptera
Chironomidae
Antillocladius
Antillocladius atalaia

description: Antillocladius atalaia sp. n.   
(Figs 7–11)  
 Type material: Holotype male, Brazil: Rio de Janeiro: Arraial do Cabo, Morro do Atalaia, 10.i.2006, sweep net (swarming), H.F. Mendes (MZUSP). Paratypes: 9 males, same data as holotype (ZSM, ZMBN).   
 Diagnostic characters: The species can be separated from all other members of the genus by the presence of setae on squama, bifid inferior volsella, and long virga.   
 Etymology: Named after the type locality; the name is to be regarded as a noun in apposition.   
 Male (n = 10, except when otherwise stated). Total length 1.87–2.14, 2.03 mm. Wing length 1.14–1.30, 1.22 mm. Total length / wing length 1.45–1.76, 1.66. Wing length / length of profemur 2.19–2.50, 2.28. Coloration brown, thorax dark brown without distinct marks.   
 Head. AR 1.23–1.54, 1.38. Ultimate flagellomere 400–479, 439 µm long. Temporal setae 7–14, 11; including 1–5, 4 inner verticals; 3–5, 4 outer verticals; and 3–4, 3 postorbitals. Clypeus with 3–8, 6 setae. Tentorium, stipes, and cibarial pump as in Figure 7. Tentorium 91–120, 108 µm long; 18–22, 20 µm wide. Stipes 102–136, 117 µm long. Palp segment lengths (in µm): 16–24, 21; 36–54, 44; 84–113, 96; 77–100, 87; 95–120, 107 (9). Third palpomere with 3–6, 5 sensilla clavata subapically; longest 9–16, 13 µm long.   
 Thorax (Fig. 8). Antepronotum with 2–5, 3 setae. Dorsocentrals 7–13, 10; acrostichals 15–23, including 3–8, 4 simple anterior and 10–19, 14 scalpellate; prealars 3–5, 4; supraalar 1. [One paratype with weak seta on left side of preepisternum, others lack seta]. Scutellum with 6–10, 8 setae.   
 Wing (Fig. 9). VR 1.22–1.39, 1.32. C extension 57–86, 72 µm long. Brachiolum with 1–2, 1 setae; R with 0–5, 2 setae; R 1 with 0–2, 1 setae, other veins and membrane bare. Squama with 4–11, 8 setae.   
 Legs. Spur of foretibia 50–59, 54 µm long; spurs of midtibia 25–38, 32 µm and 23–27, 25 µm long; spurs of hind tibia 43–59, 51 µm and 18–27, 24 µm long. Width at apex of foretibia 29–34, 31 µm; of midtibia 32– 34, 33 µm; of hind tibia 39–45, 42 µm. Comb with 12–16, 14 setae; longest 29–48, 37 µm; shortest 16–23, 20 µm. Lengths and proportions of legs as in Table 1.   
 Hypopygium (Figs 10–11). Tergite IX covered with microtrichia; laterosternite IX with 5–8, 7 setae. Anal point triangular, 36–61 (3) µm long, 25–29 (3) µm wide at base, 6–9 (3) µm wide at apex, with 10–19, 14 setae. Phallapodeme 79–98, 87 µm long; transverse sternapodeme 27–43, 34 µm long. Virga 25–48, 40 µm long composed of two spines. Gonocoxite 159–193, 177 µm long. Gonostylus 77–98, 87 µm long; megaseta 14–17, 15 µm long. HR 1.93–2.13, 2.02; HV 2.15–2.56, 2.33.   
 Biology and distribution: The species was collected together with A. axitiosus sp. n., A. brazuca sp. n., A. folius, and A. ultimus sp. n. in a hill-side close to the sea in Rio de Janeiro State, Brazil (Fig. 12). All five species were collected swarming together from noon to 6:00 pm. The air temperature was around 30º C. The hill-side is covered by restinga vegetation with large cactus plants. There are no streams nearby, but some phytotelmata (mostly bromeliads) and a few rock-pools along the coast. At the sampling site the soil was covered by mosses and lichens, which could be the habitat of the larvae. The immatures of A. musci, A. folius and A. pluspilalus are all terrestrial and have been found living in mosses and lichens on tree-trunks and stones.
description: Published as part of Mendes, Humberto Fonseca & Andersen, Trond, 2008, A review of Antillocladius Saether and Litocladius Mendes, Andersen et Saether, with the description of two new Neotropical genera (Diptera, Chironomidae, Orthocladiinae), pp. 1-75 in Zootaxa 1887 (1) on pages 21-23, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.1887.1.1, http://zenodo.org/record/5133869