Psilochironomus Sublette 1966
Creators: name: Andersen, Trond
name: Sanz-Laparra, Annui Malla
name: Giłka, Wojciech
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2024
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Diptera
Chironomidae
Psilochironomus

description: Genus: Psilochironomus Sublette, 1966
Psilochironomus Sublette, 1966: 19.
Type species: Chironomus fumeus Walley in Curran, 1934: 307, fig. 18.
Emended generic diagnosis. Adult male.
Body size and colouration. Medium sized species with wing length about 2.6 mm. Body dark brown, wing with wide dark band in middle 1/3.
Antenna. With 13 flagellomeres, fully plumed. AR about 2.60.
Head. Frontal tubercles absent. Temporal setae consisting of inseparably intergrading verticals and postorbitals, briefly bi- to tri-serial near transition of eye to its dorsomedial extension. Eye bare; dorsomedial eye extension nearly parallel-sided, about 2 times as wide as high, with 5–6 facets per diagonal; interocular distance in frontal view about 1.5 times the apical width of the extension. Clypeus with numerous setae. Palp 5-segmented, second palpomere rounded connected subproximally to ventrolateral surface of third palpomere at an angle of up to 90 °. Third palpomere slightly swollen proximally and equipped with cluster of 8–12 strong, spine-like setae proximomedially; apparently without sensilla clavata subapically.
Thorax. Scutum not overreaching antepronotum; scutal tubercle absent. Antepronotum broad, collar-like, with halves meeting in the middle at anterior margin of scutum; with few ventrolateral setae. Acrostichals numerous, arising from small pale spots, short, decumbent, paired or interspersed, occurring from near antepronotum to mid scutum. Dorsocentrals and prealars in single row. Supraalar 1. Scutellars in single to partly double row. Alveoli of other thoracic setae not surrounded by circles lighter in color than adjacent surfaces.
Wing. Membrane without setae, with fine punctuation. Anal lobe well developed. Costa not or only slightly extended, ending proximal to wing apex. R 2+3 running and ending close to R 1. FCu slightly distal to RM. Brachiolum with 1 seta; R with several setae, R 1 and R 4+5 without or with few setae. Squama fringed.
Legs. Fore tibia with single comb, with central protruding long spur; mid- and hind tibia with two broadly triangular combs, each with protruding spur. Pseudospurs absent. Pulvilli simple, pad-like, not reaching apex of claws.
Hypopygium. Tergite IX with several weak setae, laterosternite with few stronger setae. Anal point in dorsal view subtriangular, tapering to rounded apex, in lateral view with apex hooked ventrad. Phallapodeme well developed. Transverse sternapodeme narrow, arched, with low, rounded oral projections. Superior volsella straight with hoked apex, projecting caudally, with microtrichia and seta medially, apically bare. Inferior volsella ovate, with microtrichia and strong marginal and dorsal setae. Pars ventralis, median volsella and pseudovolsella absent. Gonostylus stout with bluntly rounded apex.
description: Published as part of Andersen, Trond, Sanz-Laparra, Annui Malla & Giłka, Wojciech, 2024, The identity of Psilochironomus Sublette, 1966 (Chironomidae, Chironominae, Pseudochironomini), pp. 111-118 in Zootaxa 5496 (1) on pages 112-113, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.5496.1.6, http://zenodo.org/record/13331113