Forcipomyia (Microhelea) paulista Falaschi & Albertoni & Fusari 2014, nov. sp.
Creators: name: Falaschi, Rafaela Lopes
name: Albertoni, Fabiano Fabian
name: Fusari, Lívia Maria
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2014
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Diptera
Ceratopogonidae
Forcipomyia
Forcipomyia paulista

description: Forcipomyia (Microhelea) paulista nov. sp. Falaschi, Albertoni and Fusari
(Figs.4–37)
Diagnosis. Female: maxilla dentate, bearing 12 plates (Figs. 17, 20–21); mandible serrate with 20 denticles in a curving row (Figs. 17, 18–19); bicolored antenna (Figs. 9, 11) and hypopharynx with lateral sharp denticles (Figs. 17, 22–23); abdominal pleura covered with microsetae, and all longest setae filiform (Figs. 7–8, 13–14, 34–35, 37). Male: unknown.
Description. Female. Total length: 3.7 mm (n = 2) (Figs. 7–8). Head brownish, covered with several setae, mostly yellowish in the medial region of head and brownish on the laterals, highlighting at least two longest, curved setae on the base of eyes, oriented oppositely to the others. Eyes contiguous and bare (Fig. 9). Antennae bicolored, moniliform to filiform; scape brownish, rounded, with at least five long setae, pedicel cylindrical, brownish basally and yellowish apically; flagellomeres 1–7 yellowish, globose; flagellomere 8 darker, almost two times longer than wide, basally circled with long setae; flagellomeres 9–10 darker. Flagellomeres 1–8 with 362 µm; flagellomere 9 and 10 with 120 µm and 119 µm respectively, longer than half the length of flagellomeres 1–8, entirely covered with whitish, slender setae; flagellomere 11 missing (Figs. 9, 11). Clypeus and palpus brownish (Figs. 9, 12). Segment 3 cylindrical, covered with sensilla and a few long scattered setae; sensory pit with ridged wall, extended to four-fifths of article. Lengths of palpal segments (in µm): 45–47, 63–65, 111–123, 56–63, 34–40. PR 1.65–2.01 (n = 2) (Figs. 17, 25, 27–28). Mandible serrate with 20 denticles in a curving row, gradually increasing in size from minute denticle at apex to large denticle at base, proximal denticle forming a distinct lateral expansion of mandible (Figs. 17, 18–19). Maxilla very sclerotized and gradually tapering apically with 12 transverse plates (Figs. 17, 20–21). Labrum-epipharynx (Figs. 17, 24) with lateral ornamentation in the sub-apical extremity, with three membranous stripes—one medial and two lateral. Hypopharynx (Figs. 17, 22–23) slender, as long as epipharynx, laterally with several sharpened tiny spines, bearing many spots on the surface. Labellum almost reaching the apex of mandible, base of labellum almost reaching the posterior border of clypeus and connected dorsally by a membrane (Figs. 17, 26).
Thorax (Figs. 7, 10, 16) uniformly dark brown. Scutum with brownish setae. Scutellum with at least three rows of setae; anepisternum and katepisternum brownish and bare; laterotergite rectangular transverse bare, half whitish and half brownish. Legs (Figs. 8, 29–33) with coxae and trochanters brownish, femora, tibiae, and tarsi yellowish, except hind tibia with an apical brownish spot. Tarsal ratios (T1/T2) of fore-, mid-, and hind legs 0.67, 0.47, and 0.53, respectively. Tarsal claws symmetrical, strongly falcate (Fig. 29–30). All last tarsomeres subquadrate with a concave antennal cleaner-like structure, at ventral apex (Fig. 30); empodia bipectinate (Fig. 32). Foretibia with an internal spur (Fig. 31) and an internal bunch of setae almost covering a comb of tiny setae in the apex of the foretibia. Hind tibia with two comb rows and a single internal spur (Fig. 33). Wings both extensively damaged, impossible to measure. Membrane hyaline, without microsetae. Halter (Fig. 15) yellowish, poorly sclerotized, entirely covered by microsetae, with a single seta in the knob.
Abdomen (Figs. 7–8, 13–14, 34–37) with tergites dark brown and sternites light brown. Both specimens gravid with strongly distended, tick-like abdomen (Figs. 7–8). Tergites and sternites reduced to small, rectangular, transverse covered with sparse and tiny setae. Sternite 8 divided medially, with several setae posteriorly, and entirely covered by microsetae; sternite 9 (Fig. 13–14, 36) entirely covered by microsetae, with two lateral projections posteriorly; sternite 10 membranous, covered by microsetae, with three pairs of setae, anterior pair minute, posterior pair elongate, slender. Pleural membrane deeply distended, covered by microsetae, and with sparse and short, filiform pale brown setae. Two pear-shaped spermathecae (Fig. 36), slightly unequal, inconspicuous necks, measuring 108–112 µm by 64–68µm. Cerci 111µm.
Male and immatures: Unknown.
Etymology. The specific epithet paulista refers to inhabitants of the state of São Paulo. It should be treated as a noun in apposition.
Geographic distribution and bionomics. Forcipomyia (Microhelea) paulista nov. sp. is known only from the type locality in São Paulo State, Brazil, at 850 m, in an Atlantic rainforest area (Fig. 1). Female adults were found biting on a female adult specimen of Paraphasma paulense (Phasmida).
Taxonomic discussion. Forcipomyia (Microhelea) paulista nov. sp. is the 14th species described from Brazil, and the first species described from São Paulo State. The new species keys out in Clastrier and Wirth (1995) according to the following couplets: 1.3. Maxilla with a single row of regular transversal plates; 6.1. Abdominal pleura covered with sparse setae and without modified setae (as a scale); 7.1. Antenna bicolored; 8.2. Palpus unicolored. The new species does not fit with any of the steps (10, 11, 12, or 13) in couplet 9, nor does it correspond with any of the other described species in the key.
Following the key and descriptions provided by Clastrier and Wirth (1995), F. (M.) paulista nov. sp. seems to be morphologically similar to Forcipomyia (Microhelea) alleni Clastrier and Wirth, 1995 (from Costa Rica), Forcipomyia (Microhelea) castneri Clastrier and Wirth, 1995 (from Peru and Brazil), Forcipomyia (Microhelea) grandcolasi Clastrier and Wirth, 1995 (from French Guiana), and Forcipomyia (Microhelea) tettigonaris Wirth and Castner, 1990 (from Peru). However, the new species clearly differs from the other species belonging to the subgenus Forcipomyia (Microhelea), mainly by the structures of the mouthparts.
The species Forcipomyia (Microhelea) brasiliana Clastrier and Wirth, 1995 (Peru), Forcipomyia. (Microhelea) breelandi Clastrier and Wirth, 1995 (Panama), Forcipomyia (Microhelea) kawensis Clastrier and Wirth, 1995 (French Guiana), Forcipomyia (Microhelea) nigrimaxillata Clastrier and Wirth, 1995 (Peru), Forcipomyia (Microhelea) thomasi Clastrier and Wirth, 1995 (Brazil), and Forcipomyia (Microhelea) wagneri (Séguy, 1941) (Brazil) are easily distinguished from F. (M.) paulista nov. sp. by, for example, the following morphological characters: the globular labellum present in F. (M.) brasiliana and F. (M.) thomasi; the labellum length, which is extremely short in F. (M.) breelandi and F. (M.) wagneri; and the maxilla strongly sclerotized in F. (M.) kawensis and F. (M.) nigrimaxillata.
The mouthparts have the main diagnostic characters that help to differentiate species belonging to the subgenus Forcipomyia (Microhelea). Forcipomyia (M.) alleni has two short spines at the extreme distal of the maxilla, followed by six plates, whereas F. (M.) paulista nov. sp. has 12 transversal plates in the maxilla, and no spines. Forcipomyia (M.) castneri has 25 denticles in the mandible and 21 plates in the maxilla; in addition, the labellum is longer than the other mouthparts and the halter is black. On the other hand, F. (M.) paulista nov. sp. has only 20 denticles in the mandible and 12 plates in the maxilla; in addition, the labellum is shorter than the other mouthparts and the halter is yellowish. Forcipomyia (M.) grandcolasi has a darker mandible, with 22 denticles, and 22 irregular transversal plates in the maxilla; in addition, the labellum is extremely short, exposing the remaining mouthparts. Finally, F. (M.) tettigonaris has 17 denticles in the mandible, and five linear formations and 10 plates in the maxilla; in addition, the labellum is longer than the other mouthparts.
The remaining 28 species treated by Clastrier and Wirth (1995) are easily distinguished from F. (M.) paulista nov. sp. by the following morphological characters: maxilla with more than a single range of plates; abdominal pleura with modified setae (scales-like setae); and palpus bicolored.
Considering the different biomes that have not yet been sampled in Brazil and South America, especially those biomes where the occurrence of the hosts of Forcipomyia (Microhelea) is known and recorded, we believe that a considerable part of the diversity of this taxon remains unknown and undescribed.
Type material. Holotype ♀, labeled “ BRAZIL, São Paulo, Salesópolis, Estação Biológica de Boracéia, 23°38ʹS 45°52ʹW, 900 m, leg. F.F.Albertoni ” (MZUSP). Paratype, 1 ♀, same data as holotype (MZUSP).
description: Published as part of Falaschi, Rafaela Lopes, Albertoni, Fabiano Fabian & Fusari, Lívia Maria, 2014, A new species of Forcipomyia (Microhelea) Meigen (Insecta: Diptera: Ceratopogonidae) from the Neotropical region, pp. 379-389 in Zootaxa 3878 (4) on pages 381-389, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.3878.4.4, http://zenodo.org/record/4948656