Molophilus (Molophilus) suboccultus Starý, 2011, sp. n.
Creators: name: Starý, Jaroslav
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2011
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Diptera
Limoniidae
Molophilus
Molophilus suboccultus

description: Molophilus (Molophilus) suboccultus sp. n.
Figures 34–36
Diagnosis. Small species within Molophilus. Body black, locally suffused with sparse greyish pruinosity, patterned with yellow only lateral to prescutal pit. Gonocoxite of male terminalia with thumb-like dorsal lobe and conical lateral lobe. Outer (dorsal) gonostylus much shorter than inner (ventral) gonostylus, triangular, flattened. Inner gonostylus sickle-shaped, subacute at apex, with serrate concave margin. Wing length 3.3–4.1 mm.
Description. Male. Head. Antenna short, not reaching wing base, dark brown to almost black throughout. Flagellomeres ovoid, with longest verticils exceeding length of their respective segments.
Thorax black, shiny, locally suffused with sparse greyish pruinosity. Prescutum and scutum almost black, with yellow area lateral to prescutal pit, including adjacent part of paratergite; slightly paler, greyish area between scutal lobes. Scutellum and postscutellum black, the former sometimes slightly paler medially. Pleuron black, slightly paler on dorsopleural membrane. Wing narrow, membrane infuscated; venation generally as for genus. Stem of halter slightly infuscated, knob pale yellow. Legs deep dark brown to black throughout.
Abdomen deep dark brown to black, including male terminalia (Figs 34–36). Dorsal portion of gonocoxite moderate in length. Dorsal lobe comparatively small and narrow, with small tubercle at inner side near base. Lateral lobe conspicuously elongated, conical, narrowly rounded at tip, with row of short setae dorsally. Lateral lobe distinctly exceeding dorsal lobe. Lateral excision moderately deep and wide. Ventral lobe of gonocoxite generally stout and moderately long, its broadly rounded tip slightly extending beyond apices of both dorsal lobe and outer gonostylus. Outer gonostylus much shorter than inner one, generally triangular, flattened and less pigmented, reaching to about half length of inner gonostylus. The latter darkly pigmented, exceeding ventral lobe by about half its length, generally sickle-shaped, straight in proximal half, then curved downwards and serrate at its concave margin, tapered to subacute tip. Aedeagus of moderate length and breadth, slightly bent ventrally, then gradually tapered to very slightly upturned tip. Aedeagal plate of moderate size, generally oval in ventral/ventrocaudal aspect, with extremely slender, blackened median spine.
Female resembling male in general appearance.
Material examined. Holotype 3: Portugal, Algarve, Serra de Monchique Mts, Foia Mt., springs & marshes (780–870 m) (37°19'N / 8°36'W), 2.v.2010 (M. Vála leg.) (SMOC). Paratypes (4 3, 1 Ƥ): Portugal: Algarve: Serra de Monchique Mts, Foia Mt., springs & marshes (780–870 m) (37°19'N / 8°36'W), 1.v.2010, 1 3, 2.v.2010, 2 3, 1 Ƥ; Monchique, 1.5 km E, brook (430 m) (37°19'N / 8°32'W), 1.v.2010, 1 3 (all M. Vála leg.) (JSO).
Excluded from type series: Spain, Andalucía, Algeciras, 26.–30.iv. 1925, 1 3 (H. Zerny leg.) (NHMW). Lackschewitz (1940a) listed the following material under M. occultus: “ Spanien, Andalusien, Algeciras, 26.– 30.IV., 12.–20. V.1925, 3, Ƥ (Zerny)“. I can confirm the male terminalia of the first specimen mentioned above as being identical with M. (M.) suboccultus sp. n., and the same is probably true for other specimens of Lackschewitz’s series. The body colouration of the specimen, however, is not black but greyish brown, as it is in M. (M.) occultus (even if a certain degree of discolouration is taken into consideration). More material would be needed to solve the problem, so the above-listed specimen is excluded from the type series of M. (M.) suboccultus sp. n.
Etymology. The name of this new species, suboccultus, indicates its close relationship to M. (M.) occultus. An adjective in nominative singular.
Discussion. The new species is closely related to M. (M.) occultus de Meijere, 1918. As with the other species pairs discussed in this paper (creticola sp. n. / cypricola sp. n., carbonis sp. n. / nigrescens, ibericus nom. n. / propinquus, brevifurcatus sp. n. / pleuralis, testaceus / griseus) M. (M.) suboccultus sp. n. much resembles its counterpart in the structure of the male terminalia, being, however, distinguished at first sight by its black body colouration (greyish brown in occultus). It also differs externally from M. (M.) occultus by having narrower wings. In the structure of the male terminalia, there are numerous distinguishing details between the two. In general, the gonocoxite of M. (M.) suboccultus sp. n. is slightly longer and more slender than that of M. (M.) occultus (the difference is similar to that between pleuralis and brevifurcatus sp. n., respectively). Furthermore, the new species differs from M. (M.) occultus by having the tubercle at the inner side of the dorsal lobe smaller, the lateral lobe shorter, and the ventral lobe only slightly extending beyond the tip of the outer gonostylus (distinctly so in occultus). The median spine of the aedeagal plate is shorter and extremely slender in M. (M.) suboccultus sp. n., whereas it is almost twice as long in M. (M.) occultus and not so slender (cf. Figs 34–36 and 37).
Distribution. Portugal.
description: Published as part of Starý, Jaroslav, 2011, Descriptions and records of the Palaearctic Molophilus Curtis (Diptera, Limoniidae), pp. 45-62 in Zootaxa 2999 on page 59, DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.203285