Morellia (Morellia) sordidisquama Stein 1918
Creators: name: Pamplona, Denise
name: Nihei, Silvio S.
name: Couri, Márcia S.
name: Pont, Adrian C.
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2016
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Diptera
Muscidae
Morellia
Morellia sordidisquama

description: 38. Morellia (M.) sordidisquama Stein, 1918
(Figs 151–156)
Morellia sordidisquama Stein, 1918: 164. Type locality: SRI LANKA, Pattipola. Syntypes: 1 Ƌ, 1 ♀, HNHM (destroyed 1956; Pont 2013: 109).
Redescription. Colour. Black, with grey pruinosity. Frontal vitta and upper half of fronto-orbital plate black, lower half of fronto-orbital plate, face and parafacial black with silver pruinosity; gena with grey pruinosity; antenna black with grey pruinosity; palpus brown; mesonotum metallic black with one silver-dusted central vitta along presutural acrostichals; postpronotal lobe, notopleuron and anepisternum silver pruinose; legs brown; haltere yellow; calypters brownish, upper calypter on outer half white and opaque; wing without dark markings; abdomen black, last tergite and ventrally with grey pruinosity.
Male. Body length: 6.5 mm; wing length: 6.0 mm.
Head. Eyes bare but with the usual minute and scattered hairs, separated at level of anterior ocellus by about 0.19 of head width; frons divergent towards lunule; ocellar triangle with 1 pair of strong setae and 2–3 setulae; 14– 16 pairs of frontal setae; postpedicel 1.9–2.9 times the length of pedicel; pedicel with 2 setae and a few setulae; arista plumose, with 22–25 cilia, bare apicad, and with some secondary plumes as far as level of 8th to 10th cilia; vibrissa shorter than arista; 1 strong supravibrissal seta, half as long as vibrissa, and many other setulae that extend to level of basal fourth of postpedicel; 5–6 subvibrissal setae followed by 10 genal setae.
Thorax. Acrostichals 0+1; dorsocentrals 2+4; intra-alars 1+1; presutural 1; prealar 1, half the length of first supra-alar; supra-alars 2; postpronotals 3; notopleuron with 2 long, subequal setae and covered with groundsetulae; postalars 2; intrapostalar 1; scutellum with 1 basal, 1 latero-discal, 1 discal and 1 apical pairs of setae, and latero-ventrally with many setae, the basalmost ones downcurved; postalar wall bare; suprasquamal ridge bare; proepisternal depression bare; proepimeron with about 3–5 long setae and few setulae; prosternum broad and setulose; anepisternum with a posterior row of about 8 setae, with 4 weak setae upcurved on upper-anterior corner, and covered with long setulae; katepisternals 1+2; anepimeron extensively setulose; katepimeron with 1–2 setulae; anatergite bare; katatergite setulose. Legs: fore femur with a posterodorsal row of setae on apical two-thirds becoming shorter basad and apicad, and a complete posteroventral row of setae; fore tibia with an anterodorsal row of setae, many setulae on ventral surface, 1 anterodorsal, 1 dorsal and 1 posteroventral preapical setae, and anterior surface with a brush-like ctenidium of golden setulae; fore tarsus with a golden ctenidium and some long setae on basal segment; mid femur without a tubercle, with 1 anterior seta on middle third, 4 strong posterodorsal to dorsal setae and 2 fine setae at apex, 4–5 strong posteroventral setae on apical half, and 3 ventral setae on basal third; mid tibia with 4 strong posterior setae on basal two-thirds, 3 strong and short posterodorsal setae on apical half, many short ventral setulae, 1 anterodorsal and 1 dorsal preapical setae, and 1 anteroventral, 1 posteroventral and 2 ventral apical setae; hind femur with 3–5 anteroventral setae on apical third, an anterodorsal row of setae, 2 posterodorsal preapical setae, and a few posteroventral setulae on apical fourth; hind tibia with 2 anteroventral setae on apical third, an anterodorsal row of short setae on basal two-thirds, the 3 apical ones stronger, a dorsal row of very short and strong setulae, 1 weak posteroventral seta on middle third and 3 setae on apical third, 1 dorsal and 1 anterodorsal preapical setae, 1 anteroventral, 1 ventral and no posteroventral apical setae, and a posterior brush-like golden ctenidium; hind tarsus with a golden brush ventrally. Wing with a uniform covering of microtrichia; dm-cu sinuous; stem-vein bare on dorsal surface, and ventrally with about 5–7 short setulae before humeral cross-vein and bare after humeral cross-vein; R2+3 bare on dorsal and ventral surfaces; R4+5 setulose from base to midway to r-m on dorsal and ventral surfaces; 3 strong setae on basicosta.
Abdomen. With a lateral tuft of setulae on syntergite 1+2 and on tergites 3–4; tergite 4 with setae apically; tergite 5 with setae on disc and apically; sternite 1 setulose; posterior margin of sternite 5 concave and with many setae on membrane (Fig. 151).
Terminalia. Outer margin of cercal plate convex; cercal plate ventrally with 1 spine (Figs 152–153); surstylus with many setae and a few setae; aedeagal apodeme narrowed apically; aedeagus with spicules on anterior membrane of distiphallus; gonopod with one long and strong seta on basal half; paramere with 2 setae on middle third (Fig. 154).
Female. Body length: 6.5 mm; wing length: 6.0 mm.
Similar to male, differing as follows: eyes separated at level of anterior ocellus by 0.34–0.38 of head width; fronto-orbital plate with 1 proclinate seta, 4 proclinate setulae and 2 reclinate setulae; mid femur without a tubercle, with 4 setae but without the 2 fine setae, and with 3–5 weak ventral setae; hind tibia without posteroventral setae on apical third.
Ovipositor. Tergite 6 as 2 rods, posteriorly with some small setulae; tergite 7 as 2 rods, posteriorly with 2 plates with spines; tergite 8 as 2 rods; sternite 6 as 1 rod, posteriorly with a few very small setulae; sternite 7 as 1 rod, posteriorly with 3 round plates with spines; sternite 8 as 2 plates with small setae; enlarged spicules on intersegmental membrane between segments 6–7 and 7–8; epiproct large with about 5 very small setulae; hypoproct with many setae; cercus flattened and not long (Figs 155–156).
Material examined. SRI LANKA: Hakgala, 1800–1900 m, 31.v.1953, F. Keiser, 1 Ƌ, 1 ♀ (BMNH); Nuwara, 1900 m, 1.vi.1953, F. Keiser, 1 ♀ (BMNH).
Distribution. ORIENTAL: India, Sri Lanka, China,? Taiwan.
description: Published as part of Pamplona, Denise, Nihei, Silvio S., Couri, Márcia S. & Pont, Adrian C., 2016, Taxonomy of Morellia Robineau-Desvoidy (Diptera: Muscidae): revision of the subgenera Morellia s. str. and Parapyrellia Townsend, pp. 1-110 in Zootaxa 4163 (1) on pages 83-85, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4163.1.1, http://zenodo.org/record/259278