Morellia (Morellia) obscuripes Bigot 1887
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 obscuripes

description: 28. Morellia (M.) obscuripes (Bigot, 1887)
(Figs 109–114)
Pyrellia obscuripes Bigot, 1887: clxxiii [and 1888: 616]. Type locality: MEXICO. Holotype ♂, BMNH (Pont 2000: 21; seen). Musca ochricornis, of authors [misidentification] (see Pont 1997: 107).
Redescription. Colour. Black, with blue reflections. Frontal vitta and upper half of fronto-orbital plate black, lower half of fronto-orbital plate with silver pruinosity; face, parafacial and gena brown with silver pruinosity; antenna yellow with grey pruinosity; basal half of arista yellow, apical half brown; palpus yellow; mesonotum metallic black with a slight blue reflection and with one silver dusted central vitta along acrostichals; postpronotal lobe grey pruinose; legs brown; haltere with brown stalk and yellow knob; calypters brownish, upper calypter on outer half white and opaque; wing without dark markings; abdomen without pruinosity.
Male. Body length: 5.0–6.0 mm; wing length: 5.0–6.0 mm.
Head. Eyes bare but with the usual minute and scattered hairs, separated at level of anterior ocellus by 0.13– 0.15 of head width; frons divergent towards lunule; ocellar triangle with a pair of setae and some setulae; 16–20 pairs of frontal setae; postpedicel 2.0–2.4 times the length of pedicel; pedicel with 2 setae; arista plumose, with 19– 22 cilia, bare apicad, and with some secondary plumes as far as level of 4th to 5th cilia; vibrissa shorter than arista; 1 supravibrissal seta, less than half length of vibrissa, and with a few setulae that extend to level of middle of postpedicel; 5–6 subvibrissal setae followed by 8–9 genal setae. Palpus expanded at apex.
Thorax. Acrostichals 0+1; dorsocentrals 0+2; intra-alars 1+1; presutural 1; prealar 1, strong, longer than half the length of first supra-alar; supra-alars 2; postpronotals 4; notopleuron with 2 long, subequal setae and covered with ground-setulae; postalars 2; intrapostalar 1; scutellum with 1 basal, 1 latero-discal and 1 apical pairs of setae, latero-ventrally with many setae, the basalmost ones downcurved; postalar wall and suprasquamal ridge bare; proepisternal depression bare; proepimeron with about 3 long setae; prosternum broad and setulose; anepisternum with a posterior row of about 11 setae, with 3 weak setae upcurved on upper-anterior corner, and covered with long setulae; katepisternals 1+2; anepimeron extensively setulose on posterior half; katepimeron with 2–5 setulae; anatergite bare; katatergite setulose. Legs: fore femur with posterodorsal, posterior and posteroventral rows of setae; fore tibia with an anterodorsal row of short and strong setae, many strong setulae on ventral surface, and 1 dorsal, 1 posterodorsal and 1 posteroventral preapical setae; fore tarsus with some long setae on basal segment; mid femur with a tubercle at apex of anterodorsal to dorsal surfaces bearing about 4 short spines that continue as about 4 posterodorsal to posterior setae, a complete anterodorsal row of setae, and 4 strong ventral setae on basal half; mid tibia with an anterodorsal comb-like ctenidium of very short spinose setulae on basal fourth that continues with fine setae on apical three-fourths, 2 strong posterior setae on middle third, 2 strong posteroventral setae on basal third and 1 on middle third, 1 dorsal and 1 posterodorsal preapical setae, and 1 anteroventral, 1 posteroventral and 2 ventral apical setae; hind femur with an anteroventral row of setae on apical half, an anterodorsal row of setae on basal two-thirds, 3 weak posteroventral setae on apical third, and 3 dorsal-posterodorsal setae; hind tibia with 4 anteroventral setae on apical half, an anterodorsal row of short setae on basal half and long setae on apical half, a dorsal row of short but strong setulae, 3 posterodorsal setae on basal two-thirds, 6 posteroventral setae on apical two-thirds, no anterodorsal preapical setae, 1 anteroventral, 1 posteroventral and 1 ventral apical setae, and a posterior brush-like golden ctenidium; hind tarsus without modifications in shape or bristling. Wing with a uniform covering of microtrichia; dm-cu sinuous; stem-vein bare before, and with 4 short setulae after, humeral cross-vein on dorsal surface, bare on ventral surface; R2+3 bare on dorsal and ventral surfaces; R4+5 setulose from base to beyond r-m on dorsal and ventral surfaces; 2–3 strong setae on basicosta.
Abdomen. With a lateral tuft of setulae on syntergite 1+2, tergites 3–5 with a few setae laterally; sternite 1 setulose; posterior margin of sternite 5 almost straight and with few setae (Fig. 109).
Terminalia. Cercal plate convex laterally, ventrally with 1 strong spine; surstylus with few setae and some setae on apical two-thirds (Figs 110–111); basiphallus long; aedeagus bare; gonopod with 1 long and strong seta on basal half; paramere with some setae apically (Fig. 112).
Female. Body length: 6.5–7.0 mm; wing length: 6.0 mm.
Similar to male, differing as follows: frontal vitta brown; eyes separated at level of anterior ocellus by 0.31– 0.32 of head width; fronto-orbital plate with 2 proclinate setae, 4 proclinate setulae, 6 reclinate setae and many reclinate setulae; mid tibia with no tubercle, with only 6 posterodorsal-posteroventral oblique setae; hind tibia with 3 setae on apical half, and 1 anterodorsal seta on middle third.
Ovipositor. Tergite 6 as 2 golf-club-shaped rods; tergite 7 as 2 rods, anteriorly enlarged, posteriorly with 2 plates with spines; tergite 8 as 2 broad rods, anteriorly curved, posteriorly with 2 plates with spines; sternite 7 as 1 small rod, posteriorly with 3 plates with spines; sternite 8 as 2 rods, posteriorly with 2 small plates with spines; epiproct triangular, incised anteriorly, with many spines; hypoproct with many setae; cercus cylindrical and long (Figs 113–114).
Material examined. MEXICO, no locality data, J. Bigot, holotype Ƌ (BMNH); BRAZIL: Ceara, Pacatuba, 22.vii. 1973, H.S. Lopes, 2 ƋƋ (MNRJ); Rio de Janeiro, Nova Friburgo, i.1946, P Wygodzinski, 1 ♀ (MNRJ); Rio de Janeiro, Três Rios, 8.viii.1984, S. Paiva, 1 ♀ (MNRJ). ARGENTINA: Tucuman, 1911, E.R. Wagner, 1 ♀ (MNRJ).
Distribution. NEOTROPICAL: Mexico, Cuba, Puerto Rico, Brazil, Galápagos Is., and Argentina.
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 65-67, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4163.1.1, http://zenodo.org/record/259278