Syneches smithi Soares & Freitas-Silva & Ale-Rocha 2021, sp. nov.
Creators: name: Soares, Matheus M. M.
name: Freitas-Silva, Rafael A. P.
name: Ale-Rocha, Rosaly
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2021
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Diptera
Hybotidae
Syneches
Syneches smithi

description: Syneches smithi sp. nov.
(Figs 41A–E, 42A–E, 53)
Diagnosis. Medium size (5.5 mm) (Fig. 41A). Antenna dark brown except apex of pedicel and base of postpedicel pale brown (Fig. 41C). Scutum rounded, as broad as mesopleuron in lateral view, pale brown to dark yellow, except acr region with a complete dark brown wide stripe and 2 subtriangular dark brown spots (1 short and narrow near pprn lb, 1 wide on npl) (Figs 41A, B). Hind femur slightly swollen (Fig. 41D); legs with hind femur reddish brown on apical 1/4, anterior face reddish brown on apical 3/4, fore and hind tibiae, fore and hind tarsi and mid tarsomeres 3–5 darker, otherwise yellow (Figs 41A, D). Wing pale brown, pterostigma long, oval, dark brown, about 4 x longer than wide; second section of M 1 longer than crossvein r-m; cell bm longer than cells br and cua (Fig. 41E).
Description. Holotype male (Fig. 41A). Body length: 5.5 mm. Wing length: 4.6 mm. Head (Fig. 41C). Ocellar triangle protuberant; 2 pairs of ocellar bristles (anterior pair about 2 x longer than posterior pair). Face black covered with gray pruinescence. Antenna dark brown except apex of pedicel and base of postpedicel pale brown; postpedicel short oval, about 1.5 x longer than wide, slightly longer than preceding segments combined, covered with pale brown pruinescence, 1 long mediodorsal bristle longer than postpedicel; antennal stylus brown, about 3.5 x length of preceding segments combined, covered with short microtrichia, except apical 1/4 bare. Proboscis and palpus yellow; palpifer brown; palpus about 1/3 length of proboscis, covered with golden pruinescence, bearing 2 bristles longer than palpus (1 medioventral, 1 apical), plus 3 shorter bristles (1V on basal half, 2D on apical half). Postcranium black, covered with gray pruinescence. Thorax (Figs 41A, B). Proepisternum short; prosternum isolated, not fused to proepisternum. Pronotum dark brown. Scutum rounded, as broad as mesopleuron in lateral view, dark yellow, except acr region with complete wide, dark brown stripe and 2 subtriangular, dark brown spots (1 short and narrow near pprn lb, 1 wide on npl). Scutellum dark brown. Pronotum, scutum and scutellum covered with golden pruinescence. Pleura brown, except anepimeron with pale spots. Mediotergite brown. Chaetotaxy: acr 6-serial, dc uniserial, bristles short and sparse; prescutellar disc with 2 acr and 2 dc longer and stronger bristles, each posterior most bristle apically curved backwards; 2 npl, long, strong and close each other; 2 pal bristles (anterior short and thin, posterior long and strong, about 4 x longer than anterior); scutellum with 11 marginal bristles (1 parallel apical pair, 1 long, strong and divergent subapical pair, slightly longer than apicals, 4 left lateral bristles and 3 right lateral bristles, shorter than apical bristle). Legs (Figs 41A, D). Fore femur slightly swollen on basal half, mid femur slender, hind femur slightly swollen. Legs with fore tibia (except base and apex) and fore tarsus, mid tarsomeres 3–5, hind femur with apical 1/4 (3/4 of anterior face) and hind tarsus reddish brown; hind tibia dark brown, but basal half reddish brown, otherwise yellow. Chaetotaxy: fore tibia with 1D series of bristles slightly longer than covering ones; mid femur with 1AV, 1AD, and 1PV long and sparse bristles, shortening towards apex; mid tibia with 1D long bristle on basal third, slightly shorter than mid tarsomere 1, 1D shorter subapical bristle, 2AV and 2PV bristles on apical third, slightly longer than covering ones, 1AV and 1PV long subapical bristle, slightly shorter than mid tarsomere 1; hind femur with 1AV series of long, thin and sparse bristles; hind tibia with 1PD series of bristles, longer on apical third, and 1D and 1AV long, subapical bristle. Wing (Fig. 41E). Pale brown; pterostigma oval, dark brown, about 4 x longer than wide, extended from apex of R 1 and not filling apex of cell r 1; R 2+3 slightly angulate apically; second section of M 1 longer than crossvein r-m; cell bm longer than cells br and cua. Halter dark brown, except base of stem yellow. Abdomen (Fig. 41A). About 2.5 x longer than thorax. Brown, covered with golden pruinescence; dorsal bristles short, brown, laterodorsal bristles long and yellow. Male terminalia (Paratype, type-locality, Figs 42A–C).
Distal margin of hypandrium slightly convex, bearing 1 pair of long apical bristles reaching half-length of exposed part of phallus. Phallus long, apex rounded, lateral flaps short and slender, pointing to base of phallus, arising from basal half of phallus. Postgonite as long as exposed part of phallus, apex rounded, sclerotized on basal half, membranous on apical half. Dorsal connection of epandrial lamellae wide. Epandrial lamella narrowing on apical 1/ 3 in lateral view, forming long narrow apicodorsal projection.
Female. Similar to male. Female terminalia (Figs 42D, E). Tergite 8 rectangular, slightly longer than wide, distal margin slightly concave with long lateral bristles; sternite 8 about 2 x longer than wide, narrower and membranous on middle of proximal portion. Cercus as long as tergite 10.
Type material. HOLOTYPE ♂ (DZUP) labelled: “S [São] JOSÉ [dos] PINHAIS – PR [Paraná], Ser [Serra] [do] Mar Br 277 Km 54, BRASIL, 10.xi.1986, Lev [antamento] Ent [omológico], PROFAUPAR, MALAISE” “HOLOTYPE, Syneches smithi Soares, Freitas-Silva & Ale-Rocha ” [red label]. Holotype condition: good; not dissected. PARATYPES: Same data as holotype (1 ♀, INPA; 3 ♀ MZUSP); idem, 31.x.1986 (3 ♀, DZUP); idem, 01.xi.1986 (1 ♂, 3 ♀, DZUP); idem, 02.xi.1986 (2 ♂, 3 ♀, DZUP; 1 ♂, INPA); idem, 03.xi.1986 (4 ♀, DZUP; 1 ♂, INPA); idem, 04.xi.1986 (11 ♀, INPA; 1 ♂, MZUSP); idem, 17.xi.1986 (3 ♀, MZUSP); Manancial, 04.xii.2006, J.A. Rafael (1 ♀, INPA); Piraquara, Manancial da Serra Mar, 25°29′46″S. 48°58′54″W, 1000 m, 16–17.xii.2006, J.A. Rafael & G.A. Melo, Arm. Luminosa (lençol) (1 ♀, INPA); Jundiaí do Sul, Fazenda monte Verde, 10.xi.1986, Malaise (1 ♀, MZUSP).
Additional examined material. BRAZIL. São Paulo: Est [Estado de São Paulo], S [Serra da] Cantareira, Cantareira, Barretto col., x.[1]945 (5 ♂, 11 ♀, MZUSP).
Distribution. Brazil (Paraná and São Paulo) (Fig. 53). Syneches smithi sp. nov. is recorded only from the Atlantic Forest biome.
Variation. The scutum may be brown, npl spot may be shorter and the number of lateral scutellar bristles varies between 3–5. The hind femur with A face reddish brown only on apical third and hind tarsomeres 1–2 with V face dark yellow. Specimens from Serra da Cantareira (São Paulo) are smaller, predominantly darker; the distal marginal concavity of hypandrium is shallower and the phallus shorter than in the specimens from Paraná. The variation in the color maybe due to the conservation method used with specimens from Paraná that seems to have been previously preserved in alcohol.
Remarks. Syneches smithi sp. nov. mainly differs from all other species by the presence of the complete dark brown acr stripe and the scutum covered with golden pruinescence, in addition to the characters of the male terminalia.
Etymology. This species is named after Kenneth G.V. Smith (in memoriam), for his contribution to the study of Empidoidea, mainly in South American Hybotidae.
description: Published as part of Soares, Matheus M. M., Freitas-Silva, Rafael A. P. & Ale-Rocha, Rosaly, 2021, Review of Brazilian species of Syneches Walker (Diptera, Hybotidae, Hybotinae), with description of ten new species, pp. 1-84 in Zootaxa 5049 (1) on pages 63-66, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.5049.1.1, http://zenodo.org/record/5560580