Suragina falsa Oldroyd 1939
Creators: name: Muller, Burgert S.
name: Swart, Vaughn R.
name: Snyman, Louwrens P.
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2024
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Diptera
Athericidae
Suragina
Suragina falsa

description: Suragina falsa Oldroyd, 1939
Figs 4, 19, 44
Suragina falsa Oldroyd, 1939: 15; Stuckenberg 1980: 313.
Type material examined.
[from digital photographs] Holotype: 1 ♀; Uganda; Western Region; Ruwenzori [Rwenzori] Range, Kilembe; [00°11.8833'N, 30°00.8167'E]; 4500 ft [1372 masl]; Dec. 1934 – Jan. 1935; F. W. Edwards leg.; B. M. E. Afr. Exp.; BM 135-203; NHMUK 014064160 (NHMUK).
Paratypes: 1 ♀; same data as holotype; NHMUK 014064161 (NHMUK); 2 ♀; Western Region; Ruwenzori [Rwenzori] Range, Namwamba Valley; [0°14.245'N, 29°58.13'E]; 6500 ft [1981 masl]; Dec. 1934 – Jan. 1935; F. W. Edwards leg.; B. M. E. Afr. Exp.; BM 135-203; (2 ♀: NHMUK 014064162, 014064163) (NHMUK).
Diagnosis.
An orange-yellow species, the scutum with central blackish-brown vitta, and additional pre- and postsutural dark brown markings. Notopleural area with a brown marking and silver-grey pruinosity (Fig. 4). It is most similar to S. monogramma (Bezzi, 1926), but that species has only a single central vitta without any additional pre- or postsutural dark markings. Suragina monogramma also has its tibia brownish-yellow to orange-yellow compared to S. falsa that has its tibia dark brown, almost black.
Redescription.
(Based on digital photographs of ♀ Holotype and 3 ♀ paratypes.)
Measurements (♀ n = 3): Wing span: 8.0– 10.5 mm (avg. 9.3 mm); body length: 8.6–10.4 mm (avg. 9.5 mm); wing span to body length ratio (avg.): 0.98.
Male. Unknown.
Female (Fig. 19).
Head: Dark brownish-black ground colour, with silvery-grey pruinosity on majority of head; eye bare; dichoptic; ommatidia of similar size; lateral edge of eye without any indentation; ocellar tubercle slightly elevated, visible in profile, dark setulose, silvery-grey pruinose; vertex silvery-grey pruinose, with dark setulae, vertex appearing blackish dark brown when viewed posteriorly; anterior ocellus similar in size to posterior pair; ocellar tubercle in front of dorsal margin of eye; dorsal inner edge of eye without discernible paired dark markings, same silvery-grey pruinose as rest of head; occiput with same silvery-grey pruinosity; paired subrectangular blackish-brown markings with dark setulae on upper occiput running down to occipital foramen, abutting posterior margin of eyes, flanking vertex; upper occiput otherwise with pale setulae; lower occiput with lateral margins and medial area with long pale setulae, these continue ventrally on head to mouthparts that have pale ventral setulae; frons silvery-grey pruinose, velvety-black from ocellar tubercle to lower half of eye; frons running almost parallel, widening only very slightly towards antennal base in paratypes; frons with dark setulae; face and gena silvery-grey pruinose, with pale setulae; clypeus with silvery-grey pruinosity, bare; face separated anteriorly from clypeus by shallow transverse suture, deeper sutures laterally; face not appearing to bulge laterally when viewed in profile; clypeus visible in profile, face not; antennal bases separated ca 1 × width of scape, with slight longitudinal groove running between; scape, pedicel mostly orange, dorsally orange-brown, otherwise with some whitish pruinosity; 1 st flagellomere entirely orange; 2 nd flagellomere brown; scape and pedicel of similar size; 1 st flagellomere reniform, 2 × size of pedicel; 2 nd flagellomere arista-like; pedicel with dark dorsal and ventral setulae, similar in size, scape with only dark dorsal setulae; palpus orange with mostly darker setulae, and some interspersed pale setulae (Namwamba Valley paratype has outer lateral margins of palpus black with some white pruinosity and with dark setulae throughout, apical half of proboscis darker than in other specimens); palpus ca 0.5 × length of proboscis; proboscis ca same length as head height; proboscis darker brownish-orange on apical half, orange on basal half with long pale setulae dorsally, dark setulae ventrally.
Thorax (Fig. 4): Scutum dark orange-yellow with central blackish-brown vitta with silver-grey pruinosity on presutural surface; central vitta extends to before and sometimes reaching scutellum (especially pronounced in paratype from Namwamba Valley); scutum with large paired presutural dark brown markings that do not extend into notopleuron; scutum also with smaller postsutural dark brown markings (more elongated appearance in paratype from Namwamba Valley), taking up half of posterior surface of scutum, with remaining posterior surface orange-yellow; scutum generally with short dark setulae with postsutural setulae somewhat longer; pronotum yellow with pale setulae; postpronotal lobe yellow, with short dark setulae; notopleuron appearing silver-grey pruinose when viewed dorsally, more yellow when viewed in profile; notopleural setulae dark; postalar wall and postalar callus orange-yellow; scutellum orange-yellow with short dark setulae; majority of pleura orange-yellow with some whitish pruinosity, except for anepisternum and katepisternum that is blackish-grey with white pruinosity and meron that is dark brown with similar pruinosity; pruinose pleura with long pale setulae; anepimeron with long pale setulae, anatergite and meron bare; proepisternum and proepimeron with long pale setulae; anterior and posterior spiracles and surroundings yellow, bare; postspiracular scale orange-yellow; postnotum brown, yellow on lateral margins.
Legs: Coxae orange-yellow with mid coxa brown on inner anterior surface; fore coxa with long pale setulae on anterior and posterior surfaces; mid coxa with dark setulae on anterior surface; hind coxa with dark setulae on anterior surface as well as dark setulae surrounding well-developed anterior apical point, lateral apical edges with long pale setulae; all trochanters orange-yellow with short pale setulae, mid trochanter with dark hind margin; fore and mid femora yellow, fore femur with apical dorsal surface dark brown; hind femur yellow on apical and basal third, dark brown medially (Namwamba Valley paratypes with larger dark brown medial section); fore and hind tibiae entirely blackish-brown; mid tibia and first two tarsal segments yellow, rest of tarsi blackish-brown; fore tarsal claws and pulvilli symmetrical, pulvilus and empodium of similar size; fore tarsi with long, somewhat curved sensory setulae along antero- and posteroventral surfaces, sensory setulae ca 2 × as long as tarsal segment is wide; all femora with pale setulae, some darker setulae on apical dorsal surface of fore femur; all femora with long pale setulae on apical ventral and posteroventral surfaces; mid femur with long pale setulae on ventral surface; all tibiae with short dark setulae; hind leg overall stouter than remaining legs; hind tarsal segments 1.1 × as long as hind tibia; tibial spur formula 0: 2: 2.
Wing (Fig. 44): Brown suffused on apical half; darker brown stigma over apex of veins R 1 and R 2 + 3 and cells sc, r 1; darker suffused substigmal marking over crossvein r – m, bases of discal cell, cell m 3 and apex of cell br; cell bm hyaline; veins dark brown; costa without distinct downward flexure over stigma; cell cua closed a short distance from wing margin; cell m 3 open, veins M 1, M 2, M 3 present; haltere stalk yellow, knob light brown, with some short and dark setulae; paratype NHMUK 014064163 from Namwamba Valley with wing appearing uniformly dark brown, whereas paratype NHMUK 014064162 from same locality has similar wings except centres of each wing cell are hyaline.
Abdomen: Overall orange-yellow to dark orange colour; tergites 1–3 with a brown median marking, tergites 2 and 3 with narrow, weakly developed lateral markings; tergites 4 and less so 5 with a much darker dorsal appearance compared to preceding segments; remaining tergites dark orange; sternites with similar colour to tergites, except for sternites 4 and 5 that are distinctly dark brown; tergites with short dark setulae dorsally, and long pale setulae laterally; sternites with short pale setulae; tergite 1 medially with a longitudinal suture.
Terminalia: Cercus dark orange with dark setulae; internal structures unknown, type material not dissected.
Distribution.
Uganda.
description: Published as part of Muller, Burgert S., Swart, Vaughn R. & Snyman, Louwrens P., 2024, Revision of Afrotropical Suragina Walker, 1859 (Diptera, Athericidae), pp. 247-327 in African Invertebrates 65 (2) on pages 247-327, DOI: 10.3897/afrinvertebr.65.140524