Helgreelia Gaimari, 2007, gen. nov.
Creators: name: Gaimari, Stephen D.
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2007
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Diptera
Odiniidae
Helgreelia

description: Helgreelia gen. nov.
Type species. Helgreelia albeto, sp. nov., by present designation.
Etymology. Named in honor of my wife Helen (Hel-) Greeley (-greelia) Gaimari (nee Jones), for her constant support.
Diagnosis. Posterior part of head strongly concave. Postocellar setae absent. Frons with 3 fronto-orbital setae (2 reclinate posterior setae, 1 inclinate anterior seta). Lunule high, broadly arched, higher than frons length. Antennae widely separated; basoflagellomere orange, kidney shaped; arista pubescent. Face with deep antennal grooves. Gena lacking an upturned genal seta. Palpus orange, spatulate. Scutum with 1+3 dorsocentral setae; prescutellar acrostichal seta absent. Prescutellum absent. Scutellum arched, lacking setulae. Midtibia with 1 strong spur. Wing with vein C extending just past vein R4+5; costal spinules extending to vein R2+3; vein M1 becoming distinctly weaker from crossvein dm-cu to wing margin.
Adults, ɗ, Ψ. Body length 3.8–4.1 mm.
Head (Figs. 2 A–B). Height 1.6–2.2 X length; width 1.1–1.3 X height. Eye only slightly higher than long. Medial and lateral vertical setae present, strong, subequal. Posterior part of head strongly concave. Frons 2.3– 2.9 X wider than long. Postocellar setae absent. Ocellar triangle bronzy to greyish pruinose, setulose; distance between anterior and one posterior ocelli 2 X that between posterior ocelli; ocellar setae proclinate and diverging, moderately strong. Frons orangish, lightly covered with bronzy pruinosity except along eye margin where bronzy pruinosity dense; frontal stripe area with few small setulae. Fronto-orbital plate setulose, with 2 moderately strong reclinate, posterior fronto-orbital setae and 1 moderately strong inclinate, anterior fronto-orbital seta, middle seta very close to anterior-most seta. Lunule 0.3–0.4 mm high, broadly arched; 1.2–1.4 X higher than frons length; with bronzy pruinosity; with few scattered setulae. Antenna mostly orange, except arista brown; scape with silvery pruinosity; basoflagellomere kidney shaped, 1.3–1.5 X higher than long; arista pubescent; antennal bases separated by distance greater than 3 X diameter of single antennal socket. Face concolorous with lunule; with deep antennal grooves. Oral vibrissa moderately strong, with 1–2 additional slightly smaller subvibrissal setae below. Gena bronzy pruinose, with black spots (groundcolor, lacking pruinosity) at base of each setula; 0.47–0.53 X as high as head height; lacking upturned genal seta, but with several upturned setulae along lower eye margin; setulose. Genal groove area (below eye) orange, narrow, bare. Palpus orange; spatulate; densely setulose, with long setulae. Prementum and labellum orangish brown, with dark setulae.
Thorax (Fig. 1 A). Scutum 1.2–1.5 mm long, length and width subequal; bronzy-grey to bronzy-brown pruinose with faintly brownish median vitta; dorsocentral area lacking pruinosity (displaying dark groundcolor) at bases of dorsocentral setae; densely, but patchily, setulose; lateral portion of scutum (below intra-alar area) lacking setulae. Prescutellum absent. Scutellum 0.5 mm long, 1.4–1.7 X wider than long; anterior part concolorous with scutum, becoming lighter to pale yellowish in posterior part; lacking setulae; slightly arched dorsally. Chaetotaxy: 1+3 dorsocentrals (presutural + postsutural; posterior-most seta slightly stronger than others), prescutellar acrostichal absent, 1 postpronotal, 2 notopleurals, 1 postsutural intra-alar (in posterior part of scutum), 1 presutural supra-alar, 1 postsutural supra-alar, 2 postalars (anterior one strong, posterior one weak and sometimes setulae-like), 2 scutellars (posterior one slightly stronger). Pleuron above katepisternum lacking setae or setulae except for 1 strong proepisternal seta; goldish-yellow pruinose. Katepisternum more silvery pruinose, with 3 strong setae along dorsal edge, in addition to 1–2 small setulae. Legs. Predominantly yellowish. Fore femur with brownish-grey pruinescence, except at distal tip and in basal 1/3; mid and hind femora with partial covering of light silvery pruinescence. Midtibia with 1 strong spur. Wing (Fig. 3 A). Length 4.2–4.9 mm, 2.8–3.1 X longer than high. Vein C extending just past vein R4+5. Costal spinules extending to vein R2+3. Veins yellow. Membrane hyaline, except slightly darkened at base of vein R2+3, and at crossveins rm and dm-cu, and sometimes with slight darkening of surrounding membrane (under dark-field microscopy, the area surrounding the darker membrane at crossveins rm and dm-cu is pale white). Vein M1 becoming distinctly weaker from crossvein dm-cu to wing margin. Halter yellow.
Abdomen, female (male known from only one of the species). Sternites 2–5 with strong setulae along posterior edge, and sparsely scattered setulae in middle. Sternite 2 large, 0.5–0.6 mm wide, 2.0–2.4 X wider than long.
Female terminalia. Tergite 6 large, setulose; strongly convex, saddle shaped, extending laterally around to venter. Tergite 7 dark, bare of pruinescence in anterior half, brownish- to silvery-grey pruinose in posterior half; saddle shaped, extending laterally around to venter; with 7th spiracle embedded in cuticle at anterolateral corner; posterolateral corner lobe-like, with cluster of posteriorly directed fine setulae. Sternite 6 with strong setulae along posterior edge, and sparse scattered setulae in middle; large, width 0.9–1.0 X that of sternite 3, 4.0–4.4 X wider than long. Small triangular sclerite, the point directed posteriorly, present on anterior edge of sternite 6. Sternite 7 small, 1/2 width of sternite 6, 2.5 X wider than long. Segment 8 tubular, 4.0 X longer than wide. With 2 spermathecae. Epiproct and hypoproct small, plate-like. Cerci separate, elongated and thin.
Remarks. Besides the two species described herein, several additional new species are recognized from Colombia (1), Ecuador (2), Peru (1) and Brazil (1).
description: Published as part of Gaimari, Stephen D., 2007, Three new Neotropical genera of Odiniidae (Diptera: Acalyptratae), pp. 1-16 in Zootaxa 1443 on pages 3-4, DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.176054