Eucelatoria woodorum Burington 2022, sp. nov.
Creators: name: Burington, Zelia L.
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2022
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Diptera
Tachinidae
Eucelatoria
Eucelatoria woodorum

description: Eucelatoria woodorum sp. nov.
(Figs 19, 39, 64, 84, 134, 150, 167, 179)
Type material. Holotype ♂, labeled “ MEXICO, Pue/ Atlixco/ 10.VII.78/ G. &M. Wood ”, “ HOLOTYPE / Eucelatoria/ woodorum/ ZL Burington [red label]”, “ZLB_E.Ferox 00288” (DMW).
Paratypes, 2 ♂♂ and 2 ♀♀. Mexico — Chiapas: 1 ♀, “ MEXICO Chis. 6.0/ km SW Ocosingo/ 20.IX.1991 / M. Wood 1400m ”, “ PARATYPE / Eucelatoria / woodorum/ ZL Burington [yellow label]”, “ZLB_E.Ferox 00286” (DMW). Guerrero: 1 ♂, “ MEXICO, Gro./ Chilpancingo/ 18-20.VII.78/ G. &M. Wood ”, “ZLB_E.Ferox 00289” [genitalia in vial under specimen] (DMW). 1 ♂, “ MEXICO Gro 9.6/ km S Xochipala/ 12.VII.1992 / M. Wood 1500m ”, “ZLB_E.Ferox 00201” [genitalia in vial under specimen] (DMW). Morelos: 1 ♀, “ MEXICO, Mor./ Cañon de Lobos / 30.VII.78/ G. &M. Wood ”, “Eucelatoriopsis nr/ inepta (Wulp)/ Det. D. M. Wood 1979”, “8 [blue label]”, “ZLB_E.Ferox 00287” (DMW).
Recognition. This species is most similar to E. jorgecortesi sp. nov. and E. crambivora sp. nov. in sharing four thin thoracic vittae, broad and even abdominal tomentum bands, and yellow palpi. It differs from E. crambivora sp. nov. in that the parafacial tomentum is yellow, and from females of E. jorgecortesi sp. nov. in that the piercer is triangular in caudal view.
Etymology. This species is named in honor of Grace and Monty Wood, who jointly collected many of the specimens included in this revision.
Description. [Described from 2 ♀♀ and 3 ♂♂.] Length 6.8–8.0 mm (mean = 7.4 mm).
Head. Parafacial, fronto-orbital plate, vertex, upper half of post-ocular plate, and vibrissal angle tomentum yellow, sometimes entirely faded to gray; in female entire post-ocular plate yellow. Genal dilation, postgena, and occiput tomentum ash-gray. Pale occipital setae yellow to gray. Ocellar setae two-thirds to three-fourths length of posterior reclinate orbital seta. Gena with 2–4 setae, subvibrissal ridge with 1–2 setae. Facial ridge with setulae on lower third or less. Postocellar setae one-half to three-fourths length of ocellar setae. Paravertical seta one-half to three-fourths length of postocellar setae. Outer vertical seta undifferentiated from post-orbital row of setae. Reclinate orbital setae 2–3. Frontal setae 5–8, last frontal seta level with arista base. Eye apparently bare. Eye height to head height ratio 0.81–0.86 (mean = 0.84). Postpedicel length 0.35–0.49 (mean = 0.40) height of head. Facial ridge length 0.43–0.54 (mean = 0.50) height of head. Parafacial width 0.08–0.13 (mean = 0.10) lateral length of head. Pedicel 0.28–0.41 (mean = 0.33) length of postpedicel. Postpedicel 1.6–2.7 (mean = 1.9) width of parafacial in lateral view. Vertex 0.23–0.25 (mean = 0.24) width of head in dorsal view. Palpus yellow, tan at base, rarely darker; slightly flattened and dilated at apex in both sexes; with short, stout setae dorsoapically; in male with longer stout setae apicolaterally; with several long thin pale setae mediolaterally.
Thorax. Dorsomedial length 1.4 times width of thorax. Lateral tomentum gray to yellow-gray, usually more yellow on anepisternum. Dorsal tomentum gray to yellow. Presutural outer vitta triangular to subtriangular, distinctly disconnected from anterior margin. Postsutural outer vitta subfusiform to subquadrate, disconnected from inner vitta. Inner thoracic vittae bar-shaped, slightly divergent; extending to level of second postsutural dorsocentral seta. Scutellar dorsal tomentum gray to yellow-gray, covering two-thirds area. Postpronotum with 3–4 setae. Presutural area with 2 supra-alar setae, rarely with an aberrant third posterior seta. Fore tibia with 2–3 posterodorsal seta. Wing hyaline. Calypters tan to cream colored.
Abdomen. Cuticle and setulae entirely black. Dorsal tomentum bands gray, even; covering two-thirds to threefourths area T3–5; median vitta narrow and faint, or absent. Ventral tomentum bands as dorsal bands, with small diffuse area of tomentum marginally on female T1+2. T4 marginal setae forming continuous row of 4 or more pairs of widely spaced erect setae descending to ventral margin of T4.
Male terminalia (Figs 134, 150, 167). Sternite 5 basal plate with median teeth separated by 0.35 width of basal notch; apical lobes subequal to length of basal plate. Postgonite broadly rounded on posterior margin; base dilated, apical two thirds digitiform; anterior emargination one-half width of postgonite at mid length. Surstylus paddleshaped; 2.5 times long as wide; gradually curved on posterior and anterior margins; apex blunt; basal lobe small and rounded. Cercus in lateral view dilated at base, then narrowed at mid length, margins subparallel to slightly hooked apex; with cercus strongly angled at mid length; in caudal view margins narrowing to mid length, then subparallel until slightly pointed apex. Upper lobe subquadrate, inner margin straight; 0.27 length of cercus. Median section 0.38 length of cercus. Apical cleft slightly divergent, with strong marginal teeth, 0.35 length of cercus. Syncercus apex width in caudal view 0.47 width of syncercus base.
Female terminalia (Fig. 64). Piercer generally not extending beyond apex of T4, in lateral view gradually curved to apex; in posterior view triangular, gradually narrowed to apex. Aculeate lobe subequal height of segment 7 base. End tergite not visible. Cercus with 8 setae. Postgenital plate with 10 setae.
Host(s). Unknown.
Geographic extent and seasonal occurrence. Individuals of E. woodorum sp. nov. are known from the pineoak forests of southern Mexico, where they were collected at 120–1800 m elevation (Fig. 179).
Discussion. This species is very close to and nearly inseparable from E. jorgecortesi sp. nov., as both have a yellow parafacial lacking in E. crambivora sp. nov. The only consistent difference between the females is the shape of the piercer in caudal view, which is distinctly different between the two species; in E. jorgecortesi sp. nov., the piercer is narrow with subparallel margins to the apex, and in E. woodorum sp. nov. the piercer is broad and triangular.
description: Published as part of Burington, Zelia L., 2022, A taxonomic revision of the Eucelatoria ferox species group (Diptera: Tachinidae), pp. 1-104 in Zootaxa 5143 (1) on pages 46-47, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.5143.1.1, http://zenodo.org/record/6601404