Tomosvaryella spinivaria Foldvari, Skevington & Motamedinia 2023, sp. nov.
Creators: name: Motamedinia, Behnam
name: Földvari, Mihaly
name: Skevington, Jeffrey H.
name: Kelso, Scott
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2025
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Diptera
Pipunculidae
Tomosvaryella
Tomosvaryella spinivaria

description: Tomosvaryella spinivaria Földvari, Skevington & Motamedinia sp. nov.
urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act: 17815FDC-56A7-4BF4-BAC0-DE344FBA7C66
Figs 92A–E, 140, 146C
Diagnosis: This species can be recognized by the hind trochanter having a patch of short dark bristles at the base and a small group of shorter bristles at distal end (Fig. 146C); hind femur with 22–24 pale long bristles posteriorly on distal half (Fig. 146C); subepandrial sclerite covered with transverse streaks and a row of finlike projection in its middle in ventral view (Fig. 92B); phallic guide with six different-sized spines dorsolaterally.
Description: MALE: Body length: 3.3–3.4 mm. Head. Flagellum acuminate, yellow-brown. Face silvery pollinose. Frons, upper part shining black, lower part distinctly silver pollinose; eyes touching for distance equal to 2.5–3 times the length of ocellar triangle. Occiput silvery pollinose, more brownish on upper half. Thorax. Postpronotum brownish pale, with 3–4 distinct pale bristles. Mesonotum (viewed obliquely from front) subshining black, anterior part silver pollinose, slightly grayish also from the side. Scutellum silvery pollinose and with 12 short pale bristles along the distal edge. Dorsocentral bristles developed, dark, longer on frontal part and numerous dark bristles around postpronotum. Halter, knob pale with a brownish tinge distally, stem dark brown. Legs. Mid coxa with two bristles. Trochanters and base of femora black, femora black, shining ventrally, silvery pollinose except hind femur; knees, tibiae brown with basal 1/6 yellow, tarsal segments yellow ventrally, yellow-brown dorsally, last segment darker dorsally. Hind trochanter without keel, short dark bristles (7–9, longest at base, shortening distally) at the base emerging in a group (“echidna”-like) and distal end with a small group of shorter bristles (Fig. 146C); two ventrobasal bristles on fore femur (one is longer). Ventroapical row of spines on fore femur missing, 4–6 very short, black spines on mid femur; no spines on hind femur, only 22–24 pale bristles posteriorly equally distributed, and longer on distal half (as long as 1.5–2 times the width of hind tibia at the distal end) (Fig. 146C); hind tibia bent at middle in posterior view. Subapical (distal) spines on fore- and mid-tibiae present. Hind metatarsus not flattened, first tarsomere slightly longer than 2–4 combined; ventral bristles scrub-like, yellow. Pulvilli as long as or slightly longer than last tarsal segment. Wing. Length: 3.1–3.2 mm. Upper side of basal costal cell with 1–3 long distinct bristles. Fourth costal section 2.5–3 times as long as third costal section. Cross-vein r-m at middle of discal cell. 5–6 dark setulae on tegula. Abdomen. Viewed obliquely from front tergites brownish pollinose, tergite 1 silvery grey, sides silvery pollinose on tergites 4 and 5 (the latter with larger spots), slightly silver pollinose on tergites 2 and 3. Dispersed short dark bristles on tergites present, the longest on tergite 5 and up to 1.5 times as long as width of hind tibia at base. Lateral bristles on first tergite present, 5–6 brown bristles up to as long as width of hind femur at distal tip. Postabdomen in dorsal view: T6, S7 invisible; T5 1–1.5 times as long as ST8. Genitalia without dissection: ST8 medium sized, subshining; membranous area elongated, widening at top; epandrium paler; yellow surstyli appear long and flat. Genitalia. Genital capsule in dorsal view: epandrium longer than wide (MLE:MWE = 1.2). Surstyli light brown, rather symmetrical with broad base and finger-like apex, left slightly broader and longer than right one; both tips bent inward apically (Fig. 92A). Genital capsule in ventral view: subepandrial sclerite covered with transverse streaks, in its middle with a row of small fin-like projection embedded (like spinal column); gonopods elongated close to apex of subepandrial sclerite, with two small projections (Fig. 92B), phallic guide with six different-sized spines dorsolaterally (two longer ones closer to apex). Genital capsule in lateral view: both surstyli curved towards sternite, gradually narrowed to apex (Fig. 92D–E); phallus with three ejaculatory ducts; ejaculatory apodeme flat, sperm pump elongated, linear (Fig. 92C).
FEMALE: Unknown.
Etymology: From the Latin word spina for thorn and various for different in reference to the variously sized spines on the phallic guide.
Examined material: HOLOTYPE: AUSTRALIA: Western Australia: ~ 3 km N[orth] of Denham, 25°55’S, 113°32’E, hilltop, 12.xii.1999, J. Skevington, JSS7374 (1♂, WAM); PARATYPES: AUSTRALIA: Western Australia: ~ 3 km north of Denham, 25°55’S, 113°32’E, hilltop, 12.xii.1999, J. Skevington, JSS7325, JSS7362, JSS7390, JSS7400 (1♂, CNC; 3♂, QM).
Distribution: Australia (Western Australia) (Fig. 140).
Notes: Most of the specimens of this species were collected on the small hilltop north of Denham, Western Australia. See the note under T. minychoma sp. nov. for more information on this amazing locality. Intraspecific genetic distance ranges from 0.2% to 1.0%. This species is genetically most similar to T. velutina sp. nov. (5.7–8.2% pairwise divergence) (Supplementary file 3).
description: Published as part of Motamedinia, Behnam, Földvari, Mihaly, Skevington, Jeffrey H. & Kelso, Scott, 2023, Revision of Australian Tomosvaryella Aczél (Diptera: Pipunculidae) with description of 100 new species, pp. 1-271 in Zootaxa 5599 (1) on pages 203-205, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.5599.1.1, http://zenodo.org/record/14970961