Estheria tibetensis Zhang & Shima & Liang & Li 2019, sp. nov.
Creators: name: Zhang, Chun-Tian
name: Shima, Hiroshi
name: Liang, Hou-Can
name: Li, He-Nan
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2019
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Diptera
Tachinidae
Estheria
Estheria tibetensis

description: Estheria tibetensis Zhang & Shima, sp. nov.
(Figs 3, 15, 27, 39, 55, 67, 76, 80, 94, 109)
Diagnosis. Body covered with grayish-yellow pruinosity; male frons about as wide as anterior ocellus, face with a small nipple-like median protrusion on lower face, prementum 5–6 times as long as wide, palpus dark brown; 2–3 presutural and 3 postsutural dorsocentral setae; lower calypter with long fringe on outer margin; male femora dark brown, female femora reddish-yellow except apex black ventrally; tibiae of both sexes dark except median portion reddish-yellow or brown.
Description. Body length: male 9.0– 9.1 mm, female 7.9–8.4 mm.
Male. Head covered with gray pruinosity; frontal vitta dark brown; lunule reddish-brown. Antenna and palpus dark brown; prementum gleaming black. Frons at narrowest point about as wide as anterior ocellus, less than 1/15 of head width; frontal vitta linear in middle portion; fronto-orbital plate with fine black hairs and parafacialia bare; parafacialia about twice as wide as first flagellomere; facial carina distinct, with a small nipple-like median protrusion on lower face; genal height 0.45–0.55 of eye height; lower margin of face slightly protruding forward. Inner and outer vertical setae hair-like; 8–10 inclinate frontal setae in anterior 2/3 of frons; vibrissa inserted above lower margin of face; upper occiput with 1–2 rows of black setulae below postocular setae or some irregular black hairs. Antenna falling short of lower margin of face by about length of antenna; 1 st flagellomere about 1.2 times as long as pedicel; arista including plumosity more than twice as wide as first flagellomere; palpus about as long as antenna; prementum 5–6 times as long as wide, about 3/5 of eye height.
Thorax black, covered with grayish-yellow pruinosity; dorsum with 4 longitudinal black vittae extending back to anterior 2/5 of postsutural scutum; scutellum dark brown, covered with grayish-yellow pruinosity; anterior and posterior spiracles dark brown. Prosternum and proepisternum bare; 3 postpronotal setae nearly arranged in a triangle; 1–2 presutural and 2 postsutural acrostichal setae; 2–3 presutural and 3 postsutural dorsocentral setae; 2 postsutural intra-alar setae, anterior one smaller; 2 supra-alar setae; 3 katepisternal setae. Wing brownish, tegula and basicosta dark brown; halter yellow; calypters brownish yellow. Costal spine absent or small, less than 1/2 length of crossvein r-m; 2nd costal sector bare or with setulae ventrally; relative lengths of 2nd, 3rd and 4th costal sectors approximately 1:2.1:1; vein M from dM-Cu crossvein to bend about 1.1 times as long as distance between bend and wing margin; veins R 4+5 and M merged or cell r 4+5 narrowly opened at end. Lower calypter large and round with long fringe on outer margin. Legs dark brown, sometimes median part of tibia reddish-brown; pulvilli yellowish. Fore tibia with a row of fine anterodorsal setae on basal 2/3 and 2 median posterior setae; fore claws and pulvilli slightly longer than 5th tarsomere; mid tibia with 2 anterodorsal setae, upper one short, 2–3 posterior setae, and 1 ventral seta (sometimes absent); hind tibia with 4–5 anterodorsal, 4–5 posterodorsal and 3–4 ventral setae, 1 apical anteroventral and 2 preapical dorsal setae.
Abdomen long-ovate, black and densely covered with grayish-yellow pruinosity; tergite 3 with a pair of small dark brown markings or a large dark brown marking; tergite 4 sometimes with markings. Syntergite 1+2 medially excavated to posterior margin, with a pair of lateral marginal setae, without median marginal setae; tergite 3 with 2 median marginal setae, 1–2 lateral marginal setae and a pair of discal setae; tergites 4 and 5 each with a row of marginal setae, tergite 4 with 1–2 pairs of discal setae, tergite 5 with many irregular discal setae. Terminalia (Figs 3, 15, 27, 39). Sternite 5 wide, quadrangular, posterior lobe wide, bluntly rounded apically, with deep and narrow V-shaped median cleft. Cerci separated, apical half narrow and pointed; surstylus wide and bluntly rounded at apex; pregonite short; postgonite slightly longer than or equal to basiphallus; distiphallus long, plate-like, sclerotized basal part about 0.4 times as long as membranous apical part; ejaculatory apodeme long, about 0.5 times length of aedeagal apodeme.
Female. As male, except as follows. Body covered with yellowish to golden-yellow pruinosity. Frons wider than eye; genal height greater than eye height; 6 inclinate frontal setae; 2 strong proclinate orbital setae and 1 lateroclinate prevertical seta; inner vertical seta about twice as long as outer vertical seta or eye height. Femora reddish-yellow except apex black ventrally, tibiae dark except median portion reddish-yellow; fore claws and pulvilli shorter than 5th tarsomere; mid tibia with 2–3 anterodorsal, 1 ventral and 2 posterior setae; hind tibia with 4 anterodorsal, 3 posterodorsal and 2 ventral setae. Abdomen ovate, tergites 3 to 5 each with a pair of discal setae.
Type material. HOLOTYPE ♂: China: Sichuan prov., Daocheng county [in Chinese] / Geka-Echushan [in Chinese] / 2260-4100m / 2006.7.14 / L.-Y. Feng coll. [in Chinese] [printed white label] // SYNU08757 [printed white label] // Holotype [printed red label] // Estheria ♂ / tibetensis / sp. nov. [handwritten] / C.-T. Zhang det. [in Chinese], 2015 / Zhang det., 2015 [printed] [white label] (SYNU).
PARATYPES. China, Sichuan: 1 ♂, Jiuzhaigou, 3400 m, 31.VII.1993, H. Shima leg. (BLKU); 1 ♂, same data as holotype except J.-Y. Liu leg. (SYNU). Xizang (= Tibet): 1 ♂, Médog county, Hanmi, 2150–3200 m, 9.VIII.2003, M.-F. Wang leg. (SYNU); 5 ♀♀, Linzhi, Médog, 1100–2500 m, 8–10.VIII.2013, Q. Wang leg. (SYNU); 1 ♂, 10 ♀♀, Linzi county, Lulang, 3300–3400 m, 6–7.VIII.2013, 11.VIII.2013, C.-T. Zhang, X.-Y. Li & P. Hou leg. (SYNU); 1 ♀, Linzi, Bayi Town, 3000 m, 12.VIII.2013, Q. Wang leg. (SYNU); 90 ♂♂, 48 ♀♀, Milin county, Nanyigou, 2950–3100 m, 16.VIII.2013, C.-T. Zhang & X.-Y. Li leg. (SYNU); 7 ♀♀, Linzhi, Gongbujiangda county, 3200 m, 15–17.VIII.2013, Q. Wang & P. Hou leg. (SYNU); 3 ♂♂, Rikaze, Yadong county, 2800–3000 m, 19–21.VII.2014, Q. Wang leg. (SYNU). Yunnan: 45 ♂♂, 2 ♀♀, Deqen county, 3200–3800 m, 21–22.VIII.1996, H. Shima leg. (BLKU); 5 ♂♂, Deqin, Baimang Snow Mountains, 3800–4300 m, 5–7.VII.2006, M.-F. Wang, L. Chang & B.-F. Wang leg. (SYNU); 8 ♂♂, Lushui county, Pianma, Yakou, 3153 m, 8–11.VII.2009, S.-C. Bai, S. Wang & W.-X. Dong leg. (SYNU). Nepal: 1 ♂, Solukhumbu Dist., Surke to Chumoa, 2339–2715 m, 31.VII.1992, H. Kurahashi leg. (BLKU).
Etymology. The specific epithet refers to the type locality of this species: Tibet (= Xizang, China).
Distribution. China (Sichuan, Xizang, Yunnan), Nepal.
Remarks. This species is similar to E. magna (Baranov) in appearance, but can be distinguished by its smaller size and by having 3 postsutural dorsocentral setae, 2 supra-alar setae, and scutellum dark brown.
description: Published as part of Zhang, Chun-Tian, Shima, Hiroshi, Liang, Hou-Can & Li, He-Nan, 2019, Four new species of Estheria Robineau-Desvoidy (Diptera: Tachinidae) from China and Nepal, with a review of the East Palearctic and Oriental species, pp. 1-38 in Zootaxa 4603 (1) on pages 9-10, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4603.1.1, http://zenodo.org/record/2841928