Milichiella lucidula
Description
Body length: 2.8-3.3 mm; wing length: 2.8-3.1 mm.
Male coloration and vestiture: frons subshiny black, ocellar triangle and orbital plates shiny black, lunule sometimes red, basoflagellomere basomedially sometimes red, face grey microtomentose, palpus black, sometimes brown; thorax with mesonotum shiny black except for anterior and posterior margin, scutellum and pleura slightly brown microtomentose except for polished spot on an- and katepisternum, wing hyaline, veins yellow or light brown, brown spot at tip of vein R1 very weak, calypter white, halter yellow, legs black; abdomen with T1-4 slightly brown microtomentose except for shiny black posterolateral corner of T2-4, of which posterolateral corner of T2 is narrow silverygrey, and posteromedial narrow silverish margins; T5 shiny except for narrow microtomentose anterior margin. Female coloration and vestiture: halter yellow, abdomen with T1-4 and anterior margin of T5 brown microtomentose on dorsal side, rest of T5 shiny.
Morphology. Head: frons with 2+0.9 orbital and 2 frontal setae, anterior frontal seta slightly medioreclinate. In males frons 1.8-2.2x as wide at posterior margin than at base of antenna, arista about 3.0x as long as basoflagellomere wide, pubescence on arista very short, posterior eye margin with notch (5oc) and emargination (2oc).
Thorax: 2 dc, 1 prsc, 1 pprn, 1+0.6+0.5 prs, 2 keps setae, posterior prsc about as long as posterior dc, seta between posterior prsc and posterior dc absent. Wing with vein R4+5 and M1 converging (3.3-4.7), and ultimate section of vein M1 1.8-2.0x as long as penultimate section. Fore femur strongly setulose, tibial organ absent.
Male abdomen: Posteromedial triangular projection of T1 into T2 present. Tergal chaetotaxy: T2 anterolateral corner with more than 3 lines of setae, T2-5 setulose. S5 1.2x as long as wide, 1.5x as long and 1.3x as wide as S4, roughly rectangular, posterior margin indented, strongly setulose with short setae. Male genitalia with apical seta on cercus as long as epandrial setae; epandrium with striate anteroventral extension and 0 setae on subepandrial plate, surstylus 0.4x as long as epandrium high, slightly dilated posteroapically (1.6x), anterior margin more or less straight, 2.4x as long as wide, structure of lateral surface striate, medial surface without setulae.
Special characters: palpus ventrally strongly setulose.
Male coloration and vestiture: frons subshiny black, ocellar triangle and orbital plates shiny black, lunule sometimes red, basoflagellomere basomedially sometimes red, face grey microtomentose, palpus black, sometimes brown; thorax with mesonotum shiny black except for anterior and posterior margin, scutellum and pleura slightly brown microtomentose except for polished spot on an- and katepisternum, wing hyaline, veins yellow or light brown, brown spot at tip of vein R1 very weak, calypter white, halter yellow, legs black; abdomen with T1-4 slightly brown microtomentose except for shiny black posterolateral corner of T2-4, of which posterolateral corner of T2 is narrow silverygrey, and posteromedial narrow silverish margins; T5 shiny except for narrow microtomentose anterior margin. Female coloration and vestiture: halter yellow, abdomen with T1-4 and anterior margin of T5 brown microtomentose on dorsal side, rest of T5 shiny.
Morphology. Head: frons with 2+0.9 orbital and 2 frontal setae, anterior frontal seta slightly medioreclinate. In males frons 1.8-2.2x as wide at posterior margin than at base of antenna, arista about 3.0x as long as basoflagellomere wide, pubescence on arista very short, posterior eye margin with notch (5oc) and emargination (2oc).
Thorax: 2 dc, 1 prsc, 1 pprn, 1+0.6+0.5 prs, 2 keps setae, posterior prsc about as long as posterior dc, seta between posterior prsc and posterior dc absent. Wing with vein R4+5 and M1 converging (3.3-4.7), and ultimate section of vein M1 1.8-2.0x as long as penultimate section. Fore femur strongly setulose, tibial organ absent.
Male abdomen: Posteromedial triangular projection of T1 into T2 present. Tergal chaetotaxy: T2 anterolateral corner with more than 3 lines of setae, T2-5 setulose. S5 1.2x as long as wide, 1.5x as long and 1.3x as wide as S4, roughly rectangular, posterior margin indented, strongly setulose with short setae. Male genitalia with apical seta on cercus as long as epandrial setae; epandrium with striate anteroventral extension and 0 setae on subepandrial plate, surstylus 0.4x as long as epandrium high, slightly dilated posteroapically (1.6x), anterior margin more or less straight, 2.4x as long as wide, structure of lateral surface striate, medial surface without setulae.
Special characters: palpus ventrally strongly setulose.
Diagnosis
Differs from congeners in the combination of shiny mesonotum and silvery posterolateral corners of T2.
Discussion
Becker's ST series consists of male specimen(s) from Peru, Callanga at HNHM and male specimen(s) from Bolivia, Sorata from the Schnuse collection. At the ZMHU there are 3 ST, of which two bear Becker's determination label. At the HNHM there are 5 ST of which one bears Becker's identification label. At the SMT there are 2 ST which bear Becker's determination label and further 6 ST bearing just the locality and collection labels. Further Schnuse specimens from Peru and Bolivia (5 males) are in DEI. The DEI specimens are not treated as syntypes because all the Schnuse specimens in DEI appear not to have been identified by Becker, but other people.
Distribution
Northern America: North-Central U.S.A. (Illinois introduced: presence questionable); Southeastern U.S.A. (North Carolina present); Southern America: Southern South America (Argentina Northeast (Buenos Aires present, Formosa present), Argentina Northwest (Catamarca present, Tucuman present)); Western South America (Bolivia present, Peru present)
Citation
Neotropical catalog
checklist, North Carolina (Brimley 1967: Family Milichiidae, p. 101. – In: Wray, Insects of North Carolina, third supplement, 181pp: 101)
Illinois], 1934: 464 [Argentina (Malloch 1913: A synopsis of the genera of Agromyzidae, with descriptions of new genera and species. – Proc. U.S. natn. Mus. 46: 127-154,pls.4-6: 132)
North Carolina (Brimley 1942: Supplement to insects of North Carolina: 39pp: 29)