Limnellia huachuca Mathis 1978

Limnellia huachuca Mathis

Limnellia huachuca Mathis, 1978:270.

DIAGNOSIS.—Specimens of L. huachuca are similar to those of L. sejuncta (Loew) and L. turneri Mathis but may be distinguished from them and other congeners by the following combination of character states: Setose portion of face mostly unicolorous; antennal fovea shallowly impressed; wing with 2 brown spots in cell R5, both closely appressed against vein R4+5, neither spot much darker than brown coloration in remainder of cell; second basal white spot with large brown spot in center, sometimes brown spot with unicolorous pedicle reaching vein M1+2; halter mostly brown; tarsi mostly pale, yellowish; surstylus truncate ventrally, shape unevenly pentagonal, median surface shortest, lateral and mediodorsal surfaces longest.

DESCRIPTION.—Small shore flies, length 1.24 to 1.93 mm.

Head: Head width-to-height ratio averaging 1: 0.62. Frons generally brown to charcoal brown; mesofrons with faintly evident, vertical, cinereous vitta; parafrons with anterior margin cinereous, becoming more brownish in color posteriorly. Face in profile nearly flat, very slightly arched; interfoveal carina not evident; antennal fovea evident but shallowly impressed; ventral margin of face slightly cinereous, remaining area brownish gray, becoming more cinereous dorsally, lacking distinct banding sequence. Eye height-to-width ratio averaging 1:0.83; eye-to-cheek ratio averaging 1:0.11.

Thorax: Basitarsi plus second and third tarsomeres pale, yellowish, contrasting distinctly with black tibiae. Maculation pattern of wing (Figure 70) as follows: cell R1 with 6–7 white spots; cell R3 with 4–5 white spots, frequently basal spot weakly developed; cell R5 with 4 white spots, second basal white spot largest, with brown spot in center; discal cell with 3 white spots; cell M2 with 2 white spots; cell M4 with 2 spots, one or the other frequently weakly developed. Wing length-to-width ratio averaging 1:0.46; costal vein index averaging 1:0.25; M1+2 vein index averaging 1:0.53. Halter brownish yellow.

Abdomen: Male terminalia (Figures 36–38) as follows: epandrium (Figure 36) in caudal view oval dorsally, becoming subtruncate ventrally, forming a broadly based triangular process between attachments of surstyli; surstylus truncate ventrally, quadrate except for lateral margin which extends dorsally further than median margin, setose; aedeagus (Figure 37) generally subquadrate but with extending anterior and posterior processes; aedeagal apodeme indistinguishable from aedeagus.

TYPE MATERIAL.—Holotype male, labeled: “Ramsey Cyn. 6000′ 15 mi. S. Sierra Vista Huachuca Mts. ARIZ. Sternitsky 18. V. 67.” Allotype female and 18 paratypes (9, 9 CNC, USNM): with same label data as the holotype except for dates, which are from 13 Apr to 13 Aug, 1967. Other paratypes as follows: Arizona: Cochise Co., Chiricahua Mountains (1, 2 USNM). The holotype, allotype, and most of the paratypes are in the Canadian National Collection, Ottawa, Canada, type number 15433.

OTHER SPECIMENS EXAMINED.—COLOMBIA. Boyaca, Tunja, 2690 m elev., R. V. Ruiz (1 USNM). JAMAICA. Hardwar Gap, 10 Mar 1970, W. W. Wirth (1 USNM). MEXICO. Michoacan: El Pueblito, 9 Aug 1954, Rykman Christenson, light trap (1 USNM). PUERTO RICO. Yauco-Lares Road, km 22, 18 Jul 1953, J. A. Ramos and J. Maldonado (1 USNM). UNITED STATES: ARIZONA: Cochise Co., Herb Matyr Park (1 USNM); Pima Co., Greaterville (1 CAS).

GEOGRAPHIC DISTRIBUTION. (Figure 39).—Since discovering this species (Mathis, 1978), I have examined specimens from four countries in Middle or South America, and I suspect that additional localities beyond the presently known distribution will be discovered in South America. This is the only species known from the West Indies.

RELATIONSHIP.—Limnellia huachuca is apparently closely allied with L. turneri, a Nearctic species. The surstyli of males of both species are wider than long, the conformation of the aedeagus of both is similar, and the whole genital complex of both is relatively small.