Genus Acraspisoides Hill & Winterton, 2004

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• Acraspisoides Hill, H.N. & Winterton, S.L. 2004. Acraspisoides gen. nov. (Diptera: Therevidae: Agapophytinae): a new genus of Stiletto-flies from Australia. Zootaxa 414: 1-15 [4].

  Type species:

   Acraspisoides helviarta Hill & Winterton, 2004 by original designation.

Introduction

Acraspisoides is very similar in appearance to Acraspisa, although it is much larger in size, has multiple rows of postocular setae in the male, and lacks an acuminate scutellum. Acraspisoides can be distinguished from other genera of Agapophytinae (including Acraspisa) by the globose ventral lobe on the aedeagus, a characteristic not found in any other species in that subfamily. Both sexes of Acraspisoides have multiple rows of postocular setae, a character shared with Laxotela and some Agapophytus species. The pleural stripe of silver velutum on the thorax is shared with Parapsilocephala and Acraspisa. Acraspisoides has a closed wing cell m3, shared with all genera in the subfamily Agapophytinae except Belonalys and Laxotela. The hind femur is slightly longer than the fore and mid femora in Acraspisoides, a character also shared with Acraspisa and Acatopygia (Hill & Winterton 2004).

Leg and abdominal colouration is variable in both the described species of Acraspisoides. Unique to species of Acraspisoides is the relatively small patch of velutum on posteroventral surface of the hind femur. In all other agapophytine genera, this patch is much more elongate. Phylogenetic analysis by Hill and Winterton (2004) placed Acraspisoides as the sister genus of all other Agapophytinae (sensu Winterton et al. 2001). Although males are unknown for A. monticola the two species of Acraspisoides are easy to differentiate based on female body colouration (Winterton 2007c).

Distribution

States

New South Wales, Queensland

IBRA and IMCRA regions

IBRA

NSW: Brigalow Belt South (BBS) ; NSW, Qld: Australian Alps (AA), South Eastern Queensland (SEQ)

Diagnosis

Body length: Male 10.0–10.5 mm; female 8–12.0 mm. Antennae positioned low on frons, slightly shorter than head length; flagellum slightly longer than combined length of scape and pedicel; scape short and cylindrical; 2–3 poorly defined rows of postocular setae in both male and female; pleuron with longitudinal stripe of velutum; velutum patches present on hind and fore femora, patch on hind femur relatively small; hind femur distinctly longer than fore and mid femora; anteroventral, subapical seta absent on hind femur; wing with dark banding, cell m3 closed; gonocoxites without velutum patches; medial atrium between gonocoxites absent; dorsal apodeme of parameral sheath ‘T’- shaped; large ventral bulb present basally on distiphallus, projecting externally of genitalic capsule between gonocoxites; anterior process of female tergite 8 narrow; three spermathecae; spermathecal sac small, simple, spherical in shape (Winterton 2007c).

Diagnosis References

Winterton, S.L. 2007. New species of Acraspisoides Hill & Winterton and Bonjeana Irwin & Lyneborg (Diptera: Therevidae: Agapophytinae), with the description of a genus. Zootaxa 1438: 1-25

General References

Hill, H.N. & Winterton, S.L. 2004. Acraspisoides gen. nov. (Diptera: Therevidae: Agapophytinae): a new genus of Stiletto-flies from Australia. Zootaxa 414: 1-15

Winterton, S.L. 2007. New species of Acraspisoides Hill & Winterton and Bonjeana Irwin & Lyneborg (Diptera: Therevidae: Agapophytinae), with the description of a genus. Zootaxa 1438: 1-25

Winterton, S.L. in Winterton, S.L., Yang, L., Wiegmann, B.M. & Yeates, D.K. 2001. Phylogenetic revision of Agapophytinae subf. n. (Diptera: Therevidae) based on molecular and morphological evidence. Systematic Entomology 26: 173-211

History of changes