Lonchaea lateralis MacGowan

Description. Male. head: eyes bare. frons at narrowest point just slightly less than
the width of an eye, ratio 1 to 1.1, matt black, slightly dulled by dusting, margins
shin ing as is upper third, frontal and interfrontal setulae approximately 0,3x length
of orbital seta, longer on anterior margin above lunule. orbital plate shining, bare
apart from orbital seta. lunule black, bearing approximately 6 setulae, face and
parafacials slightly grey dusted. antennal flagellomere with length to depth ratio
2.6:1, black apart from orange area basally on inner surface, arista microscopically
pubescent. anterior genal setae in a single row of 9–10 along mouth edge, these
becoming progressively stronger posteriorly where they are the strongest setulae on
the gena.
thorax: Scutum and scutellar disc shining blue black. anepisternum with 3
anterior setae and four posterior, remainder of sclerite covered with rather
numerous setulae almost half as long as the setae. Katepisternum with one long,
strong seta, no setulae posterior to this. Prosternum bare. one seta on proepimeron
and one on proepisternum. calypteres pale with a slight yellowish tinge as has the
fringe. Scutellum on margin with 5 setulae on each side between lateral setae, 4
be tween apical setae, these long, approximately 0.5x as long as the marginal setae.
wing slightly yellow tinged on anterior half, veins yellow brown. wing length 3.9
mm. legs black apart from the yellowish basal, 2nd and 3rd tarsomeres of each leg.
Male terminalia: in lateral view epandrium broadly rectangular in shape,
slightly wider than it is high, with a row of strong setae along posterior and ventral
margins, most of these at least half as long as the depth of the epandrium, two on
the posterior margin noticeably longer than the others, surstylus protruding beyond
ventral margin of epandrium as a low process, slightly concave ventroapically, protruding
anteriorly as a small setulose process, cerci relatively large, their height
almost equalling the depth of the epandrium, bearing a fringe of long setulae along
the ventral and posterior margins. inner surface of surstylus with a scattered vertical
row of approximately 25 setae, a few scatted between this and the row along
the ventral margin, anterior process covered in short fine setulae. Phallus two segmented,
in lateral view basiphallus simple and boat-shaped, distiphallus orientated
at a right angle to it and almost as long as basiphallus, forming a simple slightly
sinuous tube, apex slightly flared, basally with a flange like lateral process on each
side, these slightly serrated along their outer margins.
Differential diagnosis. with bare eyes, uniserial setulae on the anterior part of the
genae, yellow tarsomeres, pale calypteres, a single seta on the proepimeron and bare
orbital plate, this species lies near the species such as L. nitidissima Kovalev, 1978
within the european fauna. it is however easily differentiated by the shape of the
phallus, in particular the distiphallus which has characteristic basal lateral processes.