Phytomyza aconiti Hendel

Phytomyza aconiti Hendel View in CoL

( Figs. 51–54 View FIGURES 47–54 , 211–218 View FIGURES 211–218 )

Material examined. Ukraine: Transcarpathia: 4 km W Yasynia, 860 m a.s.l., 48°14'13"N, 24°16'39"E, 6.viii.2021 — mines with larvae collected, 18–20.viii.2021 —pupation outside the mine, 21.ii.2022 —imago, Yu. Guglya, ex Aconitum sp. (2♀ 1 puparia) GoogleMaps .

Hosts. Ranunculaceae : Aconitum L., Delphinium Tourn. ex L. (Benavent-Corai et al. 2015).

Mine. ( Fig. 51, 52 View FIGURES 47–54 ) Several larvae form a gregarious brown blotch leaf mine distinctly visible from both leaf sides. Pupation takes place either within or outside the mine.

Puparium. ( Figs. 53, 54 View FIGURES 47–54 ) Orange, matt, 3.0 mm long, with deep segmentation; surface uniformly covered with numerous fine brown spines. Also with a row of sparse larger spines encircling each segment medially. Posterior spiracles set on stout, separated conical protuberances; orange, with more than 20 minute brown spherical sessile bulbs in a kidney-shaped configuration arranged around group of several slightly larger bulbs.

Cephalopharingeal skeleton. ( Fig. 214a, b View FIGURES 211–218 ) Right mouthhook larger dorsally than the left, both with ventro-anterior portion acute and abducted ventrally. Mouthhooks bear two large accessory teeth; all sharp, uniformly curved ventrally. Mouthhooks and intermediate sclerite are strongly sclerotized, dorsal and ventral cornua very weakly so. Dorsal cornu slightly wider and more sclerotized than ventral ones. Indentation index 83.

Female head. ( Figs. 211, 212 View FIGURES 211–218 ) Pale yellow, with post gena and antenna dark brown, ocellar tubercle and palpi black; fronto-orbital plate not visible laterally; 2 ors, 2 ori. Gena wider at rear, in widest part 0.48× as wide as maximum height of eye. Vibrissa long, straight, 0.48× as long as maximum height of eye.

Wing. ( Fig. 213 View FIGURES 211–218 ) Hyaline, with greyish undertone; with beige veins; costa reaching R 3+4; last section of CuA 1 7.5× as long as penultimate; second cross vein absent; calypter and margin pale yellow, fringe grey. Wing length 3.0 mm.

Female genitalia. ( Figs. 215–218 View FIGURES 211–218 ) Proctiger generally cylindrical, slightly expanding posteriorly. Two pairs of long setae located on posterior margin between cerci. Cercus oval, 0.29× as long as length of proctiger; long setae located subapically, brush of short setae located apically. Spermathecae subequal in size, brown, with wrinkled surface, slightly wider than high and flattened basally and apically. Internal duct invagination 0.73–0.77× as deep as height of spermatheca, slightly tapering apically. Spermathecal duct narrow and very weakly sclerotized. Ventral receptacle brown, S-shaped. Body of receptacle large, ovate, with an oblique opening, 0.42× as wide as length of receptacle. Basal connecting tube rather wide, curved, 3.75× as wide as tail of receptacle, which apically bears 2 weakly sclerotized wide flattened blades.

Distribution. Holarctic species ( Papp & Černý 2019). Ukraine (first record).

Comments. The collected series consisted of nine larvae, of which one pupated within the mine and eight outside. Five parasitoids wasps ( Braconidae ) were also reared from this series.