Nephrotoma palacea, Wang & Ren & Yang & Chen, 2025

Nephrotoma palacea sp. nov.

Figs 69–71 View Figures 69–71 , 72–76 View Figures 72–76 , 77–79 View Figures 77–79

Type material.

Holotype. China – Xinjiang U. A. R. • ♂; Qinghe; Huahaizi ; 2625 m a. s. l.; 46.4800°N, 90.5200°E; 14 Jul. 2016; J. L. Ren leg.; CAU TN 2306185 . GoogleMaps

Paratypes. China – Xinjiang U. A. R. • 5 ♂♂; same data as for holotype; CAU TN 2306186 to TN 2306190 GoogleMaps .

Diagnosis.

Body black. Vertex with a tubercle, a dark-yellow spot at the posterior-lateral margin. Antenna reaching the base of wing when bent backward. Wing with brown shadow at vein R 4 + 5 and crossvein r-m; cell m 1 mostly sessile in most specimens. Tergite 9 posteriorly with horned projections, covered with black spines. Sternite 8 posteriorly with a horned, hairy, and sclerotized appendage that directed ventrally in lateral view. Clasper of gonostylus with long, straight, and obtuse beak; lower beak with spade-shaped protuberance; one U-notch between the beak and lower beak.

Description.

Male. Body length 9.7–11.6 mm, wing length 9.6–11.7 mm, antenna length 3.3–3.6 mm ( N = 6).

Head (Figs 69 View Figures 69–71 , 70 View Figures 69–71 ). Mostly black, vertex with a tubercle, a dark-yellow spot at the posterior-lateral margin of a tubercle. Nasus obvious. Occiput postero-laterally with grey setae. Head with black setae. Antenna 13 - segmented, reaching the base of wing when bent backward; scape short, dark brown, with apical third black, pedicel and flagellar segments black; flagellar segments except of the first one, enlarged at base. Length of verticils reaching almost 3 / 5 length of the corresponding segment. Terminal segment of flagellum round. Palpi black, terminal segment pale, darkened at base.

Thorax (Figs 69 View Figures 69–71 , 70 View Figures 69–71 ). Entirely black. Legs black. Coxae black. Middle portions of tibiae and femora dark brown, tarsal segments black. Wing dark brown, with a distinct dark-brown pterostigma and macrotrichiae; brown shadow at vein R 4 + 5 and crossvein r-m; cell m 1 mostly sessile, some specimens petiolate (Fig. 71 View Figures 69–71 ). Halter with stem black; knob grey variegated with a brown spot (Fig. 69 View Figures 69–71 ).

Abdomen (Fig. 69 View Figures 69–71 ). Entirely black.

Hypopygium (Figs 72–76 View Figures 72–76 ). Tergite 9 posteriorly with horned projections, covered with black spines and separated by broad median V-shaped notch. Median region with a brown crescent membrane (Fig. 74 View Figures 72–76 ). Sternite 8 posteriorly covered densely with setae, sunken at the middle in ventral view, and with a horned, hairy, and sclerotized appendage that directed ventrally in lateral view (Figs 72 View Figures 72–76 , 75 View Figures 72–76 ). Sternite 9 posteriorly with sparse setae (Fig. 75 View Figures 72–76 ). Gonocoxite separated from sternite 9, apically bearing a gradually tapering narrowness (Fig. 72 View Figures 72–76 ). Lobe of gonostylus broadens from base to middle, tapers to apex (Figs 72 View Figures 72–76 , 76 View Figures 72–76 ). Clasper of gonostylus with a large concavity at the middle; beak long, straight, and obtuse; dorsal crest posteriorly with strongly sclerotized projection and sparse setae; outer basal lobe in the shape of oval process, sclerotized margin, sparsely covered with setae; lower beak with spade-shaped protuberance; the margin extending from the beak to the lower beak, strongly sclerotized.

Semen pump dark brown (Figs 77–79 View Figures 77–79 ). Posterior immovable apodeme short, rod-like, directed backward, tip inward. Compressor apodeme flattened, apically with U-shaped incision forming two, distally darkened lobes. Anterior immovable apodeme with a strongly sclerotized margin, nearly triangular.

Female. Unknown.

Elevation range in China.

Adults were collected at altitudes of 2625 m.

Period of activity.

Adults were collected only in mid-July.

Distribution.

China, Xinjiang (Fig. 1 View Figure 1 ).

Etymology.

The specific name (from Latin palaceus; adj., meaning “ spade-shaped ”) refers to spade-shaped protuberance at the lower beak of the clasper of gonostylus.

Remarks.

Nephrotoma palacea sp. nov. is similar to N. erebus Alexander, 1922 , in habitus and based on the shape of sternite 8 and lobe of gonostylus. However, it can be distinguished by the following features: in N. palacea , the projections of tergite 9 are entirely covered with spines; the lower beak of the clasper of the gonostylus has a spade-shaped protuberance and is strongly sclerotized. In N. erebus , the projections of tergite 9 are covered with spines only at the apices; the lower beak of the clasper of the gonostylus has a lamellate protuberance and is strongly sclerotized only along the margin ( Savchenko 1957, 1973). Additionally, discrepancies were found between Alexander’s original description and the characteristics of the type specimen. For example, the feature mentioned in the original text, “ the yellow margin on sternites 4–6 ” ( Alexander 1922), was not observed in the type specimen.