Chaetostomella completa (Kapoor, Malla & Ghosh)

Chaetostomella completa (Kapoor, Malla & Ghosh) View in CoL

(figures 17–18)

Chetostoma completum Kapoor, Malla & Ghosh, 1979: 83 View in CoL , Nepal.

Chaetostomella completa (Kapoor, Malla & Ghosh) View in CoL ; White & Elson-Harris, 1992: 415.

Diagnosis: This species was described well by Kapoor et al. (1979) except for post-abdominal structures. Medium sized ( 4.8 mm) greenish yellow species with distinct pattern on thorax and abdomen. Frons slightly brownish, longer than broad, face yellow, head setae well developed with 3 frontal and 2 black setae anterior to genal seta apart from several setulae, flagellum yellowish, mostly laterally flat and arista lightly plumose. Thorax with 6 black stripes; 2 medial, 1 presutural and 1 postsutural on either side forming a lyrate-like pattern (fig. 17B). Scutellum with apical black spot. Full complement of thoracic setae and presutural acrostichals with black base. All legs yellowish, densely setulose, fore femora with 2 rows of black setulae on dorsal side and a row of black setae on ventrolateral side, wings ( 4.55 mm) hyaline with faint fulvous bands. Cells bc, c and sc infuscated and cell c with hyaline indentation at Sc break. Apical band confluent with cell m, connected to cubital band in cell r 1 and with a small hyaline indentation apically. Discal band connected to subbasal band. Abdomen oval, greenish yellow with a pair of median black spots on each tergite except I & II.

Female Genitalia: Oviscape fulvous brown, setulose and 0.59 mm long, Aculeus 1.9 mm long, chisel shaped and rounded at apex with 3 preapical setae (fig. 17E). Eversible membrane 2.1 mm long with oval spicules on distal end without any projections (fig. 18A). Spermathecae not examined.

Male Genitalia: Epandrium oval in posterior view, setulose and with 4 stout long setae on posterodorsal side (figs 18B & C), proctiger setose and higher than epandrium. Anterior and posterior lobes of lateral surstylus almost equal in length with blunt round apex fringed with 5–8 yellow setae. Medial surstylus shorter than lateral, with 2 yellow setae on inner side (fig. 18C) and terminating in blunt, brownish presnsisetae. Aedeagus 2.64 mm long excluding glans ( 0.31 mm). Glans with well sclerotized acrophallus, basal lobe membranous and subapical lobe anchor shaped and shorter than vesica. Preputium with dorsal and ventral pairs of spines (fig. 18E), the ventral pair with apical setulae.

Material Examined: 7 ♀ & 10 ♂, ex Cirsium sp. , INDIA, Himachal Pradesh, Solan, Nauni, 30°51’47” N 77°10’7” E. 26.vi.2022, Maneesh Leg. In Zoological Survey of India ( High Altitude Regional Centre ( HARC), Solan , Himachal Pradesh) and some specimens with first author GoogleMaps .

Host: Cirsium sp. ( Asteraceae ).

Distribution: Jammu & Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh ( India) and Nepal.

Remark: Chaetostomella completa breeds in flower heads of Cirsium sp. and potentially regulates this weed population in northern India. Specimens examined are uniform in appearance but males lack a hyaline indentation at the connection of apical and cubital bands in cell r 1.