Cambridge Entomological Club, 1874
PSYCHE

A Journal of Entomology

founded in 1874 by the Cambridge Entomological Club
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This is the CEC archive of Psyche through 2000. Psyche is now published by Hindawi Publishing.

C. P. Alexander.
A Peculiar New Crane-fly from Porto Rico.
Psyche 19(2):63-66, 1912.

This article at Hindawi Publishing: https://doi.org/10.1155/1912/29313
CEC's scan of this article: http://psyche.entclub.org/pdf/19/19-063.pdf, 248K
This landing page: http://psyche.entclub.org/19/19-063.html


The following unprocessed text is extracted automatically from the PDF file, and is likely to be both incomplete and full of errors. Please consult the PDF file for the complete article.

19121 Alexander~New Crane-jly from Porto Rico 63 Manaos, Brazil. One male collected by Mann and Baker. Type.-Cat. No. 14579, U. S. National Museum. Ophrynopus batesianus Westwood.
Ophrynopus fulvistigmus Westwood.
Both from Porto Velho, Rio Madeira.
(Mann & Baker.)
A PECULIAR NEW CRANE-FLY FROM PORT0 RICO ( TIPULIDS; DIPTERA)
Ithaca, N. Y.
In some large collections of Neotropical crane-flies received for study from various sources, a peculiar form was discovered which can scarcely be placed in any of the described genera and the fol- lowing new group is proposed for its reception: Megistomastix gen. nov.
Antennae (See fig. 1) very long, almost twice the length of the body; first seg- ment cylindrical, short, the basal two-thirds smooth, the apical third on the dorsal aspect, with a broad depression; second segment short, irregularly cyathifonn, the proximal side produced much farther cephalad than the distal side; third segment very elongate, at the base about two-thirds the diameter of segment two, rapidly narrowing to a diameter equal to one half of segment two, thickly clothed with long delicate hairs; segments four to thirteen, gradually decreasing in length, bearing the delicate hairs throughout.
Rostrum without a nasus.
Palpi short, none of
the segments conspicuously longer than the others. Vertex produced forward into a short protuberence. Thoracic pronotnm not conspicuous from above, the scutellum represented by a very narrow transverse piece; mesonotum rather de- pressed, the prsescutum sub-circular, about as broad as long. Halteres long, stem slender. Legs long, femora shorter than the tibia; tarsi very long, twice the length of the femora.
Venation: Sc rather long, Scs entering Rs just before the origin of Eg. RI rather long, ending opposite the fork of R+i. Kg, very short, transverse, shorter than the cross-vein T-m. Rz+* rather long, about one-third the length of Rz. Ri leaves at an angle of about loo', its terminal section obliterated, represented by an indistinct spur at the junction of cross-vein r. Cross-vein r-m, long, longer than
1 Contribution from the Entomological Laboratory of Cornell University. Ps\che 1963-65 (1912). hup //psyche einclub org/lWl9-OM html



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a Psyche [April
the deflection of R4+6. Cell 1st M2 elongate, the sides parallel. beyond the cross-vein m, short, about equal to the cross-vein r-m. Cui meets M3 at a point,
barely obliterating the cross-vein m-cu. Cell Cul broadest basally as in the Tipu- linae, Cua being gently situnaed; 2d A rather short. Cells of the wings with sparse hairs, more numerous in the distal portion of the wing. Type and only known species, M. portorzcensis, sp. nov. This genus is referable to the tribe Dolichopezini. It agrees most closely with Oropeza and Dolkhopeza but the antennae, hypopygium and details of venation are quite different from these genera. It agrees to some extent, in the shape of the antennae and the frontal tubercle, with Macromastix 0. S., of Australasia and Chile; however it is only distantly related to this genus. A Key to the Dolichopezini.
1. Rz distinct for its entire length; antennae with less than 13 segments; Male genitalia small, simple in structure. ............................ .2 Ra obliterated, at least on its terminal section; antennse with 13 seg- ments; Male genitalia complex in structure. ........................... .4 2. Antennae long, filiform, or short;
R2+ perpendicular, simulating a
cross vein; cross-vein m-cu present. ..... ....... Megistocera Wiedemann (Asia, Africa and America; tropics)
Antennae short; R2+3 not perpendicular; cross-vein m-cu absent. .......... .3 3. Head closely applied to the pronotum; 2d anal vein rather long Tanypremna Osten Sacken1
(Cent. and South America; tropics)
Head on a neck-like prolongation of the thorax; 2d anal vein short, running into the anal angle of the wing. .......... .Brachypremna Osten Sacken (North and South America)
4. Rs apparently lacking; if interpreted as being present, its basis much farther distad than its tip. ................ .Scamboneura Osten Sacken .
(East Indies)
RS present, but often short and simulating a cross-vein. .................. .5 5. Cell 1st Ma absent; basal deflection of Cui proximad of the fork of M. ~olichopeza Curtis
(Eur.; N. Am.; Australia)
Cell 1st M present; basal deflection of Cul distad of the fork of M. ........ .6 6. Antennae of male normal, short, with a few scattered hairs; cross-vein m tends to become obliterated; Rg, more elongate. ... Oropeza Needham (Eastern U. S.)
Antennae of male longer than the body, thickly clothed with long deli- cate hairs; cross-vein m prominent; Rs short, transverse Megistomastix, gen. nov.
(Greater Antilles)
1Tanypremna omissinervis de Meijere (New Guinea) would run down to section As; it undoubtedly represents a new genus. I have a 9 from Milne Bay, New Guinea. Tanypremna fastidosa Skuse (Australia) scarcely seems to be congeneric with the Neotropical forms; these species need further study.




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19121
AlexanderÌÔNe Crane-fly from Porto Rico
Megistomastix portoricensis sp. nov.
Male. Antennae elongate; color light brown; pleurae paler; legs brown. Length 5 mm.; wing 7.5 mm.; antennse 9.5 mm.; fore leg, femur, 5 mm.; tibia, 6.5 mm.; tarsus, 10.6 mm.
Vertex produced cephalad into a triangular tubercle; on the sides, at the inner angle of the eye, a shallow depression.
Antennre light brown, the flagellar seg- ments darker brown, the long flagellar hairs black. Vertex light brown, with a
yellowish median line; front internally light gray, a narrow median brown line extending from the cephalic margin of the vertex forwards; front between the antennae and inner margin of the eye, light brown; genae and occiput brown. Ros- trum and palpi light yellow, palpal segments three and four, darker brown. Thorax: prothoracic scutellum light, whitish-yellow: mesonotal prsescutum light brown, with indistinct spots of darker brown, the lateral and cephalic edge of the sclerite pale whitish-yellow; scutum, scutellum and postnotum uniform medium brown. Pleurae light brown with an oblique pale stripe extending from near the mesothoracic spiracle to above the mesocoxa. Halteres pale, knob brown. Legs: coxa and trochanters light yellow; femora external face with a light yellow basal streak, rest of the femora and the tibia and tarsi dark brown. Abdomen: targum, base1 two segments light yellowish-brown; remainder dark brownish-black; hypopygium light yellow; sternum paler brown. Wings: light grayish-brown; stigma large, square, occupying most of cell 1st Ri and the distal end of cell C; a brown furrow-like mark in under Cu. Venation (see generic characterization) as in fig. 2. Genitalia: 6th and 7th sternites projecting, sheath-like, beyond the basis of the following segment; hypopygium not prominently exserted. Hypopygium (see fig. 3). Suture between sternite and tergite of the 9th segment not very distinct; sternal region (e) produced caudally into a lobe which is broadly and roundly eniar- ginated on the ventral aspect, the whole of this projection being clothed with long hairs; tergal region narrow, deeply emarginate, the inner arm (a) bearing a caudad- projecting appendage (b); the ventral or outer arm (c) is more slender and bears three teeth on its inner margin; below this and nearer to the sternal margin is an appendage (d) which is pseudo-segmented; a large pale organ, brown at the tip, projects from the dorsal portion of the genital chamber. The figure is drawn from the unique type and is somewhat compressed under glass. Holotype-Male, El Yunque, Porto Rico; 2800 ft. ; Feb. 20, 1900. C. W. Richmond, collector.
(Coll. U. S. Nat. Mus.; Ac-
cess, No. 14,592).
It is barely possible that the Megistocera brasiliensis Wiede- mann (Aussereuropaische Zweiflugeligen Insekten, I; p. 554 ; pi. VI b.; fig. 13, antenna; 14 wing.) is referable to this new genus. The species is stated by Osten Sachen to be nearly related to Pach- yrhina Macquart (See Osten Sacken, Studies on Tipulidse, p. 241 ; Berliner Ent. Zeitschr., XXXI; [1887] ; Pt. 2).



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