Pseudodoros clavatus (Fabricius, 1794):298

Pseudodoros is a genus of Syrphini with three species. The most common and wide-spread species is P. clavatus, which has eye bare; metasternum bare; thorax without yellow maculae except on scutellum; postmetacoxal bridge incomplete; vein M1 slightly sinuate; vein R4+5 straight or nearly so.

Following Kassebeer (2000), the subgenus Dioprosopa has tergum 2 with a pair of basal, large, triangular yellow maculae; scutellum yellow, with medial dark brown fascia; scutum with short, half-lying pile; pro- and mesotibiae yellowish-red to brown anteriorly, much darker on posterior 1/3 to 1/2; medial black facial vitta wider than the basoflagellomere's width; mouth edge black. This subgenus is only found in the New World.

Pseudodoros was described by Becker (1903) for his new species, nigricollis, from Egypt. Syrphus clavatus was described by Fabricius (1794) and placed under Pseudodoros by Thompson et al. (1976).

In 1949, Hull (1949a, b) designated a new subgenus for Baccha, Baccha (Dioprosopa), and designated clavatus Fabricius as the subgenotype species. Dioprosopa was created for the single species with epistoma and whole face producedforward beyond the antennal base, according to Hull.

Kassebeer (2000) described a new species from Southamerican Andes and recognized two different genera: Dioprosopa, for the species found in Neotropics, and Pseudodoros, for Afrotropical species. Mengual et al. (2008) recognised Dioprosopa as subgenus again after Thompson et al. (1976) synonymized it under Pseudodoros, but Thompson (2010) does not recognise any subgenera for Pseudodoros.

Synonyms:

Syrphus clavatus Fabricius, 1794: 298.

Baccha fusciventris Wiedemann, 1830: 95.

Baccha varia Walker, 1849: 548.

Baccha babista Walker, 1849: 549.

Conops quadrimaculata Ashmead, 1880: 69.

Spazigaster bacchoides Bigot, 1884: 326.

Paragus? scutellaris Walker, 1836: 342.

Baccha facialis Thomson, 1869: 504.

Mixogaster? scutellata Williston, 1886: 322.

Pseudodoros (Dioprosopa) clavatus (Fabricius, 1794).

Fabricius, J.C. (1794) Entomologia systematica emendata et aucta. Vol. 4, [6] + 472 + [5] pp. C. G. Proft, Hafniae [=Copenhagen].

Pseudodoros (Dioprosopa) clavatus (Fabricius, 1794).

Fabricius, J.C. (1794) Entomologia systematica emendata et aucta. Vol. 4, [6] + 472 + [5] pp. C. G. Proft, Hafniae [=Copenhagen].

New description:

MALE.

Head: Face with facial tubercle, slightly produced forward ventrally, yellow, black ventrolaterally and mouth edge black, with medial broad black vitta, yellow pilose; gena black, white pollinose, pale pilose; lunule black; frontal triangle yellow with a medial black area joining facial vitta ventrally, pale pilose; holoptic, eye bare; vertical triangle black, black pilose; antenna brownish, basoflagellomere slightly elongate, orangish ventrally; occiput black, silver pollinose, whitish pilose.

Thorax: Scutum shiny black, with recumbent yellow pile, white pollinose anteriorly; postalar callus brown; postpronotum bare; scutellum black with yellow fascia on anterior margin and another one on posterior margin, yellow pilose, subscutellar fringe complete with yellow pile. Pleuron black with bluish iridescence, whitish pilose; metasternum bare; calypter yellow; plumula yellow; halter yellow; spiracular fringes yellow. Wing: Wing membrane mostly hyaline, sometimes yellowish, stigma dark; apically microtrichose, broadly bare basally on costal cells. Legs: Entirely black except femora-tibiae joints yellow, and tibiae yellow on basal 1/3.

Abdomen: Petiolate, unmargined. Dorsum mainly black except tergum 1 black with bluish iridescence, tergum 2 black with two basolateral triangular yellow maculae; tergum 3 black with two lateral yellow vittate maculae; tergum 4 black with two subbasal arcuate yellow maculae.

FEMALE.

Similar to male, with frons shiny black, yellow laterally on ventral 1/3 and with two white pollinose maculae on eye margin.

Freitas (1982) redescribed the species with great details. He gave information about adult morphology, male and female genitalia, larval morphology, and puparium (see attachement).

Kassebeer (2000) compared P. clavatus with his new species, P. vockerothi, and provided drawings of the male genitalia, abdomen, and distribution (see attachement).

GenBank accession number for this species are: protein-coding COI gene (EF127332) and rRNA 28S gene (EF127413).

Length: body, 8.3-12.4 mm; wing, 6.1-8.8 mm (male); body, 6.5-12.0 mm; wing, 4.9-8.5 mm (female) (Kassebeer 2000).

Larvae of P. clavatus have been reported feeding on Aphis craccivora, A. gossypii, A. illinoisensis, A. nerii, A. spiraecola, Brachycaudus schwartzi, Brevicoryne brassicae, Macrosiphum euphorbiae, M. rosae, Melanaphis sacchari, Myzus persicae, Rhopalosiphum maidis, Schizaohis graminum, Toxoptera citricida, Uroleucon sp., Schizaphis graminum (Aphididae), and Viteus vitifoliae (Phylloxeridae) (Auad 2003; Rojo et al. 2003; Arcaya et al. 2004).

P. clavatus is a very common New World species, ranging from California, Wisconsin and New Jersey, south to Argentina. It was introduced in Hawaii but i is not established.

Very wide-spread species of the New World, ranging from California, Wisconsin and New Jersey, south to Argentina. P. clavatus was introduced in Hawaii but is not established.