Phycus flavus Lyneborg 1978

Slender fly with yellowish abdomen and all femora yellowish. Antennae (illustrated in Lyneborg 1978 and 1987): Scape with only short pile dorsally. First flagellomere entirely black. Palpi dark brown.

Original description in:
Lyneborg, L. 1978. The Afrotropical species of Phycus Walker (Diptera: Therevidae). Entomologica Scandinavica 9. Also in: Insect Systematics & Evolution, 9(3), 212-233. https://doi.org/10.1163/187631278X00467
https://www.tesble.com/10.1163/187631278x00467

Male:
Total length. 7.2 mm.
Head: Frons at level of antennae c.35 % as wide as head, and at level of anterior ocellus c. 30% as wide as head. Antennal segment I c. 34% as long as depth of head, and c. 160% as long as maximal width. Antennal segment 3 c. 520% as long as segment 1, and c. 650% as long as maximal width. - Frons largely black and shining, but not polished, upper half depressed and with an extremely thin tomentum, lower lateral parts with thick, whitish tomentum.
Frons and face entirely bare. Palpi dark brownish. Antennal segments I and 2 brownish, segment 3 blackish. Segment 1 with extremely short pile and some strong setae on ventral surface.
Thorax. n = 2-3, sa = 1, pa = 1, dc = 0, sc = 1.
Mesonotum black, intensively tomentose, the tomentum forming a pattern of two narrow, brownish-grey stripes on middle and broader lateral bands of same coloration, areas between these brownish-grey portions are pure greyish.
Mesonotal pile very short and black. Mesopleuron black, shining; however, not polished due to a very thin tomentum, but clearly different in coloration from sternopleuron, which is intensively greyish tomentose.
Wings uniformly brownish-hyaline. Knob of halteres dark brownish.
Legs. All coxae greyish-black. F 1 and f2 yellowish-brown; f3 missing. T 1, t2 and their tarsi black.
Abdomen yellowish-brown with extremely short, black pile.

Female: Total length. 8.6 mm.
Head. Frons at level of antennae c. 38 % as wide as head, and at level of anterior ocellus c. 31 % as wide as head. Antennal segment 1 c. 28% as long as depth of head, and c. 160% as long as maximal width. Antennal segment 3 c. 400 % as long as segment 1, and c. 650 % as long as maximal width. -Coloration as in male. Thorax and wings as in male. Coxae paler than in male, largely brownish and with only slight grey tomentum. Also f3 yellowish-brown. Abdomen entirely yellowish-brown as in male.

Type locality: South Africa, N. E. Transvaal, Olifants River, Grootdraai (holotype male) - Female paratype from Pretoria, South Africa.

Key to species of southern African Phycus in:
Lyneborg, L. 1987. Notes on the Phycini of southern Africa with the description of a new genus and two new species (Diptera: Therevidae: Phycinae). Annals of the Natal Museum 28 (2): 467-474.
https://journals.co.za/doi/pdf/10.10520/AJA03040798_396

iNat observation:
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/225381602

Posted on July 10, 2024 12:07 PM by traianbertau