Tipula (Vestiplex) himalayensis Brunetti, 1911

Figs 51–57, 86

Tipula himalayensis Brunetti, 1911: 252. Type locality: India: Darjeeling.

Tipula (Vestiplex) subreposita Alexander, 1942: 39. Type locality: India: Darjiling, Mangpu.

Tipula himalayensis – Edwards 1924: 305.

Tipula (Vestiplex) himalayensis – Alexander 1942: 41; 1963: 325. — Joseph 1974: 269. — Starkevich & Podenas 2011: 276. — Starkevich 2012: 75. — Pilipenko et al. 2019: 10.

Diagnosis

Scape yellow, pedicel pale yellow, first flagellar segment yellowish brown, other flagellar segments dark brown. Middle of abdominal tergites 2–4 with pale brown spots, both sides each with brown stripe. Gonocoxite strongly elongated. Outer gonostylus brownish black, without setae except margins of apex and base with few setae. Inner gonostylus with upper beak bearing born-like elevation.

Material examined

CHINA • 2 ♂♂; Tibet, Bomi, Yigong; 30°16′19″ N, 94°48′28″ E; 2200 m a.s.l.; 5 May 2017; Qicheng Yang leg.; light trap; CAU.

Redescription

Male

MEASUREMENTS. Body length 15.0 mm, wing length 17.0 mm, antenna length 4.0 mm (n = 2).

HEAD (Figs 51, 53). Mainly reddish yellow. Vertex with brown stripe. Rostrum and nasus dark yellow. Setae on head dark brown. Scape yellow, pedicel pale yellow, first flagellar segment yellowish brown, other flagellar segments dark brown. Proboscis and palpus brownish yellow.

THORAX (Figs 51, 53). Mainly dark yellow, heavily pruinose. Pronotum dark yellow with dark yellow setae, middle pale brown and both sides with a pale brown spot. Prescutum dark yellow with four reddish brown stripes, median stripes broadened apically and gradually narrowing to base. Scutum with four reddish brown spots. Scutellum yellow with black mid-longitudinal stripe. Mediotergite yellow. Thoracic pleuron reddish yellow. Setae on thorax yellow. Legs with coxae and femora yellow, femora with brownish black apices and middle portions, tibiae and tarsi brownish black. Setae on legs brownish black. Wing light brown; pterostigma pale brown; petiole of cell m 1 slightly shorter than discal cell (Fig. 52). Halter with stem yellow, knob pale yellow.

ABDOMEN (Figs 51, 53). Mainly yellow. Middle of abdominal tergites 2–4 with pale brown sports, both sides each with a brown stripe. Abdominal segment 5 yellowish brown, segments 6–9 brownish black. Setae on abdomen yellow.

HYPOPYGIUM (Figs 54–57). Gonocoxite strongly elongated, thick, separated from sternite 9. Tergite 9 longitudinally divided into two parts, a bridge present between them. Sternite 9 with a median prominence. Outer gonostylus sclerotized, brownish black, without setae except margins of apex and base with few setae. Inner gonostylus with setae dorsally; upper beak with a horn-like elevation bearing 2 setae at tip, base of upper beak with 2 distinct setae; inner gonostylus with setae dorsally (Fig. 55).

Female

See Brunetti (1911).

Distribution

China (Tibet, Yunnan); India (Assam, Himachal Pradesh, Sikkim, Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, W Bengal); Myanmar; Vietnam.

Remarks

Here, we add new distributional data and new illustrations. Yigong Township is now the current northernmost distribution of T. (V.) himalayensis. The species was considered by Brunetti to be variable but within certain limits and can be easily recognized by the pale yellow wide ring on all the femora about as far from the tip as the width of the ring. We examined other additional material, in addition to the previously indicated: 1 ♂ (paratype) Darjiling; 6000 feet a.s.l.; 22 Sep. 1908; Brunetti (USNM) / 1 ♂ (syntype) Darjiling; 20 Oct. 1905; Brunetti (BMNH(E)#246064). There is no difference in the characteristics of the femora of the three, but the wing veins are slightly different. It seems that the difference in the wing veins shown in Joseph’s illustrations (Joseph 1974) can be regarded as intraspecific variation. But there are also some differences in the shape of inner gonostylus as shown in the illustrations, especially the beak different from others. It is necessary to make further observations on the specimens of ZSI.