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Rhagoletotrypeta Aczél

Rhagoletotrypeta rohweri, female dorsal habitus, drawing (86885 bytes)
Rhagoletotrypeta rohweri, dorsal habitus, female.

Recognition
Species of Rhagoletotrypeta may be distinguished from other Tephritidae by the following combination of characters: Antenna not extended beyond ventral facial margin. First flagellomere rounded apically. Thorax usually mostly brown. Scutum with medial yellow or white stripe, and with or without white band on transverse suture, sometimes extended to intra-alar seta as sublateral stripe. Dorsocentral seta closer to level of postsutural supra-alar seta than level of postalar seta. Length of vein M from BM-Cu to R-M/ length from BM-Cu to DM-Cu less than 0.60. Aculeus tip either more than half as long as aculeus or deeply trilobed in ventral view. 2-3 spermathecae. Lateral surstylus elongate, with mesal lobe near prensisetae. Medial surstylus short, extended only slightly beyond epandrium.

Description
Head: Yellow except brown between ocelli, and often large posterior areas of occiput and postgena brown. 3 (very rarely 2 or 4) frontal setae. 2 reclinate orbital setae, orbital ratio (distance between orbital setae/ distance from anterior seta to eye margin) less than 1. Ocellar seta strong, at least as large as posterior orbital seta. Face with distinct carina. Antenna short to medium length, never extended to ventral margin of face; first flagellomere tapered, rounded apically or rarely with weak dorsoapical point; first flagellomere length/width (lateral view) 1.7-3.5.

Thorax: Mostly brown (sometimes partly dark orange), with following white areas: medial scutal stripe or spot; postpronotal lobe (except sometimes in R. xanthogastra); apical third or more of scutellum; and dorsal anepisternal stripe, sometimes extended along posterior margin. Scutum sometimes (xanthogastra group) with white spot on transverse suture or postsutural lateral stripe or spot. Notopleuron and katepisternum without white markings (except in R. parallela). Scutum entirely microtrichose, with 2 pairs of stripes of denser microtrichia (annulata group), or with only submedial denser stripes or partially to entirely bare (xanthogastra group). Dorsocentral seta usually even with or slightly anterior or posterior to postsutural supra-alar seta (more posterior in some R. annulata, but closer to postsutural supra-alar seta than to postalar seta).

Wing: Crossvein R-M near middle of cell dm, less than 0.60 distance from BM-Cu to DM-Cu. Subbasal, discal, subapical, and anterior apical crossbands present. Discal band with anterior end basally curved, usually connected to subbasal band in cells c, r1, and/or r2+3; covering R-M, but not touching DM-Cu. Subapical band usually connected to discal band at posterior wing margin, and connected to apical band at anterior margin. Apical band complete. Posterior apical band absent. Accessory costal band usually present (except in R. argentinensis and R. parallela).

Abdomen: Tergites mostly brown or mostly yellow with brown spots, usually with apical white bands.

Male terminalia: Sternite 6 sometimes with medial, usually mostly membranous lobe (annulata group). Lateral surstylus elongate, with mesal lobe near prensisetae; mesal lobe short and sharply delimited (xanthogastra group) or broad and gradually arising from apical part of surstylus (annulata group). Medial surstylus short, in lateral view, distance from margin of epandrium to apex of medial surstylus less than or equal to width of lateral surstylus. Glans slender, cylindrical, with distinct, complex internal sclerotization.

Female terminalia: Aculeus sometimes (xanthogastra group) with lateral barb basal to tip; tip often (annulata group) more than 0.40 times aculeus length; deeply trilobed, flattened in sagittal plane, or simple; never with small subapical notches. 2 (annulata group) or 3 (xanthogastra group) spermathecae, spherical with short base.


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Content by Allen L. Norrbom. Last Updated: January 27, 2004.