Comprehensive Description
provided by Memoirs of the American Entomological Society
Rachicerus niger new species
Wholly very dark brown, almost blackish; wings rather strongly tinged with brownish, veins dark brown; antennae twenty-segmented, slightly pectinate.
Male. — Length, 7 mm. Head: Vertex, front and face, including eye notches, shining black except a patch just above the antennae which is dull (in better preserved specimens this would probably be silvery pubescent); palpi black; proboscis more of a dark brownish; antennae blackish, about the length of the thorax, with twenty segments and slightly pectinate below.
Thorax: Mesonotum almost black, with fine short pale hairs, visible only in certain lights, shining, humeral calli and before scutellum tinged with brownish; pleura and metanotum shining black, metapleural hairs fine and pale; scutellum brownish on disc, with hairs as on mesonotum; halteres brownish.
Abdomen: Black, shining above and below with fairly abundant short appressed pale hairs.
Legs: Very dark brown, almost black, the front coxae behind rather distinctly and the femora and tibiae indefinitely towards the base tinged with brownish of a lighter shade; coxal hairs pale.
Wings: Veins dark brown; membrane rather strongly tinged with brownish, stigmal spot not present.
Female. — Unknown.
Holotype. — Male, collected by J. C. Bradley at Blue Lake, Humboldt County, California, June 20-27, I 9 7Type deposited in the Cornell University collection, type no. 581. 1. Unfortunately the right antenna has but thirteen segments remaining and the left, only one; the front and both middle legs except the coxae are missing, the left tibia, and the tarsi of both hind legs are also gone. Nevertheless this is undoubtedly a distinct species as no others discussed in this paper are so nearly wholly blackish. I feel sure that additional collecting will bring to light more specimens which would substantiate this as a valid species.
- bibliographic citation
- Leonard, M.D. 1930. A Revision of the Dipterous Family Rhagionidae (Leptidae) in the United States and Canada. Memoirs of the American Entomological Society vol. 7. Philadelphia, USA