Aphaniosoma miricercus sp. nov. urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act: 6D1FB4C4-1E96-4DE7-9C0C-C72F9AF5C0ED Figs 61–63 Diagnosis A yellow species with brown longitudinal scutal vittae, black 4 th and 5 th tarsomeres in both sexes (Fig. 61), the presutural intra-alar seta is present, and the presutural, prealar and dorsocentral setae are strong. Male without modified hind trochanter. Similar species: among those with strong presutural dorsocentral setae but without a modified hind trochanter in the male, A. miricercus sp. nov. is unique in the unusual shape of the cercus. This is unusually long and fused with the opposite side along the basal ⅔. Additionally, the very long setae on the terminal segments of the abdomen are characteristic in the female of this species, shared with the female of A. setigerum Collin, 1949 but the latter has no pre-alar seta and all tarsal segments are yellow. Etymology The species epithet is derived from the Latin ‘ mirus ’ meaning ‘strange’, combined with ‘ cercus ’, and refers to the strange shape of the cercus in this species. Material examined Holotype ISRAEL • ♂; Mizpe Ramon observatory; 17 Mar. 1995; B. Merz leg.; MHNG-ENTO-00097873. Paratypes ISRAEL • 1 ♂, 3 ♀♀; ‘ En Mor; 16 Mar. 1995; B. Merz leg.; MHNG. Description MEASUREMENTS. Body length: male 1.8 mm, female 1.8 mm. Wing length: male 1.8 mm, female 1.8 mm. Male (holotype) HEAD. Yellow, including ocellar triangle, occiput and ocelli; head almost spherical; frons narrowed anteriorly: at level of antennae about 0.5 × as wide as at level of anterior ocellus; gena: narrow in front, deeper behind, in profile, below middle of eye, about 0.8 × as high as eye, with numerous pale setulae; occiput in profile narrowly visible posterodorsal to eye, with long postocular setulae in one row; 3 long pale vibrissal setae; face short, poorly sclerotized and depressed; median carina narrow and shallow (not visible in holotype because of facial collapse; antenna yellow, pedicel paler than basal flagellomere and with distinct long black seta dorsally (not visible in holotype because of collapse); basal flagellomere with fine pubescence along anterior margin, shorter than diameter of first segment of arista; arista pale on basal ⅓, with fine pubescence; chaetotaxy: 2 strong fronto-orbitals with two very short setulae interior to them, paraverticals short and convergent; 1 inner and 1 outer vertical vertical, both strong; ocellars as long as posterior fronto-orbital; about 18 dark, subequal setulae across frons. THORAX. Yellow; scutum covered with dense pale microtomentum, with broad pale brown longitudinal vittae separated by only narrow yellow lines; scutellum yellow; mediotergite dark brown; pleura yellow with black on middle of katepisternum and meron; chaetotaxy: 1 postpronotal with a weak seta adjacent, 1 incurved intra-postpronotal, 1 long presutural, 2 notopleurals, 1+3 intra-alars, 1 postalar, 2+4 dorsocentrals, 1+5 acrostichals with prescutellars, 4 scutellars, 1 anepisternal with 1 shorter and thinner seta below it, 1 katepisternal at upper posterior corner with 2 short thin setae at middle. WING. Veins yellowish brown; distance on costa between R 2+3 and R 4+5 about 0.4 × that between R 4+5 and M 1; distance between crossveins about 1.8 × as long as posterior crossvein, which is about 0.4 × as long as apical section of vein M 4 and lies oblique, forming an angle of about 60° with M 4. Haltere pale yellow. LEGS. Numerous pale setulae scattered on legs and fore femur with long setulae posteriorly; apico-ventral seta on mid tibia present; claws black and pulvilli normal; 4 th and 5 th tarsomeres of all legs black; hind trochanter not modified. ABDOMEN (Fig. 62A). Tergites more or less equal in length except for very short tergite 6, which is markedly elongate ventrally; tergites brown dorsally on basal ½ but yellow margins wider on segments 4–6; tergites with pale brown to yellow setae and setulae. Sternites 2–4 deeply pigmented, fifth unremarkable, but 6 th enlarged and of a complex concave shape (Fig. 63B). HYPOPYGIUM (Figs 62, 63A). Epandrium yellow; surstylus long, pale, very slightly curved and with a few pale setulae posteriorly on apical ⅓; hypandrium (viewed ventrally) narrow; no pregonite identified and may be absent; postgonites narrow, pale, weakly sclerotized and difficult to see as they run close and parallel to epiphallus; distiphallus irregularly cylindrical, mostly membranous with some lobes at apex; cercus large and distinctly and unusually elongated, basally fused with the opposite side and with usual long setae basally, but apical ⅓ narrow, separated, slightly divergent and bearing a dense array of very short fine white setulae. Female As in male, but without secondary sexual characters; abdominal tergites 5–7 with exceptionally long setae. Variation No significant variation noted in this series of specimens. Distribution Israel.

Published as part of Ebejer, Martin J., 2023, The genus Aphaniosoma Becker, 1903 (Diptera: Chyromyidae) in the Eastern Mediterranean and Middle East, with descriptions of new species, pp. 1-161 in European Journal of Taxonomy 872 on pages 110-114, DOI: 10.5852/ejt.2023.872.2131, http://zenodo.org/record/8018303