First Data on Vibration Signals in Flies of the Genus Meromyza (Diptera,Chloropidae)

Biology Bulletin - This paper discusses vibration communication in representatives of the genus Meromyza. The frequency range of vibration signals of Meromyza saltatrix (L., 1761) females is 229 to...     

Grass Flies (Diptera,Chloropidae) of Crimean Peninsula

The fauna of grass flies (Diptera: Chloropidae) of the Crimean Peninsula is reviewed for the first time. The study is based on examination of the collection of the Zoological Institute, Russian Academy of Sciences (St. Petersburg), which includes the material collected in Crimea by the authors, the collections of the Zoological Museum of the M. V. Lomonosov Moscow State University and V. I. Vernadsky Crimean Federal University (Simferopol). The annotated list includes 92 species in 34 genera and three subfamilies. Most of the species (61) are recorded from Crimea for the first time. Six species, Chlorops horridus Becker, Ch. puncticornis Loew, Dicraeus (Oedesiella) beschovskii Nartshuk, Lasiosina chandleri Ismay, Meromyza meigeni Nartshuk and Oscinimorpha longirostris (Loew) are recorded for the first time from Russia and Eastern Europe. The characters for distinguishing Oscinimorpha arcuata Duda from O. longirostris (Loew), i.e., the structure of head and the male genitalia, are provided. The boreo-montane species Oscinella vastator (Curtis) and Meromyza curvinervis (Zetterstedt) are found on the Chatyrdag Mountain and Yaila (mostly forestless plateau in the Crimean Mountains). Species with southern European, Mediterranean and Macaronesian-Mediterranean ranges were recorded mostly on the South Coast of Crimea. The Crimean fauna of Chloropidae is compared with the faunas of Sardinia and Turkey.     

Acoustical communication by Lipara lucens (Diptera, Chloropidae)

Males of Lipara lucens Mg. living on stems of Common Reed (Phragmites communis Trin.) emit acoustical signals perceived at a distance by a female fly sitting on the same reed stem as vibration of the substrate. Virgin females respond to these signals by vibrating, which in turn elicits searching behaviour in the male fly. It is suggested that this behaviour reduces the time required to find a partner, because a reed stem needs only be visited briefly to ascertain whether a receptive female is present.

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Résumé Les mâles de Lipara lucens Mg. vivant sur les tiges du Roseau commun (Phragmites communis Trin.) émettent des signaux acoustiques perçus à distance comme une vibration du support par une mouche femelle située sur la même tige de roseau. Les femelles vierges répondent à leur tour à ces signaux par une vibration qui provoque le comportement de découverte chez la mouche mâle. Il est suggéré que ce comportement réduit le temps de découverte du partenaire parce qu'une tige de roseau peut être visitée rapidement par le mâle pour s'assurer de la présence d'une femelle réceptive.

     

Grassflies (Diptera, Chloropidae) in the middle Lena valley (Central Yakutia)

Sixty-one species of grassflies (Diptera, Chloropidae) have been found in the meadows in the middle Lena valley, Central Yakutia. Differences between the grassfly taxocenoses of different parts of the valley depend on specific features of a particular plant community. The dominant and subdominant chloropid species are distinguished. The differences of the riparian fauna from the complexes inhabiting the alases in Yakutia are shown. Six species of grassflies are recorded for Yakutia for the first time, all of them belonging to the subfamily Oscinellinae: Polyodaspis ruficornis Macquart, Tricimba cincta Meigen, Aphanotrigonum trilineatum Meigen, Trachysiphonella scutellata v. Roser, Rhopalopterum anthracinum Meigen, and Rh. fasciolum Meigen     

A supplement to the grassfly fauna of Japan (Diptera, Chloropidae)

Two new grassfly species, Gampsocera diversicolor closely related to G. tenuisinuosa Kanmiya, 1983 and Conioscinella subdivitis closely related to C. divitis Nartshuk, 1971, are described from Japan. Keys for the new species are given. Oscinisoma ussuriense Nartshuk, 1973, known in Primorskii Territory of Russia and Korea, was found in Japan (Honshu Island) for the first time. The genus Oscinisoma Lioy, 1864 was also first recorded in Japan.     

Two new species of Pselaphia (Diptera, Chloropidae) from Zambia

Pselaphia haladai sp. n. and Pselaphia zambiensis sp. n. are described from Zambia. All African Pselaphia species are keyed and main differential characters are illustrated.     

Morphometric and Molecular Diversity of the Holarctic <Emphasis Type="Italic">Meromyza saltatrix</Emphasis> (L., 1761) (Diptera,Chloropidae) in Eurasia

The population diversity of the frit fly Meromyza saltatrix from Poland, Mongolia, and several regions of the Russian Federation was analyzed by morphometric and molecular data on the mtDNA locus COI. Two phenotypes that correspond to two haplogroups (19 haplotypes) were identified by the absence or presence of black setae on the lower surface of the genae. A remarkable clinal variability among populations was demonstrated by the total area and area of the projecting part of the anterior processes of postgonites (APP), which play a critical role in the success of male copulation. Each parameter analyzed divided populations into four groups. Close populations with a natural barrier vary in the total area of the anterior process of the postgonite. We found an increased number of mutations including transversions in frit flies from Mongolia. Populations from Zvenigorod, South Ural Nature Reserve, and Mongolia might be of a later origin. The presence of particular haplogroup in the West European population of M. saltatrix with black setae, which is a unique feature of West European species of Meromyza, and their similarity to the Crimean population by the morphometrics of the APP is an indication of the possible isolation of this population in southern Europe during Quaternary glaciations with subsequent expansion to the northern part of the geographical area.     

Plant-feeding dipterans (Diptera,Chloropidae, Agromyzidae) from Wrangel Island (the Chukchi Sea)

Flies of the family Chloropidae were found in the arctic tundra for the first time. Oscinella frit L. was collected in several areas of the mountainous part of Wrangel Island, occurring mainly in the ground layer. Among three species of Agromyzidae, Napomyza mimula Spencer was the most numerous; it was found both in the mountains and on the coastal plain. Two other species, Phytomyza cineracea Hendel and Chromatomyia sp., were rare. The only biotope where all the four species were collected simultaneously was a zoogenic forb-grass meadow patch which developed around the arctic fox burrow.     

Species of the genus Thressa Walker, 1860 from China (Diptera, Chloropidae)

A review of the species of the genus Thressa from China is provided. The following four species are described as new to science: Thressa bimaculatasp. n., Thressa daiyunshanasp. n., Thressa foliaceasp. n. and Thressa longimaculatasp. n. One species, Thressa flavior (Duda), is recorded from China for the first time. A key to the species of the Thressa from China is given.     

Grass-fly larvae (Diptera,Chloropidae): Diversity,habitats, and feeding specializations

The fly family Chloropidae belongs to the higher Diptera series Acalyptratae. It is distributed worldwide and globally comprises 200 genera and about 3000 species in 4 subfamilies: Oscinellinae, Siphonellopsinae, Rhodesiellinae, and Chloropinae. In the fossil record, Chloropidae are known since the Oligocene, with 2 genera found in Baltic amber: one extinct, the other recent. The family includes several important agricultural pests (frit flies, gout flies, Meromyza, seed pests) which injure corn. The feeding preferences of chloropid larvae vary strongly: there are saprophages in the broad sense, true phytophages using both woody and grassy plants (mainly monocots), predators on egg masses of insects and spiders, as well as on scale insects and aphids, and ectoparasites of frogs. Among the 100 families of monocots (Liliopsida), only 11 include species serving as food plants for chloropid larvae. The greatest diversity of habitats and feeding types is observed in the subfamily Oscinellinae. The most advanced subfamily Chloropinae includes mostly phytophagous larvae. A possible scenario of ecological evolution within the family is briefly discussed.     

Updated Italian checklist of Soldier Flies (Diptera,Stratiomyidae)

An updated checklist for Stratiomyidae of Italy is presented. Previous knowledge and information are put together in a comprehensive way, integrated also with results obtained by sampling with Malaise traps in some of the test areas of the LIFE+ project ManFor C.BD.At the time of writing, with 91 known species, the Italian fauna of Stratiomyidae is the richest in Europe. Neopachygaster meromelas (Dufour, 1841) and Zabrachia minutissima (Zetterstedt, 1838) are new to the Italian fauna. A comprehensive key to the European species of Chorisops Rondani, 1856 is given.     

Distribution of frit flies (Chloropidae: Meromyza Mg.) in Vologda oblast and East Poland

Species diversity and abundance of frit flies from the genus Meromyza have been assessed in coastal biotopes, grasslands, and agro-ecosystems of Vologda oblast (Russia) and Warsaw province (Poland). The Jaccard quotient of similarity (IG) of frit fly abundance has shown a uniformity between coastal banks and grasslands along these banks, as well as between cultivated cereals (except for oats) and field boundaries, cultivated fields, and some reach-in-herbs grasslands, including hayfields. Considerable heterogeneity of species composition of the flies has been revealed in similar biotopes. The biotopes studied have been found to be dominated by one species of frit flies. It has been discovered that cereal rotation in agro-ecosystem results in change in the dominant species of frit fly. The cereal height has been found to influence the abundance and diversity of frit flies. No regularities have been observed in the correlation between the abundances of frit flies in different biotopes. It has been pointed out that M. nigriseta Fed. and M. variegata Mg. can feed on cultivated cereals.     

Parasites of grass flies (Diptera, Chloropidae) from the order hymenoptera in the Holarctic region

Hymenopterous parasitoids of grass flies of the family Chloropidae from the Palaearctic and Nearctic regions are reviewed. These parasitoids belong to four superfamilies and 16 families of Hymenoptera and were reared from 39 species of Chloropidae in the Palaearctic (less than 6% of the fauna) and only from 10 species in the Nearctic Region. The majority of parasitoids are oligo-or polyphagous species. To a certain degree, the parasitoids are specialized on one of the three host groups: (1) species developing in shoots of cereal and meadow grasses; (2) forest species developing in cones of coniferous trees; and (3) species associated with the common reed, Phragmites australis. In the Palaearctic Region, the majority of parasitoids (91 species) were reared from Oscinella frit L. s. 1.; a significantly smaller number of these parasites is known from this host in the Nearctic Region, nearly half of the parasitoids being common for both regions. The next large group of parasitoids is associated with gall-inducing species of the genus Lipara Meigen (59 species) developing in the common reed. By contrast with two other groups of parasitoids, this one includes many species of the family Ichneumonidae. It should be noted that taxonomic diversity at the third trophic level is markedly greater than at the second level.     

Three new species of Tricimba Lioy from the West Palaearctic region (Diptera,Chloropidae)

Tricimba rudolfi Kubík, sp. n. (Czech Republic, Portugal), Tricimba chalupi Kubík, sp. n. (Czech Republic), and Tricimba dursuni Kubík, sp. n. (Turkey) are described and illustrated. First records of Tricimba kaplanae Dely-Draskovits, 1983 from Corsica and Tricimba hungarica Dely-Draskovits, 1983 from Turkey are listed.     

Louse Flies (Diptera,Hippoboscidae) in Bird Nests in Voronezh Province

Entomological Review - Eight species of louse flies were recorded on 22 bird species as the result of research carried out in 2008–2018 in Voronezh Province of Russia. Five species are...     

Host plan preferences of Oscinella spp. (Diptera: Chloropidae) in the laboratory

The oviposition preferences of Oscinella frit, O. vastator, O. nitidissima, O. albiseta andO. nigerrima for differenct Gramineae were investigated in the laboratory. O. frit, laid most eggs on oats, Lolium multiflorum and Festuca rubra, relatively few eggs were laid on barley and virtually none on Dactylis glomerata None of the other Osinella species oviposted on cereals. Of the other species, O. vastator appeared to be the most polyphagous and the preferred hosts were L. multiflorum, Lolium perenne and Festuca pratensis; few eggs were laid on either F. rubra, Agrostis tenuis or Poa pratensis. The host ranges of the remaining species were much more limited. Although a few eggs were laid by O. nitidissima on Lolium, the preferred host was A. tenuis. Oscinella albiseta oviposited only on D. glomerata whilst nearly all the eggs laid by O. nigerrima were deposited on shoots of Arrhenatherum elatius. The distribution of eggs by O. frit on L. multiflorum and A. tenuis was different from that on oats; on grasses most eggs were laid inside withered leaf sheaths whereas on oats most were deposited inside the coleoptile. The oviposition sites of O. nitidissima, O. nigerrima and O. albiseta on their respective host grasses were similar to those of O. frit on grasses. O. frit laid most eggs on grasses which were at the five-leaf stage and tailoring.     

Wolbachia in Anastrepha Fruit Flies (Diptera: Tephritidae)

Endosymbiotic bacteria of the genus Wolbachia are widespread among arthropods and cause a variety of reproductive abnormalities, such as cytoplasmic incompatibility, thelytokous parthenogenesis, male-killing, and host feminization. In this study, we used three sets of Wolbachia-specific primers (16S rDNA, ftsZ, and wsp) in conjunction with the polymerase chain reaction (PCR), cloning and sequencing to study the infection of fruit flies (Anastrepha spp. and Ceratitis capitata) by Wolbachia. The flies were collected at several localities in Brazil and at Guayaquil, Ecuador. All of the fruit flies studied were infected with Wolbachia supergroup A, in agreement with the high prevalence of this group in South America. Phylogenetic analysis showed that the wsp gene was the most sensitive gene for studying the relationships among Wolbachia strains. The Wolbachia sequences detected in these fruit flies were similar to those such as wMel reported for other fruit flies. These results show that the infection of Anastrepha fruit flies by Wolbachia is much more widespread than previously thought.