-
Zootaxa Apr 2021The Macaronesian species of the muscid genus Limnophora are reviewed with special emphasis on the fauna of the western Canary Islands. The genus is represented by 14...
The Macaronesian species of the muscid genus Limnophora are reviewed with special emphasis on the fauna of the western Canary Islands. The genus is represented by 14 species in the Macaronesian archipelagos, with 10 species in the Canary Islands, 4 species in the Cape Verde Islands, and 3 species in Madeira. Limnophora obsignatula sp. nov. is endemic to the western Canary Islands, where it replaces the widespread continental L. obsignata (Rondani). It is further shown that L. paneliusi Emden, a species so far considered endemic to the Cape Verde Islands, is widespread in the Canary Islands. Two species, L. obsignata (Rondani) and L. tigrina Am Stein, are removed from the list of Canarian Muscidae as based on misidentifications of other species with a mesonotal "Anthomyia-pattern". Limnophora (Calliophrys) riparia capoverdica Emden, a taxon described from the Cape Verde Islands, is synonymized with L. riparia (Fallén), syn. nov. Distribution data and illustrated diagnoses are given for each species. The species account is finalized with an identification key to males and females. An assessment of the ovipositor as a characters source in phylogeny and species recognition is made for 12 species of Limnophora. Finally, it is pointed out that several species are acutely threatened due to habitat disturbance.
Topics: Animals; Diptera; Ecosystem; Female; Male; Muscidae
PubMed: 33903381
DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4952.1.6 -
Zootaxa May 2023The Macaronesian species of the muscid genus Helina are revised. The genus is represented in the Canary Islands by 9 species, in Madeira by 7 species, and in the Azores...
The Macaronesian species of the muscid genus Helina are revised. The genus is represented in the Canary Islands by 9 species, in Madeira by 7 species, and in the Azores Islands by 1 species. Four species, one divided in two subspecies, are endemic to the Canary Islands: Helina grancanariae sp. nov. (Gran Canaria), H. obscurisquama obscurisquama (Stein) (Tenerife, La Gomera), H. obscurisquama pseudonivalis (Santos Abréu) ssp. rev. (La Palma), H. rufitibialis Hennig (Tenerife, La Gomera, La Palma) and H. santosabreui sp. nov. (La Gomera, La Palma). The following three species are endemic to Madeira: Helina atlantica (Tiensuu), H. lundbladi Tiensuu and H. vilissima Hennig. Existing records of Helina almeriensis (Strobl) and H. quadrum (Fabricius) from the Canary Islands are considered as misidentifications. An identification key to males and females concludes the species accounts. Finally, a description is given of the previously unknown male sex of the endemic Madeiran Spilogona maderensis Michelsen.
Topics: Animals; Female; Male; Muscidae
PubMed: 37518485
DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.5293.2.3 -
Journal of Medical Entomology Jan 2023House flies, Musca domestica L., (Diptera: Muscidae) mechanically vector diverse disease-causing microorganisms while foraging for food in agricultural and urban...
House flies, Musca domestica L., (Diptera: Muscidae) mechanically vector diverse disease-causing microorganisms while foraging for food in agricultural and urban habitats. Although flies are diverse feeders, nutrient composition of food is important for both fly longevity and reproduction, especially for anautogenous females who require protein for egg production. We investigated whether fly sex and/or mating status influenced their preference for foods with varying macronutrient composition. Presumably mated or unmated male and female flies were separated by sex and offered four food, each in 10% solution offered on cotton wicks: sugar (carbohydrate-rich), fat-free milk (protein-rich, moderate carbohydrate), egg-yolk (protein and lipid-rich), and water (no macronutrients). Foods were colored with nontoxic dyes, which were rotated between replicates. After 4h exposure, flies were dissected to determine the type of food(s) ingested. The interaction of house fly sex and food type significantly influenced food preference, where females preferred milk (protein and carbohydrate-rich food), and males preferred mainly sugar (carbohydrate-rich). Furthermore, 32.8% of females and 10.6% of males foraged on multiple foods. While interaction of sex and mating status had no effect on food preference, milk preference was significantly higher in presumably mated than unmated females. We also tested whether food color influenced fly feeding preference, and found that color was most significant when flies were offered one food type, but negligible when multiple food types were present. This study suggests that bait-based fly control strategies should consider sex-specific preferences for various food attractants if aiming to target and control both male and female house flies.
Topics: Female; Male; Animals; Houseflies; Muscidae; Diptera; Feeding Behavior; Carbohydrates; Sugars
PubMed: 36305732
DOI: 10.1093/jme/tjac161 -
Zootaxa Jun 2016Here we catalogue 32 species in two genera of Fanniidae (Euryomma and Fannia) from Colombia and provide geographical information for all species, when available.
Here we catalogue 32 species in two genera of Fanniidae (Euryomma and Fannia) from Colombia and provide geographical information for all species, when available.
Topics: Animal Distribution; Animals; Catalogs as Topic; Colombia; Ecosystem; Female; Male; Muscidae
PubMed: 27395317
DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4122.1.69 -
Acta Tropica Oct 2021Many muscid flies (Diptera: Muscidae) are well-known as medical, veterinary, and forensically significant insects, thus correct species identification is critically...
Many muscid flies (Diptera: Muscidae) are well-known as medical, veterinary, and forensically significant insects, thus correct species identification is critically important before applying for fly control and determining a minimal postmortem interval (PMI) in forensic investigations. Limited in taxonomic keys and taxonomists, as well as scanty in advanced molecular laboratories lead to difficulty in identification of muscids. To date, a landmark-based geometric morphometric analysis of wings has proven to be a promising alternative technique for identifying many insect species. Herein, we assessed wing morphometric analysis for identification of six medically and forensically important muscids, namely Musca domestica Linnaeus, Musca pattoni Austen, Musca ventrosa Wiedemann, Hydrotaea chalcogaster (Wiedemann), Hydrotaea spinigera Stein, and Dichaetomyia quadrata (Wiedemann). A total of 302 right wing images were digitized based on 15 homologous landmarks and wing shape variation among genera and species was analyzed using canonical variate analysis, whereas sexual shape dimorphism of M. domestica, M. ventrosa, and D. quadrata was analyzed using discriminant function analysis. The cross-validation revealed a relatively high percentage of correct classification in most species, ranging from 86.4% to 100%, except for M. pattoni, being 67.5%. Misidentifications were mainly due to cross-pairings of the genus Musca; M. domestica VS M. pattoni VS M. ventrosa. The accuracy of classification using cross-validation test demonstrated that wing shape can be used to evaluate muscid flies at the genus- and species-level, and separate sexes of the three species analyzed, with a high reliability. This study sheds light on genus, species, and sex discrimination of six muscid species that have been approached using wing morphometric analysis.
Topics: Animals; Forensic Entomology; Muscidae; Reproducibility of Results; Wings, Animal
PubMed: 34289390
DOI: 10.1016/j.actatropica.2021.106062 -
Zootaxa Jan 2021Stomopogon Malloch (Diptera, Muscidae) is a Neotropical genus recorded from Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile and Peru. In this contribution, the genus is revised, and...
Stomopogon Malloch (Diptera, Muscidae) is a Neotropical genus recorded from Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile and Peru. In this contribution, the genus is revised, and three new species are described, one from Bolivia (Murillo, La Paz), one from Brazil (Palmas, Paraná) and one from Peru (Wayqecha, Cuzco). The descriptions include color images, illustrations and ultrastructural morphology of the terminalia of the adult. We provide an identification key to the species of Stomopogon and an updated map with species' distributions. Stomopogon acuta (Malloch, 1934) is proposed as a new junior synonym of S. inculta Stein, 1911.
Topics: Animals; Diptera; Muscidae
PubMed: 33757084
DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4903.3.1 -
Medical and Veterinary Entomology Dec 2022Adult house flies feed and breed in a variety of microbe-rich habitats and serve as vectors for human and animal pathogens. To better understand their role in harbouring...
Adult house flies feed and breed in a variety of microbe-rich habitats and serve as vectors for human and animal pathogens. To better understand their role in harbouring and disseminating bacteria, we characterized the composition and diversity of bacterial communities in the gut of female house flies collected from three different habitats in Kansas: agricultural (dairy farm), urban (business area dumpsters) and mixed (business located between residential and animal agriculture areas). Bacterial community composition and diversity were influenced more by the house flies' habitat than by sampling time. The most abundant taxa were also highly prevalent in the house flies collected from all three habitats, potentially representing a 'core microbiome' attributable to the fly's trophic and reproductive associations with substrates and food sources comprised of decaying matter and/or animal waste. Bacterial taxa associated with vertebrate guts/faeces and potential pathogens were highly abundant in agricultural fly microbial communities. Interestingly, taxa of potential pathogens were highly abundant in flies from the mixed and urban sites. House flies harboured diverse bacterial communities influenced by the habitat in which they reside, including potential human and animal pathogens, further bolstering their role in the dissemination of pathogens, and indicating their utility for pathogen surveillance.
Topics: Female; Humans; Animals; Houseflies; Muscidae; Bacteria; Microbiota; Specimen Handling
PubMed: 35599244
DOI: 10.1111/mve.12581 -
Parasitology Research May 2017Cadavers attract numerous species and genera of Muscidae, both regular elements of carrion insect assemblages, and accidental visitors. Identification of adult Muscidae...
Cadavers attract numerous species and genera of Muscidae, both regular elements of carrion insect assemblages, and accidental visitors. Identification of adult Muscidae may be considered difficult, particularly by non-experts. Since species identification is a vital first step in the analysis of entomological material in any forensic entomology orientated experiment and real cases, various alternative methods of species identification have been proposed. We investigated possibility of semiautomated identification by means of wing measurements as an alternative for classic morphology and DNA-based approaches. We examined genus-level identification success for 790 specimens representing 13 genera of the most common European cadavers visiting Muscidae. We found 99.8% of examined specimens correctly identified to the genus-level. Without error, the following were identified: Azelia, Eudasyphora, Graphomya, Hydrotaea, Musca, Muscina, Mydaea, Neomyia, Polietes, Stomoxys and Thricops. Genus-level misidentifications were found only in Helina and Phaonia. Discrimination of examined material on the species level within Hydrotaea (318 specimens representing eight species) and Muscina (163 specimens representing four species) showed lower, yet still high average identification success, 97.2 and 98.8%, respectively. Our results revealed relatively high success in both genus and species identification of Muscidae of medico-legal importance. Semiautomated identification by means of wing measurements can be used by non-experts and does not require sophisticated equipment. This method will facilitate the identification of forensically relevant muscids in comparison to more difficult and more time-consuming identification approaches based on taxonomic keys or DNA-based methods. However, for unambiguous identification of some taxa, we recommend complementary use of identification keys.
Topics: Animals; Cadaver; Entomology; Forensic Sciences; Muscidae; Wings, Animal
PubMed: 28303414
DOI: 10.1007/s00436-017-5426-x -
Journal of Medical Entomology Mar 2022The Musca domestica salivary gland hypertrophy virus (MdSGHV) is known to have marked effects on the female Musca domestica L. (or common house fly) reproductive system,...
The Musca domestica salivary gland hypertrophy virus (MdSGHV) is known to have marked effects on the female Musca domestica L. (or common house fly) reproductive system, particularly regarding the size and functionality of the ovaries. Examination of the terminal ovarian follicles can help determine if and how MdSGHV mechanistically causes the block in ovarian development. In this study, terminal ovarian follicle lengths were measured and monitored for patency using Trypan blue dye staining. We examined the effect of MdSGHV infection on female house fly ovarian follicles and attempted to rescue the diminished ovarian follicles in MdSGHV-infected house flies through the application of a hormonal treatment (i.e., methoprene). Comparison of patency in control saline-injected females, virus-injected females with no methoprene application, and virus-injected females with topical methoprene application revealed that none of the virus-infected flies showed an increase in terminal follicular length beyond stage 3 follicles (staging according to Adams 1974). Additionally, none showed evidence of patency. In control, saline-injected females, we found the threshold length of the terminal follicles for the onset of patency to be 600 µm. When examined at 48, 72, and 96 h post-eclosion, average follicle length for infected females seldom reached 250 µm and they also failed to display patency. Thus, the virus is somehow involved in shutting down the mechanism involved in follicular patency. The lack of patency in infected follicles may also be one of the determining factors preventing vertical transmission of the pathogen.
Topics: Animals; DNA Viruses; Female; Houseflies; Hypertrophy; Insect Viruses; Methoprene; Muscidae; Salivary Glands
PubMed: 34791321
DOI: 10.1093/jme/tjab192 -
Journal of Medical Entomology Nov 2022The house fly (Musca domestica L.) is a cosmopolitan and synanthropic pest fly commonly associated with confined animal facilities, known to mechanically vector numerous...
The house fly (Musca domestica L.) is a cosmopolitan and synanthropic pest fly commonly associated with confined animal facilities, known to mechanically vector numerous disease-causing pathogens. Control of adult house flies often relies on insecticides formulated into insecticidal baits, though many baits have failed due to insecticide resistance. House fly resistance to imidacloprid, the most widely used neonicotinoid insecticide available for fly control, has evolved through physiological and behavioral mechanisms in field populations. Behavioral resistance to imidacloprid was documented in field populations of flies from southern California dairies. Lab colonies of these flies were established and behavioral resistance to imidacloprid was selected over several generations. The current study examined the ability of these lab-selected flies to feed on varying concentrations of imidacloprid formulated in sucrose, and if these flies would demonstrate a feeding preference for different concentrations of imidacloprid when exposed in bioassays. Behaviorally resistant flies preferred to feed on untreated sucrose as opposed to treated sucrose at concentrations greater than 25 µg/g imidacloprid when provided sucrose treated with and without imidacloprid. When provisioned with only sucrose treated with a low and high imidacloprid concentration, flies fed on the low concentrations (≤100 µg/g) imidacloprid but reduced feeding on either treatment when concentrations were >100 µg/g imidacloprid. The current study extends the body of knowledge on house fly behavioral resistance to imidacloprid, which could provide insights into future failures of granular fly baits.
Topics: Animals; Houseflies; Muscidae; Neonicotinoids; Insecticide Resistance; Insecticides; Sucrose
PubMed: 36153656
DOI: 10.1093/jme/tjac130