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 Asilidae from Sicily
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| parnassius |
Posted on 29-05-2017 13:56
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Member Location: Posts: 268 Joined: 21.10.16 |
I photographed this Asilidae in the Zingaro Reserve near Scopello on the north-western coast of Sicily, on the 28th July 2016. It has been identified as Neomochtherus sp.. According to the Checklist of the Italian Fauna, the only species present in Sicily is Neomochtherus striatipes (Loew, 1849). In Fauna Europaea instead N. striatipes doesn't exist as a valid name nor a synonym, but there is a Neomochtherus siculus (Macquart, 1834) cited for Sicily. Do you know if these two names are referred to the same specie?
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| Quaedfliegh |
Posted on 30-05-2017 20:44
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 Member Location: Tilburg Netherlands Posts: 2219 Joined: 18.05.10 |
According to Systema Dipterorum (http://www.diptera.org/NomenclatorDetail.php?Recn=606127)and Lehr 1988, N. striatipes shoul be valid Type locality is Sicily. I could not find any synonym. But be careful with giving this one a name there are three genera closely related; Aneomochtherus, Cerdistus and Neomochtherus, maybe you have more options......
Greetings, Reinoud Field guide to the robber flies of the Netherlands and Belgium: https://www.jeugdbondsuitgeverij.nl/product/field-guide-to-the-robberflies-of-the-netherlands-and-belgium/ https://www.nev.nl/diptera/ |
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| Quaedfliegh |
Posted on 30-05-2017 21:27
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Member Location: Tilburg Netherlands Posts: 2219 Joined: 18.05.10 |
We can add another genus; Premochtherus Lehr 1996. And there you have your striatipes :-)
Greetings, Reinoud Field guide to the robber flies of the Netherlands and Belgium: https://www.jeugdbondsuitgeverij.nl/product/field-guide-to-the-robberflies-of-the-netherlands-and-belgium/ https://www.nev.nl/diptera/ |
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| parnassius |
Posted on 01-06-2017 22:52
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Member Location: Posts: 268 Joined: 21.10.16 |
Thank you very much! So according to Fauna Europaea there are five possible species: Neomochtherus siculus, Premochtherus striatipes, Cerdistus debilis, C. erythrurus e C. zelleri... But it is very probable that there are more species in Sicily... Is it necessary to examine genitalia in order to identify these genera, it isn't? |
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| Quaedfliegh |
Posted on 02-06-2017 01:01
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Member Location: Tilburg Netherlands Posts: 2219 Joined: 18.05.10 |
I must say that i sometimes get the feeling that separation of genera is sometimes arbitrary. But i am an amateur. :-). The history of Neomochtherus geniculatus is a good example, it has been placed in Cerditus, Paritamus and now in Neomochtherus..... But the genitalia are important to establish the species. Males are often the clue. It would be nice if you find a male to this female. Of course there is much more to comment........ I don't know how well the Asilidae of Sicily have been studied; the fact it is an island makes it all the more interesting......
Greetings, Reinoud Field guide to the robber flies of the Netherlands and Belgium: https://www.jeugdbondsuitgeverij.nl/product/field-guide-to-the-robberflies-of-the-netherlands-and-belgium/ https://www.nev.nl/diptera/ |
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| parnassius |
Posted on 05-06-2017 10:49
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Member Location: Posts: 268 Joined: 21.10.16 |
Ok, thank you very much, unfortunately i don't live in Sicily so I don't think I'll find another one soon... |
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