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Could this fly be another wingless hybotid?

location: Apúlia, Portugal
date: 06/09/2008
size: a little more than 1 mm

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Wow, yes. Chersodromia, I think.

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Thank you Paul:). I think only three species are recorded from continental Spain: C. flavipes, C. nigrosetosa and C. oraria. Could this be one of them?

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I am not aware of any brachipterous Chersodromia but it does look like this genus. So is it a new species or just a short-winged form of a known species? you will need to get males and dissect to answer that. The sand grains suggest you might have found it on a beach? There is a tiny species that I have found on a beach in Mallorca, C. albopilosa, which has that same grey cast and milky wings but all the specimens i have found are macropterous.

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the apulia beach is a treasure! :D

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Hi David,

Yes, I found it in sand dunes. But those dunes are very affected by human activity, with people stepping on them, throwing garbage, etc :(. Nevertheless it's part of the Esposende coast protected area. If possible me and Jorge will go there very soon.

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David: where in Mallorca ? I am at S'Albufera (again) next week...

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Es Comu, at S'Albufera. They are tiny, you have to crawl along on hands and knees at the head of the beach close to the dunes looking for fast moving specks. Catch them by simply placing a tube over them and letting them run up into it. They were very common in April 2006, less so in May 2007.

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In Chv?la's 1977 revision is one truely brachypterous species, C. curtipennis, but from its description I gather the wings are at least twice as long as in this picture. I think more species have been decribed since but I have no overview of those.

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I don't know whether it is by chance, that someone tipped him of about this thread or that he visited the site without being logged in (his last visit was in July), but Igor Shamshev just sent me an electronic reprint of the following paper:
Grootaert, P., & I. Shamshev, 2008. Notes on the halobiont genus Chesodromia (Diptera: Hybotidae) from Tunisia with the description of a new brachypterous species and notes on brachyptery in empidoids. - Bulletin de la Societe Royale Belge d'Entomologie 144: 57-63.

When I compare the description of C. tunisiana with the above images, there is an uncanny resemblance. I think we may have found a name.

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Thank you Paul:). We have at least a new species for Europe :p.

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News: I went to the Apulia beach today. Andrade can't go with me.
Maybe in the next time. ;)

I saw many hybotids with white longitudinal stripes (anterior position) in their abdomen. The position of the body is very diferent from this hybotid of Andrade. The head is more high than the abdomen. The Chersadromia's body (seen by Andrade) seems more near from the ground. The hybotids I saw are really minus 1 mm. Some with a little more than 1 mm. Also I found a 5 mm black coal hybotid (from which I could take some photos and will show them soon. hopefully this saturday. The other smaller - you must wait a little more. I cannot take photos for now, also I couldn't take the photos of these tiny hybotids on the beach due the strong wind - they were so soft,,, hence everytime I focused them, they keep up only less 1 second on the ground and then... the wind left off them more longer :S) I'll give more news soon... ;)

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Another new for Europe :o Heavens Rui! Well done :D

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Thank you so much for your support Susan:)

I think this should be a male:

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this is precisely the fly I saw yesterday. :)

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Well, I have some good news, I think. Yesterday Rui's specimens arrived and I did have a look just now. The bad news: It is not C. tunisiana. The genitalia do not match, there are differences in chaetotaxy (acorstichals are virtually indistinguishable and there is only one dorsal seta on the hind tibia and there are two anterodorsal ones) and as far as I can tell, wing venation is virtually indistinguishable and the wing shape is different.
The good news: It is not one of the brachypterous species mentioned in the Grootaert and Shamshev paper (though the genitalia are more reminisecent of C. curtipennis of the Black Sea Coast [Nikita, are you listening ;)], the wings are too short). So, we may have a new species on our hands. :D

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Congratulations!
Felicitacion!
:o

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:D:D:D:D Fantastic!!! Thank you Paul and Nikita.

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hmm... I think I sent for you the flies. :)

Anyway, it is another great fly. I have seen dozen hmm, better to say: thousands of them! They wandering in slopes' dunes. And even against strong wind! impressive strenght this fly has! It could be a Chersodromia arenarius or a Chersodromia fortius. :D

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Jorge, if you sent any of these flies they never arrived (only those of the Tachydromia). Still, if you have more specimens available: For correct description I could well do with more specimens as it will be necessary to make microscope slides because these flies are so tiny. So far I have nine specimens that Rui sent, but only three of these are males (one damaged, so the first likely candidate to be slided).

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Here are some photos and videos I took of this Chersodromia:).

In the first video we can see a specimen licking the leaves of Medicago marina. I don’t know what the fly is really licking as I didn’t see anything on the surface of the plant. In this species of plant it’s possible to find many aphids, but the fly wasn’t licking near them. Another thing about its feeding habits is that I haven’t yet seen it feeding on prey:
http://www.youtub...amp;fmt=18

And a photo:


Another video of the fly licking the plant. Chersodromia, very frequently, also licks the sand, and once again I fail to realize what the purpose is:
http://www.youtub...amp;fmt=18

Chersodromia licking the sand:


One more video of this behaviour:
http://www.youtub...amp;fmt=18

In this final video it’s possible to observe a female trying to oviposit:
http://www.youtub...amp;fmt=18

And a photo of the oviposition:D:


And here is a photo of a mating couple:):


It’s really a beautiful fly, isn’t it?;)