Phylogenetic relationships of the woodlouse flies (Diptera: Rhinophorinae) and the cluster flies (Diptera: Polleniidae).

Phylogenetic relationships within the oestroid subclades Rhinophorinae (Calliphoridae) and Polleniidae were reconstructed for the first time, applying a Sanger sequencing approach using the two protein-coding nuclear markers CAD (carbamoyl-phosphate synthetase 2, aspartate transcarbamylase, and dihydroorotase; 1794 bp) and MCS (molybdenum cofactor sulfurase; 2078 bp). Three genera of Polleniidae and nineteen genera of Rhinophorinae were analyzed together with a selection of taxa representing the major lineages of Oestroidea (non-rhinophorine Calliphoridae, Oestridae, Sarcophagidae, Tachinidae). The selected markers provide good resolution and moderate to strong support of the distal branches, but weak support for several deeper nodes. Polleniidae (cluster flies) emerge as monophyletic and their sister-group relationship to Tachinidae is confirmed. Morinia Robineau-Desvoidy as currently circumscribed emerges as paraphyletic with regard to Melanodexia Williston, and Pollenia Robineau-Desvoidy is the sister taxon of the Morinia-Melanodexia clade. We propose a classification with two subfamilies, Moriniinae Townsend (including Morinia, Melanodexia, and Alvamaja Rognes), and Polleniinae Brauer & Bergenstamm (including Pollenia, Dexopollenia Townsend, and Xanthotryxus Aldrich). Anthracomyza Malloch and Nesodexia Villeneuve are considered as Oestroidea incertae sedis pending further study. Rhinophorinae (woodlouse flies) emerge as monophyletic and sister to a clade composed of (Ameniinae + (Ameniinae + Phumosiinae)), and a tribal classification is proposed with the subfamily divided into Rhinophorini Robineau-Desvoidy, 1863 and Phytonini Robineau-Desvoidy, 1863 (the Stevenia-group and the Phyto-group of authors, respectively). Oxytachina Brauer & Bergenstamm, 1891, stat. rev. is resurrected to contain nine Afrotropical rhinophorine species currently assigned to genus Rhinomorinia Brauer & Bergenstamm, 1891: Oxytachina approximata (Crosskey, 1977) comb. nov., O. atra (Bischof, 1904) comb. nov., O. bisetosa (Crosskey, 1977) comb. nov., O. capensis (Brauer & Bergenstamm, 1893) comb. nov., O. scutellata (Crosskey, 1977) comb. nov., O. setitibia (Crosskey, 1977) comb. nov., O. verticalis (Crosskey, 1977) comb. nov., O. vittata Brauer & Bergenstamm, 1891, and O. xanthocephala (Bezzi, 1908) comb. nov.

Review of the genus Euantha Wulp, 1885 (Diptera: Tachinidae), with key to species and redescription of E. pulchra Wulp, 1891.

Euantha Wulp is a New World genus in the tribe Sophiini (Dexiinae). It includes three species: E. interrupta Aldrich, 1927, E. litturata (Olivier, 1811) and E. pulchra Wulp, 1891. This last species is poorly known, being restricted mostly to catalogues since its original description. Here E. pulchra is redescribed, a lectotype is designated and the male is diagnosed for the first time. In addition, this species (originally described from Mexico) is newly recorded from Guatemala. Finally, the first key to include all the species of Euantha is provided.

Comparative morphology of antennal ultrastructure in Tachinidae parasitoid flies (Diptera): The phylogenetic importance of antennal sensilla.

Tachinidae are one of the most diverse clades of Diptera. All tachinids are parasitoids of insects and other arthropods, and thus are considered an important source of biological pest control. Antennae are the most important olfactory organs of Tachinidae playing key roles in their lives, especially in locating hosts, and details of antennal ultrastructure could provide useful features for phylogenetic studies and understanding their adaptive evolution. Despite the ecological and evolutionary importance of antennae, the current knowledge of antennal ultrastructure is scarce for Tachinidae. Our study examined antennal sensilla of thirteen species belonging to thirteen genera within eleven tribes of all the four subfamilies (Phasiinae, Dexiinae, Tachininae, and Exoristinae): Beskia aelops Walker, Trichodura sp., Voria ruralis (Fallén), Zelia sp., Cylindromyia carinata Townsend, Phasia xenos Townsend, Neomintho sp., Genea australis (Townsend), Copecrypta sp., Hystricia sp., Belvosia sp., Leschenaultia sp., and Winthemia pinguis (Fabricius). Types, length and distribution of antennal sensilla were investigated via scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Our comparative analysis summarized 29 variable characters and we evaluated their phylogenetic signal for subfamilial, tribal and generic/specific levels, showing that antennal ultrastructure could be a reliable source of characters for phylogenetic analysis. Our findings demonstrate the remarkable diversity of the antennal ultrastructure of Tachinidae.

Vertical stratification of insect abundance and species richness in an Amazonian tropical forest.

Tropical forests are among the most biodiverse biomes on the planet. Nevertheless, quantifying the abundance and species richness within megadiverse groups is a significant challenge. We designed a study to address this challenge by documenting the variability of the insect fauna across a vertical canopy gradient in a Central Amazonian tropical forest. Insects were sampled over two weeks using 6-m Gressitt-style Malaise traps set at five heights (0 m-32 m-8 m intervals) on a metal tower in a tropical forest north of Manaus, Brazil. The traps contained 37,778 specimens of 18 orders of insects. Using simulation approaches and nonparametric analyses, we interpreted the abundance and richness of insects along this gradient. Diptera, Hymenoptera, and Coleoptera had their greatest abundance at the ground level, whereas Lepidoptera and Hemiptera were more abundant in the upper levels of the canopy. We identified species of 38 of the 56 families of Diptera, finding that 527 out of 856 species (61.6%) were not sampled at the ground level. Mycetophilidae, Tipulidae, and Phoridae were significantly more diverse and/or abundant at the ground level, while Tachinidae, Dolichopodidae, and Lauxaniidae were more diverse or abundant at upper levels. Our study suggests the need for a careful discussion of strategies of tropical forest conservation based on a much more complete understanding of the three-dimensional distribution of its insect diversity.

Twenty years of Dipterology through the pages of Zootaxa.

We present a summary and analysis of the Diptera-related information published in Zootaxa from 2001 to 2020, with a focus on taxonomic papers. Altogether, 2,527 papers on Diptera were published, including 2,032 taxonomic papers and 1,931 papers containing new nomenclatural acts, equivalent to 22% of all publications with new nomenclatural acts for Diptera. The new nomenclatural acts include 7,431 new species, 277 new genera, 2,003 new synonymies, and 1,617 new combinations. A breakdown by family of new taxa and new replacement names proposed in the journal during the last two decades is provided, together with a comparison of Zootaxa's output to that of all other taxonomic publications on Diptera. Our results show that the journal has contributed to 20% of all biodiversity discovery in this megadiverse insect order over the last 20 years, and to about 31% in the last decade.

Revision of Noctiliostrebla (Diptera: Streblidae), parasites of bulldog bats (Chiroptera: Noctilionidae: Noctilio).

The Neotropical genus Noctiliostrebla Wenzel (Diptera: Streblidae) is revised after examination of the types of all nominal species, and 11 species are recognized. Seven new species are described, and a lectotype is designated for Lipoptena dubia Rudow. Resulting information on species distributions and host records can be summarized as follows: Noctiliostrebla dubia (Rudow) is restricted to the Amazon region and is a parasite of Noctilio leporinus (Linnaeus) (Chiroptera: Noctilionidae); Noctiliostrebla traubi Wenzel is restricted to Central America and northern South America, being the only species of the genus parasitizing N. leporinus in Central America; the distribution ranges of N. maai Wenzel and N. traubi are similar, but the host of N. maai is N. albiventris Desmarest; Noctiliostrebla aitkeni Wenzel is restricted to northern South America and has only been recorded as parasitizing N. leporinus; Noctiliostrebla ecuadorensis sp. n. occurs only in Ecuador, on N. albiventris; Noctiliostrebla guerreroi sp. n. has only been recorded from the Amazon region on N. albiventris; Noctiliostrebla falsispina sp. n. is restricted to south-central South America and is a parasite of N. leporinus; the distributions of N. lamasi sp. n. and N. falsispina sp. n. are similar, and the two species usually co-occur on N. leporinus; Noctiliostrebla morena sp. n. has a similar distribution to those of N. falsispina sp. n. and N. lamasi sp. n., but parasitizes N. albiventris; Noctiliostrebla pantaneira sp. n. has a similar distribution to N. morena sp. n. and usually co-occurs with it on N. albiventris; Noctiliostrebla caissara sp. n. is restricted to the southeastern coast of South America and is a parasite of N. leporinus. All species are included in a key and illustrated.

Taxonomic revision of the Neotropical genus Ormiophasia Townsend, 1919 (Diptera: Tachinidae), with the description of eight new species.

The Neotropical genus Ormiophasia Townsend, 1919 is revised. Of the nine nominal species included in the genus prior to this revision, eight are interpreted as valid, with one new synonymy: Ormiophasia travassosi Tavares, 1964 = Ormiophasia inflata (Séguy, 1927b), syn. nov. Eight new species are described: Ormiophasia guimaraesi sp. nov., Ormiophasia seguyi sp. nov., Ormiophasia crassivena sp. nov., Ormiophasia manguinhos sp. nov., Ormiophasia tavaresi sp. nov., Ormiophasia chapulini sp. nov., Ormiophasia buoculus sp. nov. and Ormiophasia townsendi sp. nov. The distribution of Ormiophasia is extended from northern Argentina to Southeast Mexico. A key to species and detailed descriptions, and illustrations, of adults of both sexes and male terminalia, are provided.

Woodlice and their parasitoid flies: revision of Isopoda (Crustacea, Oniscidea) - Rhinophoridae (Insecta, Diptera) interaction and first record of a parasitized Neotropical woodlouse species.

Terrestrial isopods are soil macroarthropods that have few known parasites and parasitoids. All known parasitoids are from the family Rhinophoridae (Insecta: Diptera). The present article reviews the known biology of Rhinophoridae flies and presents the first record of Rhinophoridae larvae on a Neotropical woodlouse species. We also compile and update all published interaction records. The Neotropical woodlouse Balloniscusglaber was parasitized by two different larval morphotypes of Rhinophoridae. Including this new record, there are 18 Isopoda species known to be parasitized and 13 Rhinophoridae species with known hosts, resulting in 35 interactions. There are a total of 53 interaction records from Holarctic and Neotropical countries. Of the 18 known isopod hosts, only five species have more than one parasitoid, including the new Neotropical host record presented in this work.

Taxonomy of Morellia Robineau-Desvoidy (Diptera: Muscidae): revision of the subgenera Morellia s. str. and Parapyrellia Townsend.

The subgenera Morellia Robineau-Desvoidy, 1830 and Parapyrellia Townsend, 1915 of Morellia (Diptera, Muscidae) are revised. Forty-two species of the subgenus Morellia (out of 50) and seven of the subgenus Parapyrellia (all species) are redescribed and illustrated, and 48 species are keyed (41 spp. of Morellia and 7 spp. of Parapyrellia). Morellia (M.) cashmirana van Emden, 1965, originally described as a subspecies of M. (M.) hortorum (Fallén, 1817), is raised to species rank, stat. nov. Four species are transferred from the subgenus Morellia to the subgenus Parapyrellia (subgen. comb. nov.): M. dendropanacis Pamplona & Couri, 1995; M. lopesae Pamplona, 1986; M. roppai Pamplona, 1986 and M. semimarginata (Stein, 1918).

The Shannoniella sisters (Diptera: Rhinophoridae).

Shannoniella cuspidata Townsend, 1939 is redescribed and S. setinervis sp. nov. (Brazil, State of Rio de Janeiro) is newly described as its putative sister taxon, thereby allowing for a strict definition of the genus Shannoniella Townsend, 1939 through explicit synapomorphies. An identification key is provided.

Timeless standards for species delimitation.

Recently a new species of bombyliid fly, Marleyimyia xylocopae, was described by Marshall & Evenhuis (2015) based on two photographs taken during fieldwork in the Republic of South Africa. This species has no preserved holotype. The paper generated some buzz, especially among dipterists, because in most cases photographs taken in the field provide insufficient information for properly diagnosing and documenting species of Diptera.

FOREWORD: EDITORS' INTRODUCTION.

Since its establishment ZOOTAXA has become not only a rapid journal for zoological systematics but also a respected forum for discussions of all taxonomic matters, and it has gradually attained a distinguished position among other zoological journals by its special issues. These collections of papers treat varied themes such as the Carl Linnaeus legacy (Zhang & Shear 2007, Minelli et al. 2008), cataloguing metazoan life (Zhang 2011, 2013), and promoting and discussing the future of taxonomic sciences, for example modification of the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature (ICZN 2008). For these reasons we offer this special issue to celebrate the fruitful career of the eminent Brazilian researcher Dr. Angelo Barbosa Monteiro Machado ("Professor Angelo" to his friends and colleagues).

Catalogue of Diptera of Colombia: an introduction.

Colombia has an imposing natural wealth due to its topography has many unique characteristics as a consequence of having Caribbean and Pacific shores, as well as sharing part of the Amazon basin and northern Andes mountains. Thus, many natural and biological features are due to the convergence of three biogeographical regions: Pacific, Andes and Amazonia. The Andean uplift created a complex mosaic of mountains and isolated valleys, including eleven biogeographical provinces (Morrone 2006). The Andes dominate the Colombian topography and cross the country south to north. There are three mountain ranges (Western, Central, and Eastern) with a maximum elevation of 5,775 m, and an average elevation of 2,000 m. The Magdalena and Cauca River valleys separate these ranges, that along with the Putumayo and Caquetá Rivers, the Catatumbo watershed, the Darién, Pique Hill, the Orinoquia Region (with its savannas), the Amazon region (with tropical rainforests), and some lower mountain ranges (Macarena and Chiribiquete), have generated the conditions for very high levels of endemism. This variety of conditions has resulted in an extremely diverse plant and animal biota, and in which 48% of the nation remains unexplored.

FAMILY SCATHOPHAGIDAE.

Scathophagidae (Diptera, Calyptratae) is an uncommon group of flies. In Colombia there was no scientific record of this family until now. In this paper we report for the first time the genus Scatogera and the species S. primogenita Albuquerque, collected over 3000m. and previously collected in Ecuador.

FAMILY RHINOPHORIDAE.

Only one species of Rhinophoridae has been recorded to Colombia so far, Bezzimyia busckii Townsend, 1919. However, three other species of the genus Bezzimyia are listed in the present catalogue, for they occur on nearby areas and are likely to occur in the country as well.

FAMILY TACHINIDAE.

The present catalogue summarizes 154 species and 71 genera occurring in Colombia. All the four subfamilies (Phasiinae, Dexiinae, Tachininae and Exoristinae), and 24 tribes are represented in the Colombian territory.