Three new species of Botanophila Lioy (Diptera: Anthomyiidae) from the Mexican Transition Zone.

The genus Botanophila Lioy has several species distributed in North America, but none had been recorded from Mexico. Here we describe three new species of Botanophila from the highlands of the Mexican Transition Zone. We include images of habitus, drawings of the terminalia and a key to facilitate the identification of species. Remarkably, the male of the new species has dichoptic eyes, an unusual characteristic in Anthomyiidae.

Neotropical Stomopogon (Diptera, Muscidae): new species, redescriptions and key to species.

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.

A remarkable new Coenosiini genus (Diptera, Muscidae) from Colombian Páramos.

The new genus, Sumapazomyia gen. nov., is proposed for a new species, S. inusitata sp. nov., from the National Natural Park Sumapaz, Bogota, Colombia. The unique morphology of the head and mouthparts, in combination with characters from the male and female terminalia, demonstrate that this new species represents a new and remarkable genus within the muscid tribe Coenosiini.

Modelling Highly Biodiverse Areas in Brazil.

Traditional conservation techniques for mapping highly biodiverse areas assume there to be satisfactory knowledge about the geographic distribution of biodiversity. There are, however, large gaps in biological sampling and hence knowledge shortfalls. This problem is even more pronounced in the tropics. Indeed, the use of only a few taxonomic groups or environmental surrogates for modelling biodiversity is not viable in mega-diverse countries, such as Brazil. To overcome these limitations, we developed a comprehensive spatial model that includes phylogenetic information and other several biodiversity dimensions aimed at mapping areas with high relevance for biodiversity conservation. Our model applies a genetic algorithm tool for identifying the smallest possible region within a unique biota that contains the most number of species and phylogenetic diversity, as well as the highest endemicity and phylogenetic endemism. The model successfully pinpoints small highly biodiverse areas alongside regions with knowledge shortfalls where further sampling should be conducted. Our results suggest that conservation strategies should consider several taxonomic groups, the multiple dimensions of biodiversity, and associated sampling uncertainties.

New systematic position of Itatingamyia Albuquerque (Diptera, Muscidae) based on molecular evidence, and description of the female of I. couriae

ABSTRACT ItatingamyiaAlbuquerque, 1979 is rare in collections, with only nine specimens preserved in museums. Two species are known, and their placement within Muscidae was never tested using molecular data. Here, we estimate the position of Itatingamyia within Muscidae with mitochondrial (COI) and nuclear (AATS, CAD, and EF1-α) markers using Maximum likelihood and Bayesian posterior probabilities as optimality criteria. According to our results, we propose to classify Itatingamyia as a Cyrtoneurininae. We also describe the previously unknown female and egg of Itatingamyia couriaeHaseyama and de Carvalho, 2011 and expand the known distribution of this species to the state of Minas Gerais, Brazil, through the discovery of 13 new specimens there. We also argue that Itatingamyia distribution is restricted to Atlantic Forest areas.

Highland biodiversity of Fanniidae (Insecta, Diptera): fourteen new species from the Andes and Central America.

In the neotropics, vegetation formations at high elevations are often unique, with their own characteristic vegetation because of unique and complex evolutionary histories. The complexity of the biogeographic and ecological structure of the fauna is demonstrated by the specialized fauna and flora occurring in these regions. Fanniidae (Diptera) is one of these specialized groups that became very diversified in the highlands. Currently, of the 91 species of Fanniidae in the Neotropical region, 43 (8 Euryomma, 35 Fannia) occur exclusively in Andean and Central American highlands. Here, we increase that highland diversity by describing 14 new species from 1000-4150 m.a.s.l. in the Andes and Central America: Fannia awa sp. nov., F. bari sp. nov., F. boruca sp. nov., F. bribri sp. nov., F. huetare sp. nov., F. humahuaca sp. nov., F. kabekwa sp. nov., F. palta sp. nov., F. polleti sp. nov., F. quillacingas sp. nov., F. teribi sp. nov., F. terraba sp. nov., F. tsachilas sp. nov. and F. yukpa sp. nov. We also provide an identification key for male specimens and diagnoses and descriptions of the species, along with photographs and illustrations of the male terminalia. New records and updated distributions are also provided for the Andean species.

A new species of Polietina (Diptera: Muscidae) from South America, with an updated phylogeny of the genus and a review of species' identity in GenBank.

After a 20 years hiatus, we describe a new species, Polietina ponti sp. nov., from Madre de Dios, Tambopata River, Peru. Additionally, we propose Polietina nigra Couri Carvalho, 1996 as a junior synonym of Polietina prima (Couri Medeiros, 1990). A previous phylogenetic hypothesis was updated with the inclusion of the new taxon described here, which yielded a single most parsimonious tree that is similar to a previously published hypothesis (Pyrellina marsya (Pyrellina distincta (Deltotus facetus ((Polietina steini (Polietina ponti sp. nov., P. prima (P. bicolor, P. minor, P. univittata)(P. flavithorax, P. major)))(P. flavidicincta (P. rubella (P. concinna (P. orbitalis, P. wulpi)))))))). The identity of Polietina vouchers with nucleotide sequences registered in the GenBank were also verified and corrected.

Anthomyiidae, Fanniidae and Muscidae (Diptera) from the Juan Fernández Archipelago (Chile): 60 years after Willi Hennig's contributions.

Sixty years ago, Willi Hennig last catalogued the Anthomyiidae, Fanniidae and Muscidae fauna of the Juan Fernández Archipelago. This archipelago, composed of three main volcanic islands (Robinson Crusoe, Alejandro Selkirk and Santa Clara), has many endemic species. We describe Fannia hennigi sp. n. from the Robinson Crusoe Island, and record 11 species in 10 genera of Anthomyiidae, Fanniidae and Muscidae. A key to the identification of all species found in Juan Fernández Archipelago and a table with all species found in the Archipelago are presented, including four new records from Robinson Crusoe Island: Delia platura (Meigen, 1826); Fannia hennigi sp. n.; Lispoides insularis Hennig, 1957 and Schoenomyzina emdeni Hennig, 1955.

Publisher Correction: Biodiversity conservation gaps in the Brazilian protected areas.

A correction to this article has been published and is linked from the HTML and PDF versions of this paper. The error has been fixed in the paper.

Biodiversity conservation gaps in the Brazilian protected areas.

Although Brazil is a megadiverse country and thus a conservation priority, no study has yet quantified conservation gaps in the Brazilian protected areas (PAs) using extensive empirical data. Here, we evaluate the degree of biodiversity protection and knowledge within all the Brazilian PAs through a gap analysis of vertebrate, arthropod and angiosperm occurrences and phylogenetic data. Our results show that the knowledge on biodiversity in most Brazilian PAs remain scant as 71% of PAs have less than 0.01 species records per km2. Almost 55% of Brazilian species and about 40% of evolutionary lineages are not found in PAs, while most species have less than 30% of their geographic distribution within PAs. Moreover, the current PA network fails to protect the majority of endemic species. Most importantly, these results are similar for all taxonomic groups analysed here. The methods and results of our countrywide assessment are suggested to help design further inventories in order to map and secure the key biodiversity of the Brazilian PAs. In addition, our study illustrates the most common biodiversity knowledge shortfalls in the tropics.

FAMILY NERIIDAE.

Here we provide a catalog of the Neriidae from Colombia, with all six genera and 17 species in alphabetical order. With each genus we provide references and with each species we include the original name, type-locality, acronym of the institution where the type is deposited and the known geographical distribution. In the case of samples only from Colombia, we provide additional details for locality, relevant synonymy and additional references.

FAMILY ANTHOMYIIDAE.

Here we catalogue six species in four genera of Anthomyiidae (Anthomyia, Calythea, Delia, and Emmesomyia) from Colombia and provide geographical information for all species, when available.

FAMILY FANNIIDAE.

Here we catalogue 32 species in two genera of Fanniidae (Euryomma and Fannia) from Colombia and provide geographical information for all species, when available.

FAMILY MUSCIDAE.

The Muscidae species in Colombia are first catalogued. 108 species and 41 genera are reported to the country, added with 14 new species not yet described in Agenamyia, Apsil, Drymeia, Graphomya and Reinwardtia genera. There are 15 new species records to Colombia. References are given to the original descriptions and taxonomic, biological, and applied literature made for Colombia.

Where do the Neotropical Empidini lineages (Diptera: Empididae: Empidinae) fit in a worldwide context?

The tribe Empidini (Diptera: Empididae: Empidinae) is a diverse group with fourteen genera, seven of which are exclusive to the Neotropical region: Bolrhamphomyia Rafael, Chilerhamphomyia Rafael, Hystrichonotus Collin, Lamprempis Wheeler and Melander, Macrostomus Wiedemann, Opeatocerata Melander and Porphyrochroa Melander. Although Empidini itself is likely paraphyletic, many presumably monophyletic genera and species groups are recognized. Here, we apply DNA sequences from multiple genes to infer the phylogeny of Empidini, focusing on placing the Neotropical lineages within the entire tribe and identifying monophyletic groups. We included 98 Empidini taxa along with 18 outgrous terminals, spanning the diversity within the group. The results from the analyses performed are largely similar, with major groupings of genera in common. Specifically, the analyses recovered a monophyletic Hilarini and a paraphyletic Empidini. Most species from Chile and Argentina (Andean region) are found to belong to an early branching lineage within Empidinae, and are not monophyletic with other Empidini. A large portion of the remaining Neotropical Empidini (not Andean) comprises a single clade that includes four endemic genera and a number of Neotropical Empis Linneaus species. Macrostomus and Porphyrochroa each recovered as monophyletic and sister to one another, although generic placement of a few taxa remains uncertain due to conflicting morphological features. Lamprempis+Opeatocerata are also found to be sister-taxa in most analyses. Several large genera were found to be polyphyletic or paraphyletic including Empis and Rhamphomyia Meigen. We evaluate our findings and discuss them in light of current Empidinae taxonomy.

Say goodbye to tribes in the new house fly classification: A new molecular phylogenetic analysis and an updated biogeographical narrative for the Muscidae (Diptera).

House flies are one of the best known groups of flies and comprise about 5000 species worldwide. Despite over a century of intensive taxonomic research on these flies, classification of the Muscidae is still poorly resolved. Here we brought together the most diverse molecular dataset ever examined for the Muscidae, with 142 species in 67 genera representing all tribes and all biogeographic regions. Four protein coding genes were analyzed: mitochondrial CO1 and nuclear AATS, CAD (region 4) and EF1-α. Maximum likelihood and Bayesian approaches were used to analyze five different partitioning schemes for the alignment. We also used Bayes factors to test monophyly of the traditionally accepted tribes and subfamilies. Most subfamilial taxa were not recovered in our analyses, and accordingly monophyly was rejected by Bayes factor tests. Our analysis consistently found three main clades of Muscidae and so we propose a new classification with only three subfamilies without tribes. Additionally, we provide the first timeframe for the diversification of all major lineages of house flies and examine contemporary biogeographic hypotheses in light of this timeframe. We conclude that the muscid radiation began in the Paleocene to Eocene and is congruent with the final stages of the breakup of Gondwana, which resulted in the complete separation of Antarctica, Australia, and South America. With this newly proposed classification and better understanding of the timing of evolutionary events, we provide new perspectives for integrating morphological and ecological evolutionary understanding of house flies, their taxonomy, phylogeny, and biogeography.

Forensic use of a subtropical blowfly: the first case indicating minimum postmortem interval (mPMI) in southern Brazil and first record of Sarconesia chlorogaster from a human corpse.

Southern Brazil is unique due to its subtropical climate. Here, we report on the first forensic entomology case and the first record of Sarconesia chlorogaster (Wiedemann) in a human corpse in this region. Flies' samples were collected from a body indoors at 20°C. Four species were found, but only Chrysomya albiceps (Wiedemann) and S. chlorogaster were used to estimate the minimum postmortem interval (mPMI). The mPMI was calculated using accumulated degree hour (ADH) and developmental time. The S. chlorogaster puparium collected was light in color, so we used an experiment to establish a more accurate estimate for time since initiation of pupation where we found full tanning after 3 h. Development of C. albiceps at 20°C to the end of the third instar is 7.4 days. The mPMI based on S. chlorogaster (developmental time until the third instar with no more than 3 h of pupae development) was 7.6 days.

Revision of the New World genus Glyphidops Enderlein (Diptera: Neriidae) .

The genus Glyphidops Enderlein, 1922, the most widespread and speciose of the New World genera of Neriidae (Diptera), is revised herein. Glyphidops (Glyphidops) ruselatus, new species, G. (G.) steyskali, new species and G. (G.) coracinus, new species are described. Of the 16 previously described species, which were last treated by Aczél (1961), the following synonyms are proposed: Chaetomeristes peruanus Enderlein is treated as a junior synonym of G. (G.) bullatus (Enderlein); Nerius dispar Cresson, Oncopsia neutra Hennig and Oncopsia dubia Hennig are treated as junior synonyms of G.(O.) durus (Cresson) and Oncopsia seductrix Hennig, is treated as a junior synonym of G. (O.) flavifrons (Bigot). The species Telostylus vittatus Cresson, is removed from synonymy with G. (G.) filosus (Fabricius) and revalidated as senior synonym of G. ochreus Hennig. A new diagnosis for the genus and all species are provided, as is an identification key to species. New locality records are provided for Costa Rica, Colombia, Venezuela, Guyana, Ecuador and Brazil.

Muscidae (Insecta: Diptera) of Latin America and the Caribbean: geographic distribution and check-list by country.

Here we provide a geographic database for the Muscidae (Insecta: Diptera) that are endemic to Latin America and the Caribbean and non-synanthropic. We summarize the geographic information provided by specimens from three entomological collections in Brazil (DZUP, MNRJ, and MZUEFS) as well as geographic information we compiled in the literature. The resulting 817 species were linked to their geographic records by country, state/province/department, locality, latitude and longitude, including source reference. When coordinates were not provided in specimens' labels, we used the locality information to search geographic coordinates in online gazetteers. We also separated the species by country for a country-species list. These data comprise 250 years of collections and taxonomic studies of Neotropical Muscidae and we expect that it provides a foundation and serves as guide for future studies of systematics and biogeography of the family.