Revision of the described Nearctic species of the genus Tachydromia Meigen (Diptera: Hybotidae).

The described Nearctic species of the genus Tachydromia Meigen, 1803 (Diptera: Hybotidae, Tachydromiinae) are revised. Seventeen described species are recognised. The following two new synonyms are proposed: Tachista lundstroemi Frey, 1913 (Eurasian species) = Tachydromia enecator Melander, 1902; Tachydromia hirtipes Melander, 1928 = Tachydromia schwarzii Coquillett, 1895. Five Eurasian species are recorded for the first time from North America (T. aemula (Loew), T. fuscinervis (Frey), T. incompleta (Becker), T. magadanica Shamshev, T. punctifera (Becker)) and two North American species for the first time from Eurasia (T. chelana Melander, T. monacha Melander). Nearly half of Tachydromia species recorded currently from North America have Holarctic distributions (53 %). However, many new species remain undescribed. Redescriptions, photos of the habitus and illustrations of male terminalia (when available), as well as known distributions and a key to species are included.

First records of Trichina Meigen, Euthyneura Macquart and Oedalea Meigen (Diptera, Hybotidae) from North Africa, with descriptions of two new species.

Trichina Meigen, 1830, Euthyneura Macquart, 1836 and Oedalea Meigen, 1820 are reported for the first time in North Africa from northern Morocco, with seven species including two ones new to science, based on material collected at nine sites located in the Moroccan sector of the Mediterranean Intercontinental Biosphere reserve (MIBR). These new records represent also the first evidence of the occurrence of Trichininae and Oedaleinae subfamilies throughout North Africa and bring the total of Moroccan hybotid fauna to 51 species. The new species are described and illustrated. A key to MoroccanTrichina species is provided.

Mangroves are an overlooked hotspot of insect diversity despite low plant diversity.

BACKGROUND: The world's fast disappearing mangrove forests have low plant diversity and are often assumed to also have a species-poor insect fauna. We here compare the tropical arthropod fauna across a freshwater swamp and six different forest types (rain-, swamp, dry-coastal, urban, freshwater swamp, mangroves) based on 140,000 barcoded specimens belonging to ca. 8500 species. RESULTS: We find that the globally imperiled habitat "mangroves" is an overlooked hotspot for insect diversity. Our study reveals a species-rich mangrove insect fauna (>3000 species in Singapore alone) that is distinct (>50% of species are mangrove-specific) and has high species turnover across Southeast and East Asia. For most habitats, plant diversity is a good predictor of insect diversity, but mangroves are an exception and compensate for a comparatively low number of phytophagous and fungivorous insect species by supporting an unusually rich community of predators whose larvae feed in the productive mudflats. For the remaining tropical habitats, the insect communities have diversity patterns that are largely congruent across guilds. CONCLUSIONS: The discovery of such a sizeable and distinct insect fauna in a globally threatened habitat underlines how little is known about global insect biodiversity. We here show how such knowledge gaps can be closed quickly with new cost-effective NGS barcoding techniques.

High endemicity in aquatic dance flies of Corsica, France (Diptera, Empididae, Clinocerinae and Hemerodromiinae), with the description of a new species of Chelipoda.

All known records of aquatic dance flies (Empididae, Clinocerinae: 21 species; Hemerodromiinae: eight species) from the island of Corsica (France) are summarized, including previously unpublished data and data on the newly described species Chelipoda puschae Ivkovic, Perovic & Grootaert, sp. nov. This species was collected during the "La Planète Revisitée Corsica 2019" survey and represents the first description of a new species in the genus Chelipoda from the European-Mediterranean region in more than 180 years. A key to European species of Chelipoda is provided. Including the new species, five species are recorded from Corsica for the first time: Dolichocephala malickyi Wagner, 1995, Dolichocephala oblongoguttata (Dale, 1878), Dolichocephala ocellata (Costa, 1854), Chelifera subangusta Collin, 1961, and Hemerodromia unilineata Zetterstedt, 1842. The new species is described and illustrated, and new records of aquatic dance flies from Corsica are given, with new data on 17 species in eight different genera. At present, 29 species of aquatic dance flies are known from Corsica, with 10 species endemic to the island.

Four new West Palaearctic species and new distributional records of Hybotidae (Diptera).

Megagrapha starki Barták & Grootaert, sp. nov. (Poland, Russia, Slovakia), Oedalea portugalica Barták & Grootaert, sp. nov. (Portugal), Hybos conicus Grootaert & Barták, sp. nov. (Greece, Turkey), and Platypalpus obscuroides Barták & Grootaert, sp. nov. (Slovakia) are described and illustrated. Diagnostic characters are discussed. The female of Syndyas merzi Shamshev & Grootaert, 2012 is described for the first time. New distributional records are presented: Megagrapha europaea Papp & Földvári, 2001 is first reported from Slovakia and Syndyas merzi Shamshev & Grootaert, 2012 is first reported from Turkey.

Co-existing species of Drapetis Meigen in Skåne (S Sweden) with description of a new species and a key to males of NW European species (Diptera: Hybotidae).

Drapetis is a genus of tiny predaceous hybotid flies found frequently on the bark of trees. From a single locality in province Skåne (S Sweden) we report the co-existence of seven species of Drapetis. One is new and described as D. abrollensis sp. nov., and four species, D. assimilis (Fallén), D. completa Kovalev, D. infitialis Collin and D. stackelbergi Kovalev, are relatively recent additions to the list of Swedish Diptera. A key to males of the 14 species of Drapetis known from NW Europe is given. Special emphasis is given to modifications of the midleg cuticle observed in males of several species that belong to the D. exilis-species group. As shown by SEM images these modifications differ greatly between the species, both at light microscopic and ultrastructural levels. These modifications are introduced as a new set of characters in the identification key. Finally, brochosomes were detected on the midleg of three SEM-examined Drapetis species, documenting indirectly that small leafhoppers are regularly used as prey.

Revision of the genus Lichtwardtia Enderlein in Southeast Asia, a tale of highly diverse male terminalia (Diptera, Dolichopodidae).

In the present paper the Oriental species of the genus Lichtwardtia Enderlein, 1912 are revised based on the type material of known species and new material from Singapore and Cambodia. A re-description and illustration of the holotype female of Lichtwardtiaziczac (Wiedemann, 1824) is given but since it has been described on the basis of a female only and its provenance India Orientalis is only a vague indication of its type locality, it is considered as a nomen dubium. All the species put as junior synonyms by Becker (1922) of L.ziczac are re-established to their original status with diagnosis: Lichtwardtiapolychroma (Loew, 1864) and Lichtwardtiaformosana Enderlein, 1912. However, L.coxalis is now also considered as a nomen dubium since the original description is too short to distinguish it from other species and the holotype female is lost. In addition a re-description and illustrations of L.hirsutiseta (de Meijere, 1916) are provided. Eight new species for science are described and illustrated: Lichtwardtiacambodiensis Tang & Grootaert, sp. n. (Cambodia), Lichtwardtiaconspicabilis Tang & Grootaert, sp. n. (Cambodia), Lichtwardtiainfuscata Tang & Grootaert, sp. n. (Cambodia), Lichtwardtiamonstruosa Tang & Grootaert, sp. n. (Cambodia), Lichtwardtianodulata Grootaert & Tang, sp. n. (Singapore), Lichtwardtiasemakau Grootaert & Tang, sp. n. (Singapore) and Lichtwardtiasingaporensis Grootaert & Tang, sp. n. (Singapore). Lichtwardtiazhangae Tang & Grootaert, sp. n. (Bali, Indonesia) is a new name for the species described by Zhang, Masunaga & Yang, 2009, as Lichtwardtiaziczac (Wiedemann, 1824). There are only a few good diagnostic non-genitalic characters for the species, but the male terminalia are distinctive, from simple to very complicated and armed structures. A key is given to the species of the Oriental region. Barcodes are provided for the Singaporean species. Although Lichtwardtia is a common genus in Southeast Asia it is generally not abundant locally. It is often found in anthropogenic disturbed habitats only. Four species are recorded from Singapore while eight species are sympatric and very abundant at the locality of Siem Reap in Cambodia.

Genetic Variation of the Long-Legged Flies Phacaspis mitis Complex (Diptera: Dolichopodidae) in Peninsular Thailand Inferred From Three Mitochondrial Genes.

Phacaspis (Meuffels and Grootaert 1988) is a true marine dolichopodid fly genus. They are common on the mud flats in the front of mangroves where they deal with extreme conditions. The genus is represented in southern Thailand by Phacaspis mitis (Grootaert and Meuffels 2001) (Diptera: Dolichopodidae). Previous studies have focused on both taxonomy and classification of this genus, but there are a few studies focusing on this species in terms of molecular genetics. The objective of the present study was to investigate genetic variation and phylogenetic relationships of P. mitis using ribosomal DNA subunit 12S, ribosomal DNA subunit 16S, and cytochrome oxidase subunit I of mitochondrial genes. The specimens were collected in six coastal provinces from the Andaman Sea and the Gulf of Thailand. The phylogenetic relationship of combined mitochondrial genes revealed that P. mitis in peninsular Thailand is a monophyletic group that can be divided into two distinct clades. According to the haplotype network, 16 haplotype patterns were observed in P. mitis, but P. mitis was separated into two major haplotype networks. In addition, a positive correlation between genetic distance (FST) and geographical distance (km) was found among the populations of peninsular Thailand. The level of genetic differentiation between populations is influenced by geographic isolation. Moreover, P. mitis arose in late Eocene (35.5 Mya) and it diversified during the Plio-Pleistocene (3.14 Mya). Although, P. mitis is divided into two populations in this study, it is a well-supported monophyletic group.

Protomedetera, a new genus from the Oriental and Australasian realms (Diptera, Dolichopodidae, Medeterinae).

Protomedeteragen. n. (Diptera: Dolichopodidae), a new genus of the subfamily Medeterinae, is described from the Oriental and Australasian realms based on four new species. Protomedetera singaporensis Grootaert & Tang, sp. n. is designated as type of the new genus. The genus is peculiar because of the small body size, the small globular first flagellomere (postpedicel), the simple male genitalia with indistinct or small epandrial lobe and half-hidden cercus. The following four new species are described and illustrated: P. biconvexasp. n., P. bisetasp. n., P. glabrasp. n., and P. singaporensissp. n. A key to the species of the new genus is provided.

Reconciling biodiversity and carbon stock conservation in an Afrotropical forest landscape.

Protecting aboveground carbon stocks in tropical forests is essential for mitigating global climate change and is assumed to simultaneously conserve biodiversity. Although the relationship between tree diversity and carbon stocks is generally positive, the relationship remains unclear for consumers or decomposers. We assessed this relationship for multiple trophic levels across the tree of life (10 organismal groups, 3 kingdoms) in lowland rainforests of the Congo Basin. Comparisons across regrowth and old-growth forests evinced the expected positive relationship for trees, but not for other organismal groups. Moreover, differences in species composition between forests increased with difference in carbon stock. These variable associations across the tree of life contradict the implicit assumption that maximum co-benefits to biodiversity are associated with conservation of forests with the highest carbon storage. Initiatives targeting climate change mitigation and biodiversity conservation should include both old-growth and regenerating forests to optimally benefit biodiversity and carbon storage.

New species of Thinophilus Wahlberg (Diptera: Dolichopodidae) from mangroves in southern China (Shenzhen).

Three species of Thinophilus Wahlberg are recorded from mangroves near Shenzhen (China). Two species new to science are described and illustrated: T. dongae sp. nov. and T. zhuae sp. nov. In addition, Thinophilus lamellaris Zhu, Yang & Masunaga originally described from Hainan (China) is reported here. Females of this species are described for the first time and variability in male characters is given. These three species plus 6 additional Thinophilus and three Nanothinophilus species from South China Sea mangroves were COI barcoded and compared to species known from the northern part of the South China Sea.

New data on the genus Platypalpus (Diptera: Hybotidae) from the Caucasus with description of seven new species.

Currently, 47 species of the genus Platypalpus are known from the Caucasus including fourteen species recorded herein for the first time: P. albicornis (Zetterstedt, 1842), P. baldensis (Strobl, 1899), P. caroli Grootaert, 1987, P. ciliaris (Fallén, 1816), P. clarandus (Collin, 1926), P. collini (Chvála, 1966), P. cothurnatus Macquart, 1827, P. infectus (Collin, 1926), P. longicornis (Meigen, 1822), P. luteicornis (Meigen, 1838), P. nigrinus (Meigen, 1822), P. pseudociliaris (Strobl, 1910), P. ruficornis (von Roser, 1840), and P. smirnovi Kovalev, 1978. In addition, seven new species are described: P. akhunensis sp. nov. (Russia: Krasnodarskiy Territory), P. kintrishiensis sp. nov. (Georgia), P. lantsovi sp. nov. (Georgia), P. pseudosilvahumidus sp. nov. (Russia: Krasnodarskiy Territory, Karachay-Cherkessia), P. sinevi sp. nov. (Russia: Karachay-Cherkessia), P. subcaucasicus sp. nov. (Russia: Krasnodarskiy Territory, Dagestan) and P. teberdaensis sp. nov. (Russia: Karachay-Cherkessia). A key to species of Platypalpus from the Caucasus is presented for the first time.

New data on the genus Hybos Meigen (Diptera: Hybotidae) from the Palaearctic Region.

The taxonomy and distribution of the genus Hybos Meigen in the Palaearctic Region is reviewed with a special reference to the European fauna. Twenty-three species have been recorded from the Palaearctic, of which only four species are known from Europe. We describe two new species, H. andradei sp. nov. (Portugal) and H. mediasiaticus sp. nov. (Middle Asia). The status of two previously considered doubtful species of Hybos are validated: H. striatellus Villeneuve, 1913 (Algeria) and H. vagans Loew, 1874 (the Caucasus). Both species are re-described, and the lectotype of H. striatellus is designated. A key to species of Hybos from the western Palaearctic is compiled. Numerous new data on distributions of H. culiciformis (Fabricius, 1775), H. femoratus (Müller, 1776), H. grossipes (Linné, 1767) and H. vagans are given. Hybos culiciformis is recorded for the first time from Algeria, Byelorussia, Croatia, Cyprus, Lebanon, and Portugal; H. femoratus-from Estonia, Georgia (including Abkhazia), Kazakhstan, Mongolia and Ukraine; H. grossipes-from Byelorussia, Estonia, Kazakhstan, Latvia, Mongolia, Ukraine; H. vagans-from Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia (including Abkhazia), Russia, Turkey. The variation of some characters in H. culiciformis is discussed and is confirmed for Portugese specimens by COI barcoding. Female postabdominal structures are examined and described for H. andradei sp. nov., H. culiciformis, H. femoratus, H. grossipes, H. mediasiaticus sp. nov., and H. striatellus. Possible relationships of the West-Palaearctic species are discussed. A check-list of Hybos from the Palaearctic Realm is provided.

Ngirhaphium Evenhuis & Grootaert from southern Thailand (Diptera: Dolichopodidae) with the description of a new species.

The genus Ngirhaphium Evenhuis & Grootaert, 2002 is reported for the first time from Thailand in particular from mangroves on the coast of the Andaman Sea in southern Thailand. Three species were found: N. murphyi Evenhuis & Grootaert, 2002, N. sivasothii Grootaert & Puniamoorthy, 2014 and N. chutamasae sp. nov. The latter species is described and illustrated and a key to all four known species is provided. COI barcode data showed that the new species is most closely related to N. murphyi with a genetic distance of 7%. The distance with the other species is 11 to 12%.

Mites of the genus Paracoroptes Lavoipierre, 1955 (Acariformes: Psoroptidae)--skin parasites of the African monkeys of the family Cercopithecidae (Primates).

Two new species of Paracoroptes Lavoipierre, 1955 (Acariformes: Psoroptidae: Paracoroptinae) are described: Paracoroptes miopithecus sp. n. from Miopithecus talapoin (Schreber) and Paracoroptes piliocolobus sp. n. from Piliocolobus badius (Kerr) (Primates: Cercopithecidae)--both are from the Democratic Republic of the Congo. A key to all 6 species of the genus is provided and host-parasite relationships of its representatives are discussed.

Six new species of the Platypalpus pallidiventris-cursitans group (Diptera: Hybotidae) from the Caucasus.

Six new species of the genus Platypalpus are described from the Caucasus: P. abagoensis sp. nov. (Russia: Republic of Adygea), P. arzanovi sp. nov. (Russia: Krasnodarskiy Territory, Rostov Prov.), P. gazaryani sp. nov. (Russia: Republic of Adygea), P. kamyshanovensis sp. nov. (Russia: Krasnodarskiy Territory), P. odintsovi sp. nov. (Russia: Krasnodarskiy Territory), P. neberdzaensis sp. nov. (Russia: Krasnodarskiy Territory).

Revision of the subfamily Onychalginae Fain, 1988 (Acariformes: Pyroglyphidae)-ectoparasites of passerine birds.

The subfamily Onychalginae Fain, 1988 (Acariformes: Pyroglyphidae) is a monophyletic lineage comprising the closest parasitic relatives of the free-living pyroglyphid house dust mites. Onychalgine mites parasitize passerine birds of the families Estrildidae, Passeridae, and Ploceidae in Africa and South America (a single record of Onychalges spinitarsis from a piciform bird requires confirmation). We revise this subfamily based on external morphology of adults and immature stages using light and scanning electron microscopy and give a key to species. Onychalginae includes 2 genera: Onychalges Gaud and Mouchet, 1959 (6 species) and Paramealia Gaud, 1968 (1 species). The genus Kivuicola Fain, 1971 syn. nov. is synonymized with Onychalges, and its single species K. kivuana Fain, 1971 syn. nov. is considered as a putative synonym of O. odonturus Gaud, 1968. Onychalges spinitarsis (Fain and Gaud, 1984) is considered as a species inquirenda.

Phoomyia, a new genus of Dolichopodinae from the Oriental Region (Diptera: Dolichopodidae).

Phoomyia Naglis & Grootaert gen. nov. is described to include two new species of beach-dwelling dolichopodine flies from coastal Sri Lanka and Thailand: Phoontyia srilankensis Naglis & Brooks sp. nov. and Phoomnyia thailandensis Naglis & Grootaert sp. nov. The new genus is closely related to the genera Argyrochlamys Lamb and Pseudargyrochlamys Grichanov, and is distinguished based on characters of the hind leg, and features of the male and female terminalia. Adults of Phoomyia are found on sandy coastal beaches often near the burrows of ghost crabs.

Using DNA barcodes for assessing diversity in the family Hybotidae (Diptera, Empidoidea).

Empidoidea is one of the largest extant lineages of flies, but phylogenetic relationships among species of this group are poorly investigated and global diversity remains scarcely assessed. In this context, one of the most enigmatic empidoid families is Hybotidae. Within the framework of a pilot study, we barcoded 339 specimens of Old World hybotids belonging to 164 species and 22 genera (plus two Empis as outgroups) and attempted to evaluate whether patterns of intra- and interspecific divergences match the current taxonomy. We used a large sampling of diverse Hybotidae. The material came from the Palaearctic (Belgium, France, Portugal and Russian Caucasus), the Afrotropic (Democratic Republic of the Congo) and the Oriental realms (Singapore and Thailand). Thereby, we optimized lab protocols for barcoding hybotids. Although DNA barcodes generally well distinguished recognized taxa, the study also revealed a number of unexpected phenomena: e.g., undescribed taxa found within morphologically very similar or identical specimens, especially when geographic distance was large; some morphologically distinct species showed no genetic divergence; or different pattern of intraspecific divergence between populations or closely related species. Using COI sequences and simple Neighbour-Joining tree reconstructions, the monophyly of many species- and genus-level taxa was well supported, but more inclusive taxonomical levels did not receive significant bootstrap support. We conclude that in hybotids DNA barcoding might be well used to identify species, when two main constraints are considered. First, incomplete barcoding libraries hinder efficient (correct) identification. Therefore, extra efforts are needed to increase the representation of hybotids in these databases. Second, the spatial scale of sampling has to be taken into account, and especially for widespread species or species complexes with unclear taxonomy, an integrative approach has to be used to clarify species boundaries and identities.

Revision of the family Listropsoralgidae Fain, 1965 (Acariformes: Sarcoptoidea)-skin parasites of marsupials and rodents.

The family Listropsoralgidae Fain, 1965 (Acariformes: Sarcoptoidea) is represented by the permanent skin ectoparasites associated with the South American and Australian marsupials (12 species) and the South American rodents of the family Echimyidae (1 species). The phylogenetic relationships of these mites (12 ingroup and 2 outgroup species) are reconstructed on the basis of the maximum parsimony (MP) and Bayesian analyses (BA) of 76 morphological characters. MP analysis confirmed monophyly of the listropsoralgid genera, the strict consensus of 18 trees generated by MP has the following pattern: Petauralges (Listropsoralgoides, Didelphialges, Listropsoralges) with poor resolution among species of the genus Listropsoralges. The same tree was generated by BA. Both successive and implied weighting strategies resulted in 7 MP trees: Petauralges (Listropsoralgoides (Didelphialges (Listropsoralges))). The relationships between species of the genus Listropsoralges received the poorest resolution: L. caenolestes (L. monodelphis, L. vossi, L. faini, L. brevisetosa (L. thylamys (L. marmosa-L. caluromys))). The host-parasite relationships of listropsoralgids are briefly discussed. The family Listropsoralgidae is taxonomically revised and to date includes 13 species in 4 genera. Six species and one genus are described as new: Listropsoralges brevisetosus sp. n. from Marmosa murina (Didelphimorphia: Didelphidae) from Peru, Listropsoralges similis sp. n. from Caluromys derbianus (Didelphidae) from Panama, Listropsoralges thylamys sp. n. from Thylamys venustus (Didelphidae) from Bolivia, Listropsoralges vossi sp. n. from Monodelphis domestica (Didelphidae) from Brazil, Listropsoralges caenolestes sp. n. from Caenolestes fuliginosus (Paucituberculata: Caenolestidae) from Ecuador, and Didelphialges metachirus gen. n., sp. n. from Metachirus nudicaudatus (Didelphidae) from Peru. The female of Listropsoralges faini Bochkov and Wauthy, 2009 is described for the first time.