Sciara minor
Ordo: Diptera
Familia: Sciaridae
Genus: Sciara
Name
Sciara minor Strobl, 1898 – ZooBank link
- Sciara frauenfeldi var. minor Strobl, 1898[1]: 278
Type material
Lectotype ♂, in NMBS, leg. Strobl, 06.09.1897
Type locality
Austria, Styria, Trieben, Scheiblstein
Barcoded material
| Stadium | Country | Province | Locality | Habitat | Method | Date | Collector | Collection Number | Collection | Latitude | Longitude | Elevation (m) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 ♂ | Germany | Bavaria | Allgäu, Oberstdorf, Koblat | Schneetälchen | Malaise trap | 05.09.2014 | Doczkal, D., Schmidt, S. & Voith, J. | BC-ZSM-DIP-27706-A08 | SNSB | 47.4215 | 10.3546 | 2033 |
| 1 ♂ | Germany | Bavaria | Allgäu, Oberstdorf, Koblat | Schneetälchen | Malaise trap | 05.09.2014 | Doczkal, D., Schmidt, S. & Voith, J. | BC-ZSM-DIP-27706-A01 | SNSB | 47.4215 | 10.3546 | 2033 |
| 1 ♂ | Germany | Bavaria | Allgäu, Oberstdorf, Koblat | Schneetälchen | Malaise trap | 05.09.2014 | Doczkal, D., Schmidt, S. & Voith, J. | BC-ZSM-DIP-27706-B06 | SNSB | 47.4215 | 10.3546 | 2033 |
| 1 ♂ | Germany | Bavaria | Allgäu, Oberstdorf, Koblat | Schneetälchen | Malaise trap | 05.09.2014 | Doczkal, D., Schmidt, S. & Voith, J. | BC-ZSM-DIP-27706-C03 | SNSB | 47.4215 | 10.3546 | 2033 |
| 1 ♂ | Germany | Bavaria | Allgäu, Oberstdorf, Koblat | Schneetälchen | Malaise trap | 05.09.2014 | Doczkal, D., Schmidt, S. & Voith, J. | BC-ZSM-DIP-27706-A01 | SNSB | 47.4215 | 10.3546 | 2033 |
Description (male)
Head. Eye bridge 4–5 rows of facets. Antenna unicolour. LW-index of 4th flagellomere 1.7–2; neck 0.25–0.37 × segment width; transition of basal part to neck bottle-neck like. Colour of neck unicolour. Antennal setae shorter than segment width; fine; sparse; salient. Palpus darkened; of normal length; palpomeres 3. First palpomere elongate; with 5–7 setae; with only sparse sensilla. Second palpomere elongate. Third palpomere as long as first. Thorax. Colour brown. Notum unicolour. Thoracic setae weak; brown. Posterior pronotum setose. Postpronotal setae 10–20; fine. Mesothoracic sclerites bare. Legs. Colour yellow-brown. Hind coxa of same colour as femora. Setae on front coxa darkened. Front tibial organ as patch of setae; pale; front tibial organ not bordered. Tibial setae on hind legs weak and inconspicuous. Tibial spurs of equal length. Claws untoothed. Wing. posterior veins with macrotrichia; Halter darkened; of normal length. Abdomen. Abdominal setae weak; dense; on tergites brown; on sternites brown. Hypopygium concolour with abdomen; LW-index 0.55–0.7. Base of gonocoxites with weak setae; gonocoxites fused; inner margin of gonocoxites typically U-shaped; inner membrane of hypopygium bare; ventral margin of gonocoxite with short setae. Gonostylus elongate; LW-index 1.5–1.9; Inner margin convex; apex bulbous. Apical tooth absent. Awl-like setae long; beneath apical tooth absent. Megasetae absent. Whiplash-hair absent. Tegmen 1.3–1.5 × longer than broad; trapezoid, or laterally emarginate; without special features; central process absent. Length of ejaculatory apodeme/hypopygium 5–10 %; base of ejaculatory apodeme present. Field with aedeagal teeth inconspicuous. Measurements. Body size 3–4 mm. Hind tibia 1.2–1.3 mm.
Diagnosis
Sciara minor is characterized by the posterior pronotum bearing numerous fine setae, a character state which is currently unique in in Sciaridae. Otherwise, the species is similar to other members of the hemerobioides group like Sciara hemerobioides, Sciara analis and Sciara militaris, the two former being lager in size, the latter smaller. The gonostylus resembles mostly that of Sciara militaris by having a narrow apical lobe. This lobe has a few scattered awl-like setae dorsally and also ventrally, which are there lacking in S. militaris. The tegmen is also much longer and of different shape in S. minor
DNA Barcoding
The COI sequence is assigned to BIN BOLD:ACZ9335 (average distance 0.3%, max. 0.72%, n=5, K2P: 4.72%).
Discussion
Sciara minor was originally treated as a subspecies of Sciara frauenfeldi Winnertz, which is in fact identical to Schwenckfeldina carbonaria as stated by Menzel & Mohrig (2000)[2]. Later Menzel (1992[3]: 234) synonymized Sciara minor with Sciara militaris based on the similarly shaped gonostylus and the short antennae. However, the first illustration of the male genitalia of the “armyworm”-building species Sciara militaris by Craik et al. (2005)[4] revealed some notable differences and also the DNA-barcode is not identical. In fact S. minor is genetically most closely related to Sciara analis. The gonostylus of the barcoded material matches very well with the illustration of the type specimen by Menzel, only the ventral spinules, which are present on the lobes of all Bavarian specimens are not figured and may have been overlooked.
Etymology
minor lat. = smaller.
Ecology
At present Sciara minor is not known to produce army-worms and seems ro be an active flier in contrast to Sciara militaris. Both currently known collecting events took place in the Alps. So it appears to be a stricly Alpine species.
Distribution
Austria[1], Germany.
Images
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References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Strobl, G. 1898: Die Dipteren von Steiermark. IV. Theil. Nachträge zum III. Theil. Mittheilungen des Naturwissenschaftlichen Vereines für Steiermark, 34(1897), 277–297. BHL
- ↑ Menzel, F.; Mohrig, W. 2000: Revision der paläarktischen Trauermücken (Diptera: Sciaridae). Studia dipterologica Supplement 6, 1-761. AMPYX-Verlag, Halle.
- ↑ Menzel, F. 1992: Beiträge zur Taxonomie und Faunistik der paläarktischen Trauermücken (Diptera, Sciaridae). Teil I. - Die Stroblschen Sciaridentypen des Naturhistorischen Museums des Benediktinerstifts Admont. Beiträge zur Entomologie, 42(2).
- ↑ Craik, J.C.A.; Wormell, P.; Smith, J.E.; Menzel, F. 2005: Long columns of “army worms” in west Scotland - the first record of Sciara militaris Nowicki (Diptera, Sciaridae) in the British Isles? Dipterists Digest (Second Series), 12(1), 21–27.
