Sarcophaga (Bercaea) africa (Wiedemann, 1824)

(Fig. 17)

Musca africa Wiedemann, 1824: 49 .

Sarcophaga cruentata Meigen, 1826: 28 .

Sarcophaga georgina Wiedemann, 1830: 357 .

Myophora squalida Robineau-Desvoidy, 1830: 342 .

Myophora villica Robineau-Desvoidy, 1830: 340 .

Sarcophaga aegra Walker, 1849: 821 .

Myophora blondeli Robineau-Desvoidy, 1830: 344 .

Sarcophaga consobrina Rondani, 1860: 391 . (Junior secondary homonym of Myophora consobrina Robineau-Desvoidy, 1830 .)

Myophora capensis Robineau-Desvoidy, 1830: 347 .

Sarcophaga nurus Rondani, 1860: 392 .

Sarcophaga zetterstedtii Robineau-Desvoidy, 1863: 439 .

Sarcophaga iners Robineau-Desvoidy, 1863: 439 .

Sarcophaga pabulorum Robineau-Desvoidy, 1863: 441 .

Sarcophaga fulvipalpis Robineau-Desvoidy, 1863: 442 . (Junior primary homonym of Sarcophaga fulvipalpis Macquart, 1844 .)

Sarcophaga meigenii Robineau-Desvoidy, 1863: 442 .

Sarcophaga inclyta Robineau-Desvoidy, 1863: 443 .

Sarcophaga praeceps Robineau-Desvoidy, 1863: 480 .

Sarcophaga fugax Robineau-Desvoidy, 1863: 481 .

Myophora nitida Robineau-Desvoidy, 1863: 510 .

Myophora albidula Robineau-Desvoidy, 1863: 513 .

Myophora commendata Robineau-Desvoidy, 1863: 516 .

Bercaea haemathura Robineau-Desvoidy, 1863: 551 .

Bercaea agilis Robineau-Desvoidy, 1863: 552 . (Junior secondary homonym of Sarcophaga agilis Robineau-Desvoidy, 1863 .)

Bercaea oralis Robineau-Desvoidy, 1863: 554 . (Junior secondary homonym of Sarcophaga oralis Robineau-Desvoidy, 1863 .)

Bercaea agraria Robineau-Desvoidy, 1863: 554 . (Junior secondary homonym of Sarcophaga agraria Robineau- Desvoidy, 1863.)

Bercaea meditata Robineau-Desvoidy, 1863: 576 .

Sarcophaga aequipalis Thomson, 1869: 534 .

Sarcophaga distinguenda Rondani, 1873: 284 .

Sarcophaga sejungenda Rondani, 1873: 285 .

Theria flavidula Bigot, 1880: 151 . (Junior secondary homonym of Mulsantia flavidula Robineau-Desvoidy, 1863 .)

Thyrsotetradiscus friederichsianus Enderlein, 1928: 20 .

Mesothyrsia madagascariensis Enderlein, 1928: 37 . (Junior secondary homonym of Sarcophaga madagascariensis Macquart, 1847 .)

Distribution: Nearctic, Neotropical – Argentina (Buenos Aires), Brazil (Rio de Janeiro, Rio Grande do Sul), Costa Rica, Cuba, Mexico, Paraguay – Palaearctic, Afrotropical, Oriental, Australasian/Oceanian.

Material studied: Buenos Aires: 1 ɗ Ciud. Aut. Buenos Aires, 31.I.1944 on rotten meat (ANLIS); 2 ɗ, 1 Ψ Burzaco, Alte. Brown, III.2002, Mulieri leg. (ANLIS); 1 ɗ Burzaco, Alte. Brown, III.2002 on liver, Mulieri leg. (ANLIS); 1 Ψ Mar del Plata, Gral. Pueyrredon, XII.2004, Mulieri leg. (ANLIS).

Remarks: Sarcophaga (B.) africa has been misidentified by several authors as S. haemorrhoidalis (Fallén) . Good illustrations of the male terminalia can be found in Blanchard (1942a) and Shewell (1987). Illustrations of the female terminalia also can be found in Shewell (1987).

Biology: This cosmopolitan species is regarded as highly synanthropic, and is attracted both to cadavers and faeces in Brazil (Linhares 1981; Dias et al. 1984a, c). Regarding the life cycle of S. africa, some authors have recorded it as coprophagous (Bänziger & Pape 2004), necrophagous (Romera et al. 2003), or as a facultative parasitoid on snails (Coupland & Barker 2004). Host. Gastropoda, Helicidae and Hygromiidae (Coupland & Barker 2004) . This species has a medical impact because it is known to cause traumatic, gastrointestinal and aural myiasis (James 1947; Zumpt 1965; Guimarães et al. 1983; Lukin 1989; Sherman 2000; Uni et al. 2005).