Oplodontha rubrithorax ( Macquart, 1838 )

Nerudová, Jana, Kovac, Damir & Tóthová, Andrea, 2015, Description of larva and puparium of Oplodontha rubrithorax (Diptera: Stratiomyidae) from the Oriental Region, Zootaxa 3955 (1), pp. 123-131 : 124

Oplodontha rubrithorax ( Macquart, 1838)

Oplodontha rubrithorax is based on the male holotype from Bengal in India which is deposited in the Museum National d´Histoire Naturelle in Paris (not examined). It was redescribed by de Meijere (1907), Brunetti (1920) and Nagatomi (1977). Oplodontha immaculata Brunetti, 1907 is an evident synonym of this species.

The brassy to reddish pubescence of the thorax was the reason for the name suggested by Macquart, but it is sometimes obscure or even yellowish. The front and middle femora have a typical median black band each; although the legs may also be entirely yellow ( James 1947).

Distribution. India ( Macquart 1838; Brunetti 1920, 1923), Sri Lanka ( Brunetti 1923), Indonesia (Sumatra, van der Wulp 1881; Java, de Meijere 1907 and James 1947), Thailand ( Brunetti 1923), Taiwan ( Ôuchi 1940), the Philippines ( James 1947), Japan ( Nagatomi 1977) incl. Okinawa in the Ryukyus ( James 1947). E. Lindner found 4 females of this species in the Afrotropical Region ( Zaire; Lindner 1938, 1958), but this was most probably a misidentification (M. Hauser, pers. observ.). Distribution was summarized by Woodley (2001).