Limnia unguicornis Scopoli, 1763

Vikhrev, Nikita E., 2023, Notes on the Palaearctic fauna of Limnia (Diptera, Sciomyzidae), Amurian Zoological Journal XV (2), pp. 284-292 : 285-288

Limnia unguicornis Scopoli, 1763

Figs. 1–4 , 12, 13

Limnia paludicola Elberg, 1965 , syn. nov.

Male holotype and female paratype of L. paludicola : ESTONIA, Parnu County, Tuhu marsh (58.57 ° N, 23.84 ° E), 16.06.1961, K. Elberg ( ZIN) .

ARMENIA, Lichk (≈ 39.058 ° N, 46.175 ° E, 1800 m), 10.06.1955, L. Zimina, 1♀ .

AUSTRIA, Hallein distr. , Haunsperg — Hammer (≈ 47.65 ° N, 13.19 ° E), 17.07.2007, G. Pennards, 1♀ .

BELARUS: Gomel Reg., Mozyr env., 52.05 ° N, 29.31 ° E, 11‒ 14.06.2019, N. Vikhrev, 10♂, 6♀ ; Vitebsk Reg., Orsha env. 54.58 ° N, 30.45 ° E, 2.08.2019, N. Vikhrev, 1♂, 1♀ .

FRANCE, Occitanie Reg. , Gers dep., Pichoy (Fources) (≈ 43.995 ° N, 0.208 ° E) : 2.06.2006, G. Pennards, 1♂; 10.05.2007, G. Pennards, 1♂; 23.05.2007, G. Pennards, 1♂, 1♀.

KAZAKHSTAN, South Kazakhstan Reg., Aksu-Zhabagly Nat. Res. (≈ 42.5 ° N, 70.5 ° E): 9.06.1965, L. Zimina, 1♀ ; 20.06.1965, L. Zimina, 1♀.

KYRGYZSTAN, Chuy Reg., Tokmak (≈ 42.82 ° N, 75.32 ° E), 9.08.1969, E. Narchuk, 4♂, 2♀ ( ZIN) ; Issyk-Kul Reg., Ananjevo (≈ 42.73 ° N, 77.69 ° E), 28.07.1961, L. Zimina, 1♀ . MOLDOVA, Chishinau env. (≈ 47.01 ° N, 28.86 ° E): 1.07.1970, R. Kamenskaya, 1♀ ; 2.07.1970, R. Kamenskaya, 1♀ .

NETHERLANDS: Beek (≈ 50.93 ° N, 5.80 ° E), 13.06.1999, G. Pennards, 1♀ ; Kwade Hoek (≈ 51.832 ° N, 4.004 ° E), 21.05.2005, G. Pennards, 1♂ .

RUSSIA: Altai Republic Reg., Seminsky pass env., Sarlyk R., 1200 m, 28‒ 30.06.2016, N. Vikhrev, 1♂ ;

Amur Reg., Zeya env. (≈ 53.71 ° N, 127.19 ° E), 1.09.1981, A. Shatalkin, 1♂ ;

Arkhangelsk Reg.: Arkhangelsk, 64.55 ° N, 40.60 ° E, 4.07.2011, D. Gavryushin, 1♂ ; Solvychegodsk , 61.333 ° N, 46.922 ° E, 11.08.2010, D. Gavryushin, 2♀ ;

Bashkortostan Reg.: Abzakovo , 53.82 ° N, 58.62 ° E, 500 m, 15‒ 19.06.2020, N. Vikhrev, 7♂, 1♀ ; Beloretsk distr., Makhmutovo, Belaya R., 54.33 ° N, 58.81 ° E, 15.07.2015, D. Gavryushin, 1♂, 1♀ ;

Buryatia Reg., Kyren env., 51.7 ° N, 102.1 ° E, 750 m, 16‒ 19.06.2021, E. Makovetskaya, 1♀ ; Dagestan Reg., Samur forest , 41.86 ° N, 48.56 ° E, 25.06.2021, O. Kosterin, 1♂ ; Donetsk Reg., Volnovakha distr. , 10 km E of Donskoe (47.50 ° N, 37.65 ° E), K. Tomkovich, 20– 31.08.2008, 3♂, 1♀ ;

Irkutsk Reg., Yurty (≈ 56.05 ° N, 97.63 ° E), 11.06.1912, Mishin, 1♀ ( ZIN) ;

Karelia Reg., Myaranduksa L. , 62.3 ° N, 33.1 ° E, 14.07.2018, D. Astakhov, 1♀;

Khakasia Reg., Shira distr., Borets , 54.46 ° N, 90.36 ° E, 29.06.2011, K. Tomkovich, 1♀ ; Khanty-Mansi Reg., Seliyarovo env., 61.467 ° N, 70.731 ° E, 17‒ 20.07.2010, K. Tomkovich, 1♂, 1♀ ;

Krasnodar Reg. (Krasnaya Polyana), Alpika-service, 43.682 ° N, 40.236 ° E, 600 m, 11‒ 13.06.2008, K. Tomkovich, 5♂, 4♀ ; Krasnoyarsk Reg. , Krasnoyarsk , West bank (of Yenisei R.), Udachniy distr. env. (≈ 55.978 ° N, 92.710 ° E), 28.07.2009, K. Tomkovich, 1♀ ; Kursk Reg. , Selikhovy Dvory (≈ 51.58 ° N, 36.07 ° E), 25.05.2007, N. Vikhrev, 2♂, 3♀ ; Mordovia Reg. , Pushta vill. env., 54.71 ° N, 43.22 ° E, 22– 26.06.2020, M. Yanbulat, 5♂, 3♀ ; Moscow Reg. : Burtsevo env. (55.981 ° N, 35.597 ° E): on parsley, 1‒ 15.07.2008, M. Krivosheina, 1♂, 3♀ ; on hogweed, 6‒ 14.07.2008, M. Krivosheina, 1♀; Izmaylovo (≈ 55.564N, 37.649E): 5.06.1983, A. Ozerov, 1♂ ; 2.07.1983, A. Ozerov, 1♂;

North Osetia Reg., S of Alagir (42.90 ° N, 44.15 ° E, 1700 m), 28‒ 30.06.1990, A Shatalkin, 2♂, 3♀ ; Alagir (43.04 ° N, 44.21 ° E, 800 m), 9.07.1990, A. Ozerov, 1♂, 1♀ ;

Novosibirsk Reg., Akademgorodok , 54.87 ° N, 83.05 ° E, 18‒ 19.06.2016, N. Vikhrev, 1♂ ; Akademgorodok, Zyryanka R., Botanical garden, 54.825 ° N, 83.115 ° E, 14.06.2008, O. Kosterin, 4♂, 3♀ ;

Omsk Reg., Omsk distr., Fadino vill., 54.79 ° N, 73.34 ° E, 9.06.2007, O. Kosterin, 1♂, 2♀ ; Saint Petersburg Reg., Kiperort Penins., 60.48 ° N, 28.56 ° E, 15‒ 25.05.2012, K. Tomkovich, 1♂ ;

Tuva Reg., Uyuk R., 800 m, 52.07 ° N, 94.04 ° E, 1‒ 3.07.2017, N. Vikhrev, 1♂ ;

Tver Reg., Ostashkov (57.15 ° N, 33.10 ° E), 14.07.1936, B. Rodendorf, 1♂ .

SERBIA, Crni Vrh env., 43.396 ° N, 22.605 ° E, 1000 m, 4.07.2015, A. Ozerov, 1♂ .

TURKEY, Bolu prov., 6 km S of Kartalkaya Ski Resort , 40.642 ° N, 31.763 ° E, 1480 m, 16‒ 18.06.2010, N. Vikhrev, 1♂ .

UK, Oxford , 5‒ 20.09.1998, M. Krivosheina, 1♂ . UKRAINE, Zakarpatskaya Reg.: Uzhgorod distr. , Turja Polyana (≈ 48.70 ° N, 22.80 ° E), 25.06.1964, L. Zimina, 1♀ .

DISTRIBUTION. One of the most common Sciomyzidae in Europe, less common in W. Siberia, uncommon in Central Siberia, ranges to the east to Xinjiang province of China ( Li et al. 2019) and Lake Baikal SE periphery, the single easternmost specimen available is from Amur region. The southern limit of distribution is the Northern Mediterranean ( Italy, Greece, Turkey), also present in Central Asia; the northern limit of distribution is about 65 ° N ( Karelia , Arkhangelsk, Khanty-Mansi regions).

SYNONYMY. L. paludicola Elberg, 1965 was described from a large series of specimens collected from E Europe ( Estonia) to Central Siberia. Thus, Elberg (1965: 195‒197) hypothesized that this series belongs to a new species which is sympatric to L. unguicornis on a vast territory of Palaearctic. It was claimed to differ from L. unguicornis in males only by the fine structure of surstylus and hypandrium (posterior surstyli in Elberg), in females by a darker brown median stripe on the mesonotum. For more than 50 years Sciomyzidae experts have supported this hypothesis, but I would like to express my opinion that the description of L. paludicola was quite groundless.

Concerning females, Elberg (1965) did not discuss on what basis he “married” L. paludicola males to females with a darker but not with a lighter mesonotal stripe, so, I suppose that this character was chosen arbitrarily. Indeed, median vitta on female mesonotum may be brownish or yellowish, I regard their colour as intraspecific variability of L. unguicornis until someone presents a justification to the contrary.

Let us concentrate on male genitalia.

Apart from my doubts that the shape of the weakly sclerotized surstyli of L. unguicornis is really important for reproductive isolation of specimens, there is no difference in that shape between L. unguicornis and L. paludicola . Figure 1 shows that the same surstylus may look, depending on the angle of view, as “hyper- paludicola ” (a), as paludicola (b) or as unguicornis (c) (compare with Figs. 3, 4 ).

The shape of the hypandrium also depends on the angle of view. I will not tire myself and the reader with examples of how unrecognizably its appearance can change in a photo. Even when I did my best to orient it in such a way ( Fig. 2 ) that it looks as similar as possible to Elberg's drawings ( Figs 3, 4 ), it is unclear how to interpret what we see.

This case contrasts the difference between the hypandrium of L. unguicornis and L. pacifica , which may be verbalized. In L. unguicornis the median projection of the hypandrium sprouts from its base ( Figs. 2–4 ), while in L. pacifica the median projection sprouts from the posterior projection ( Figs. 5–8 ). ( L. pacifica is listed below, but I believe that the form of its hypandrium is appropriate to discuss here, together with L. unguicornis .) Again, I did my best to orient the hypandrium of L. pacifica in such a way ( Fig. 5 ) that it looks as similar as possible to Elberg's drawings ( Fig. 6 ). However, after choosing a different angle of view, other authors ( Przhiboro 2016: fig. 13) or ( Yano 1978: fig. 9, as L. japonica ) got a different shape of the hypandrium, similar to each other ( Figs. 7–8 ), but not very similar to the shape from Elberg or mine ( Figs 5–6 ). It shows how easy a new species may be described by the apparent “difference” in a fine structure of the genitalia.

Let us compare two species described by Elberg in 1965. L. pacifica is very similar to L. unguicornis but these species are geographically isolated (1); may be reliably distinguished in both sexes (2); they have a small but reliable difference in the structure of male genitalia (3). At the same time, L. paludicola is sympatric with L. unguicornis from W Europe to Baikalia (1); without any non-genitalic difference (2); the genitalic difference is either absent or not intelligibly explained by anyone (3). So, L. unguicornis Scopoli, 1763 = L. paludicola Elberg, 1965 , syn. nov.

Figures

Fig. 1. Surstyli of the same specimen of L. unguicornis photographed under different angles of view

Figs. 2–8. Hypandrium of Limnia: 2–4, L. unguicornis: 2 — our photo; 3 — L. paludicola; 4 — L. unguicornis (3, 4 from Elberg 1965: figs. 16, 17); 5–8 — L. pacifica: 5 — our photo; 6 — (from Elberg 1965: fig. 18); 7 — (from Przhiboro 2016: fig. 13); 8 — (from Yano 1978: fig. 9)