Dohrniphora divaricata (Aldrich)

Brown, Brian V. & Kung, Giar-Ann, 2010, 2699, Zootaxa 2699, pp. 1-142 : 91

publication ID

1175­5334

persistent identifier

https://treatment.plazi.org/id/CF3E8785-FFD6-6B6A-06CD-FF5DFD8EFF67

treatment provided by

Felipe (2021-08-23 08:25:22, last updated by Plazi 2023-11-04 11:54:58)

scientific name

Dohrniphora divaricata (Aldrich)
status

 

Dohrniphora divaricata (Aldrich) View in CoL

( Figs 81–82, 197–198, 213–214, 322–323)

Phora divaricata Aldrich, 1896: 437 View in CoL .

Dohrniphora divaricata: Borgmeier, 1961: 111 View in CoL .

Dohrniphora venusta: Brues, 1915: 95 View in CoL .

Dohrniphora cornuta: Schmitz, 1929: 22 View in CoL , 25, 32.

Dohrniphora obscuriventris Borgmeier, 1925: 105 View in CoL . Synonymized by Disney & Kistner, 1997: 24.

Dohrniphora diffusa Borgmeier, 1960: 281–282 View in CoL , fig. 35. Synonymized by Borgmeier, 1961: 111.

Dohrniphora recurvata Borgmeier, 1960: 272 View in CoL , fig. 20. NEW SYNONYMY

Dohrniphora perplexa: Borgmeier, 1963 View in CoL (in part, some males). misidentification.

Dohrniphora cavifemur Borgmeier, 1969a: 1–2 View in CoL , figs. 1–2, (in part, female only). Synonymized by Kung & Brown 2006: 1936.

Dohrniphora caverna Disney, 1995: 421–423 View in CoL , figs. 4A–B, 5A. NEW SYNONYMY.

Holotype of D. divaricata . ♂; SAINT VINCENT: no other data [ USNM no. 7765; LACM ENT 219927 About LACM ] ( USNM; examined).

Holotype of D. recurvata . ♂, PANAMA: Bat Cave , 8.x.1952, F.S. Blanton [ LACM ENT 248303 About LACM ] ( USNM; examined).

Holotype of D. caverna . ♂, TRINIDAD: Northern Range , Oropouche Cave, 7.x.1989, J. Darlington ( CUMZ; not examined).

Remarks. One specimen ( LACM ENT 090371) of this species has a single hind tibial seta, and was treated in our earlier Dohrniphora revision ( Brown & Kung, 2007); most specimens lack hind tibial setae. Variation of the hind femoral setae is extensive, and was considered in our treatment on Caribbean Dohrniphora ( Kung & Brown, 2006) .

We have examined a paratype male of D. caverna Disney , and conclude that this name should be synonymized with D. divaricata . Disney (1995) might not have associated the two because of couplet 16 of Borgmeier’s (1960) key, which separates species with a long (0.55 wing length or more) versus short (0.54 or less) costal vein. Specimens of D. caverna key the first way in this couplet, but D. divaricata specimens that Borgmeier examined (as D. diffusa ) were said to have a costal length of “approximately one-half wing length.” We previously ( Kung & Brown, 2006) found variation in the costal length of 0.48–0.54, but other specimens we have since examined have costal lengths of up to 0.56. We find that the costal length of species varies across Borgmeier 0.54–0.55 cutoff, and because of similarity in the hind femoral setation of D. caverna with that of D. divaricata , propose their synonymy.

We further examined the type material of D. recurvata and conclude that this name should be synonymized with D. divaricata as well. Borgmeier (1960) separated D. recurvata from D. divaricata (as D. diffusa ) in his key via the same problematic couplet based on costal length, and further noted the “strongly anteriorly bent fifth vein.” Comparison of this vein with that of a “typical” D. divaricata (i.e., as in Figs 197–198) shows that this is not a character unique to D. recurvata (compare Figs. 322–323). The number of femoral peglike setae is larger in D. recurvata specimens ( Figs 213–214), but this number varies widely in D. divaricata and there are intermediates between the two. Both have the distinctive shallow concavity distal to the peglike setae.

Borgmeier (1963) considered some males of this species to be those of D. perplexa (Brues) , a problematic species described from a female type series.

Distribution. Widespread in the New World tropical lowlands north to the USA.

Natural history. Borgmeier & Prado (1975) speculated that this species (as D. obscuriventris ) lives in association with termites. This seems to be unlikely as an obligate association.

Material examined. In addition to the Caribbean specimens listed previously ( Kung & Brown 2006), we examined about 255♂ specimens from Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, French Guiana, Panama, and the USA. The northernmost record was Falls Church , Virginia, USA ( USNM), whereas the southernmost was Buenos Aires, Argentina ( LACM) .

Aldrich, J. M. (1896) Phoridae. In: Williston S. W. (Ed.), On the Diptera of St. Vincent (West Indies). Transactions of the Entomological Society of London, pp. 435 - 438.

Borgmeier, T. (1925) Novos subsidios para o conhecimento da familia Phoridae. Archivos do Museu Nacional, Rio de Janeiro, 25, 85 - 281.

Borgmeier, T. (1960) Gefluegelte und ungefluegelte Phoriden aus der neotropischen Region, nebst Beschreibung von sieben neuen Gattungen (Diptera, Phoridae). Studia Entomologica, 3, 257 - 374.

Borgmeier, T. (1961) Weitere Beitraege zur Kenntnis der neotropischen Phoriden, nebst Beschreibung einiger Dohrniphora - Arten aus der indo-australischen Region (Diptera, Phoridae). Studia Entomologica, 4, 1 - 112.

Borgmeier, T. (1963) Revision of the North American phorid flies. Part I. The Phorinae, Aenigmatiinae and Metopininae, except Megaselia (Diptera, Phoridae). Studia Entomologica, 6, 1 - 256.

Borgmeier, T. (1969 a) Bredin-Archbold-Smithsonian biological survey of Dominica: The Phoridae of Dominica (Diptera). Smithsonian Contributions to Zoology, 23, 1 - 69.

Borgmeier, T. & Prado, A. P. do. (1975) New or little known phorid flies with descriptions of eight new genera (Dipt. Phoridae). Studia Entomologica, 18, 3 - 90.

Brown, B. V. & Kung, G. (2007) Revision of the New World Dohrniphora Dahl species with hind tibial setae (Diptera: Phoridae). Arthropod Systematics & Phylogeny, 65, 155 - 235.

Brues, C. T. (1915) A synonymic catalogue of the dipterous family Phoridae. Bulletin of the Wisconsin Natural History Society, 12, 85 - 152.

Disney, R. H. L. (1995) Cave Phoridae (Diptera) of Trinidad. Giornale italiano di Entomologia, 6 (1993), 417 - 436.

Disney, R. H. L. & Kistner, D. H. (1997) New species and new host records of Phoridae (Diptera) associated with termites (Isoptera: Termitidae). Sociobiology, 30, 1 - 33.

Kung, G. & Brown, B. V. (2006) The Caribbean species of Dohrniphora Dahl (Diptera: Phoridae). Journal of Natural History, 40, 1931 - 1945.

Schmitz, H. (1929) Revision der Phoriden. F. Dummler, Berlin, 211 p.

USNM

Smithsonian Institution, National Museum of Natural History

LACM

Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County

CUMZ

Cameroon University, Museum of Zoology

Kingdom

Animalia

Phylum

Arthropoda

Class

Insecta

Order

Diptera

Family

Phoridae

Genus

Dohrniphora