Drosophila (Sophophora) kikkawai Burla

Schiffer, Michele & Mcevey, Shane F., 2006, Drosophila bunnanda — a new species from northern Australia with notes on other Australian members of the montium subgroup (Diptera: Drosophilidae), Zootaxa 1333, pp. 1-23 : 5

Drosophila (Sophophora) kikkawai Burla

Drosophila kikkawai Burla, 1954 . Rev. Brasil. Biol. 14, p. 47. Type locality: Brazil.

Drosophila kikkawai is a subcosmopolitan species known from West Africa, South America, Madagascar, India, Asia, Japan, Phillipines, Malaysia, Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, Australia and the Pacific islands ( Bock & Wheeler 1972; Lemeunier et al. 1986; Baimai 1998). Drosophila kikkawai has rarely been collected in Australia. Early reports are scattered: Bock (1977) reports it from urban Townsville (19.4°S), Baimai & Chumchong (1980) report Carson’s 1961 collection of it from Heron Island (23.5°S). More recently, specimens have appeared in several collections around urban Cairns (16.9°S). This sporadic pattern probably reflects collecting bias rather than a true flux in population size—in our experience collecting effort oriented toward rainforests will result in few or no specimens of kikkawai , whereas collection about urban compost and backyard refuse heaps is more likely to be successful.

Carson & Okada (1983) report the rare occurrence (single specimen) of Drosophila kikkawai at 1200m altitude near Wau, Papua New Guinea, in contrast to the more frequent occurrence of D. birchii and D. serrata at the same locality. Baimai & Chumchong (1980) studied the karyotypes of D. kikkawai strains established by Carson from Goroka, Papua New Guinea (October 1961), and by M. Wasserman from Madang, Papua New Guinea (August 1961). Each strain was characterised by a different karyotype. The Tucson 14028–0561.02 D. kikkawai strain was established by Stalker in 1961 from Heron Island, Queensland; it has a third karyotype shared by flies from Thailand, Taiwan and the Philippines.

Australasian distribution ( Fig. 16 ). Papua New Guinea (Madang, Goroka and Wau) and Queensland. Reported only from urban habitats in Australia. Widespread outside this region, occurring throughout southeast Asia, across Oceania and in the Neotropical Region (Baimai 1980; Baimai & Chumchong 1980; Bock 1977; Carson & Okada 1983; also see Appendix).

Figures

FIGURES 14 – 20. Distribution maps of Drosophila montium subgroup species in the Australasian Region. (14) Drosophila dominicana. (15) Drosophila montium subgroup species undissected and unclassified. (16) Drosophila kikkawai. (17) Drosophila sp. cf. jambulina. (18) Drosophila bunnanda (19) Drosophila birchii. (20) Drosophila serrata.