Entomotropica Sociedad Venezolana de Entomologia ISSN: 1317-5262 Vol. 20, Num. 2, 2005, pp. 95-96

Entomotropica antes/formerly Boletín de Entomología Venezolana, Vol. 20, No. 2, August, 2005, pp. 95-96

New records of Timber flies (Diptera: Pantophthalmidae) from Colombia

Nuevos registros de moscas gigantes (Diptera: Pantophthalmidae) de Colombia

Eduardo C. Amat.

Instituto de Investigación de recursos Biológicos Alexander von Humboldt, Claustro de San Agustín Villa de Leiva, Boyacá. Colombia. E-mail: ecamat@humboldt.org.co

Code Number: em05017

Abstract

New records of Pantophthalmus planiventris and Pantophthalmus tabaninus in Colombia are reported, map of localities and check-list of pantophthalmid species described and recorded in Colombia is provided.

Additional key words: checklist, faunistics, flies.

Resumen

Se presentan nuevos registros geográficos de Pantophthalmus planiventris y Pantophthalmus tabaninus, además un mapa de localidades y la lista preliminar de especies descritas y registradas de pantoftálmidos en Colombia.

Palabras clave adicionales: faunística, lista de especies, moscas.

Introduction

Pantophthalmidae is a small, exclusively neotropical family included in the Brachycera, Stratiomyomorpha. The family was reviewed by Val (1976), who accepted 20 species in the genus Panthopthalmus and one in the monotypic genus Opetiops. Eight species have been recorded in Colombia (Figure 1). Timber flies are robust insects, possibly the biggest dipterans in the Neotropical Region. However, little is known about their biology.

Immature stages are wood boring, which is unusual among Diptera. In Colombia, they can be found in decaying or fallen trees, usually oak trees (Quercus spp.) (Flores & Sánchez 1989). Their life cycle may take from five months to two years (Andrade 1930), and adults are mainly captured in lightraps. Adults apparently do not feed. The material recorded here is deposited at the Museo de Historia Natural, Instituto de Ciencias Naturales, Universidad Nacional de Colombia [ICN-MHN], Instituto Alexander von Humboldt [IavH], Museo Entomológico de la Facultad de Agronomía, Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Bogotá [UNAB], and Museo de Historia Natural, Pontificia Universidad Javeriana, Bogotá [MUJ]. Earlier records and taxonomic key used for species identification were provided by Val (1976).

New Records

Pantophthalmus planiventris (Wiedemann, 1821).

COLOMBIA. Santander: 1♀, Barrancabermeja. 9-Jun-1989. Bernal L [ICN-MHN].

Pantophthalmus tabaninus Thunberg 1819.

COLOMBIA. Chocó: 1♀, Ríosucio. Cacarica. 7-Ago-1974 Helmuth Sturm [ICN-MHN]; 1♀, Quibdó. 13-abr-2005. Trampa de luz. J.C. Neita [UNAB]. Putumayo: 1♀, Valle del Guamués, sep-1994 J. Celys. [MUJ]. Amazonas: 1♀, Parque Natural Amacayacú, Matamata, lat 3°41´S, long 70°15´W, 150m. 20/26-Abr-2000. A. Parente [IavH]; 1♀, Parque Natural Amacayacú, Matamata. Lat 3°41´S, long 70°15´W. 150m. Malaise trap. 27-abril al 03-may-2003. A. Parente. [IavH].

Species List

The following specimens cited by Val (1973) and collected in Colombia are deposited in the American Museum of Natural History [AMNH]; British Museum (Natural History), London, UK [BM]; Instituto Oswaldo Cruz, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil [IOC]; Museu de Zoologia, Universidade de Sao Paulo [MZUSP]; Museum für Naturkunde der Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Berlin [MB]; Muséum National d´Historie Naturelle, Paris [MP]; United States National Museum, Washington, DC [USNM].

Opetiops alienus (Hermann, 1916).

Boyacá: 1♀, Muzo. [IOC]

Pantophthalmus bellardii (Bigot, 1862).

1♀. Buena Vista [USNM]; Valle del Cauca: 1♀, Río Dagua [BM].

Pantophthalmus frauenfeldi (Schiner, 1868).

Antioquia: 1♀, Medellín [MP]; 1♀, Mesopotámia [AMNH]. Boyacá: 1♀, Muzo [MZUSP]; Cundinamarca: 1♀, Bogotá [MP]; 1♀, Bogotá [BM].

Pantophthalmus kerteszianus (Enderlein, 1914).

1♀, “Colombia” [BM].

Pantophthalmus planiventris (Wiedemann, 1821).

Cundinamarca: 1♂, Bogotá [MP]; Santander: 1♀, Río Suárez [AMNH].

Pantophthalmus rothschildi (Austen, 1923).

Meta: 1♂, Río Huape [BM].

Panthopthalmus tabaninus Thunberg, 1819.

Meta: 1♀, Villavicencio [MP].

Panthopthalmus vittatus (Wiedemann, 1828).

Meta: 1♀, Villavicencio. [MZUSP].

I thank the National Science Foundation (NSF) DEB 9972024 and 025982 for sponsoring the project “Diversity of insects in protected areas”, carried out by the Alexander von Humboldt Institute [IAvH]. Thanks also to the curators of collections mentioned in this paper. Finally I am grateful to Thomas Pape for reviewing the manuscript and German Amat for support.

References

• Andrade E N De. 1930. Subsidio para a entomologia agricola brasileira. Pesquisas sobre a biologia da mosca da madeira. Arch Inst Biol S Paulo (3):249-286.
• Flores Lara J, Sánchez Ramos G. 1989 Estudio del barreno del encino Pantophthalmus roseni (Enderlein) (Diptera: Pantophthalmidae) en la Reserva de la Biosfera “El Cielo”. Rev Biotam 1(1): 9-13.
• Val FC. 1976. Systematics and evolution of the Panthopthalmidae (Diptera, Brachycera). Arq Zool (Sao Paulo) 27(2):51-164.

© 2005- Sociedad Venezolana de Entomología

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