A review of the assassin-fly genus Laphyctis Loew, 1858 with descriptions of two new species (Diptera, Asilidae, Laphriinae)

The asilid genus Laphyctis Loew, 1858 is revised. The genus is restricted to the Afrotropical Region where it has been confused with the more widely distributed Laphystia Loew, 1847, which currently has no Afrotropical representatives. Three previously described species are recognised: Laphyctis gigantella (Loew, 1852), type of the genus, Laphyctis argenteofasciata (Engel, 1929), reinstated from the synonymy of L. gigantella, and Laphyctis orichalcea (Lindner, 1973). Two new species are described, Laphyctis eremia sp. n. from Namibia and Laphyctis iota sp. n. from South Africa. The genus has a wide distribution ranging from northern Kenya to eastern South Africa and to western Namibia. Species are associated with dry, sandy habitats

Fauna Europaea: Diptera -Brachycera

Link to publication Citation for published version (APA): Pape, T., Beuk, P., Pont, A. C., Shatalkin, A. I., Ozerov, A. L., Woźnica, A. J., ... de Jong, Y. (2015). Fauna Europaea: 3, [e4187]. https://doi.org/10.3897/BDJ.3.e4187 General rights It is not permitted to download or to forward/distribute the text or part of it without the consent of the author(s) and/or copyright holder(s), other than for strictly personal, individual use, unless the work is under an open content license (like Creative Commons). Disclaimer/Complaints regulations If you believe that digital publication of certain material infringes any of your rights or (privacy) interests, please let the Library know, stating your reasons. In case of a legitimate complaint, the Library will make the material inaccessible and/or remove it from the website. Please Ask the Library: https://uba.uva.nl/en/contact, or a letter to: Library of the University of Amsterdam, Secretariat, Singel 425, 1012 WP Amsterdam, The Netherlands. You will be contacted as soon as possible. Abstract Fauna Europaea provides a public web-service with an index of scientific names (including important synonyms) of all extant multicellular European terrestrial and freshwater animals and their geographical distribution at the level of countries and major islands (east of the Urals and excluding the Caucasus region). The Fauna Europaea project comprises about 230,000 taxonomic names, including 130,000 accepted species and 14,000 accepted subspecies, which is much more than the originally projected number of 100,000 species. Fauna Europaea represents a huge effort by more than 400 contributing taxonomic specialists throughout Europe and is a unique (standard) reference suitable for many user communities in science, government, industry, nature conservation and education. The Diptera-Brachycera is one of the 58 Fauna Europaea major taxonomic groups, and data have been compiled by a network of 55 specialists. Within the two-winged insects (Diptera), the Brachycera constitute a monophyletic group, which is generally given rank of suborder. The Brachycera may be classified into the probably paraphyletic 'lower brachyceran grade' and the monophyletic Eremoneura. The latter contains the Empidoidea, the Apystomyioidea with a single Nearctic species, and the Cyclorrhapha, which in turn is divided into the paraphyletic 'aschizan grade' and the monophyletic Schizophora. The latter is traditionally divided into the paraphyletic 'acalyptrate grade' and the monophyletic Calyptratae. Our knowledge of the European fauna of Diptera-Brachycera varies tremendously among families, from the reasonably well known hoverflies (Syrphidae) to the extremely poorly known scuttle flies (Phoridae). There has been a steady growth in our knowledge of European Diptera for the last two centuries, with no apparent slow down, but there is a shift towards a larger fraction of the new species being found among the families of the nematoceran grade (lower Diptera), which due to a larger number of small-sized species may be considered as taxonomically more challenging. Most of Europe is highly industrialised and has a high human population density, and the more fertile habitats are extensively cultivated. This has undoubtedly increased the extinction risk for numerous species of brachyceran flies, yet with the recent re-discovery of Thyreophora cynophila (Panzer), there are no known cases of extinction at a European level. However, few national Red Lists have extensive information on Diptera. For the Diptera-Brachycera, data from 96 families containing 11,751 species are included in this paper

Data from: New species and new records of Mydidae from the Afrotropical and Oriental regions (Insecta, Diptera, Asiloidea)

New Mydidae species are described from the Afrotropical and Oriental regions including the first records of this family from several countries in eastern Africa (Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda) and Mauritania in western Africa as well as Nepal and Thailand in Asia. The new species are, Leptomydinae: Leptomydas notos sp. n. (south-western India), Leptomydas rapti sp. n. (south-central Nepal), Leptomydas tigris sp. n. (north-central Thailand); Syllegomydinae: Mydaselpidini: Mydaselpis ngurumani sp. n. (south-eastern Kenya, north-eastern Tanzania), Vespiodes phaios sp. n. (south-eastern Kenya); Syllegomydinae: Syllegomydini: Syllegomydas (Notobates) astrictus sp. n. (Kenya), Syllegomydas (Notobates) heothinos sp. n. (Kenya and Uganda), Syllegomydas (Syllegomydas) elachys sp. n. (northern Zimbabwe). Syllegomydas (Syllegomydas) proximus Séguy, 1928 is recorded from western Mauritania and re-described. Syllegomydas (Notobates) dispar (Loew, 1852), which was previously listed as incertae sedis in the Afrotropical Diptera catalogue, is re-described and illustrated based on examination of the type specimens and several additional specimens from Mozambique. Cephalocera annulata Brunetti, 1912 and Syllegomydas bucciferus Séguy, 1928, described from north-eastern India and previously unplaced in the Oriental Diptera catalogue, are newly combined with Leptomydas Gerstaecker, 1868 and together with Leptomydas indianus Brunetti, 1912, also from north-eastern India, placed in Leptomydinae. Comments on the possible synonymy of the genera of Mydaselpidini are made. Illustrations and photographs are provided to support the descriptions and future identification. A provisional dichotomous key to Mydidae genera occurring in eastern Africa (Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Somalia, Tanzania, Uganda) and the Oriental Region is provided. Distribution, occurrence in biodiversity hotspots and high-biodiversity wilderness areas, and seasonal incidence are discussed for all species

Shaping our Taxonomic Legacy through Openly Sharing Primary Biodiversity Data in Taxonomic Revisions

Taxonomy has a long tradition of describing earth’s biodiversity. For the past 20 years or so, taxonomic revisions have become available in PDF format, which is regarded by most practicing taxonomists to be a good means of digital dissemination. However, a PDF document is nothing more than a text document that can be transferred easily for viewing among researchers and computer platforms. In today’s world, traditional taxonomic techniques need to be met with novel tools to make data dissemination a reality, make species hypotheses more robust, and open the field up to rigorous scientific testing. Here, I argue that high-quality taxonomic output is not just the publication of detailed species descriptions and re-descriptions, precise taxon delimitations, easy-to-use identification keys, and comprehensively undertaken and illustrated revisions. Rather, in addition high-quality taxonomic output embraces digital workflows and data standards to disseminate captured and published data in structured, machine-readable formats to data repositories so as to make all data openly accessible. Imagine that a taxonomist today has every original description and every subsequent re-description of a species at her/his fingertips online, has every specimen photograph produced by a previous reviser digitally available in the original resolution, and can take advantage of existing, openly accessible data and resources produced by peers in digital format in the past. When we as taxonomists provide such findable, accessible, interoperable, and reusable (FAIR) data, the future of biodiversity discovery will accelerate and our own taxonomic legacy will be enhanced. Cybertaxonomic tools provide methods to accomplish this goal and their use and implementation is here summarized in the context of revisionary taxonomy from the standpoint of a publishing taxonomist. While many of the tools have been around for some time now, very few taxonomists embrace and utilize these tools in their publications. This presentation will provide information on what kind of data can and should be openly shared (e.g., specimen occurrence data, digital images, names, descriptions, authors) and outline best practices utilizing globally unique identifiers for specimens and data. Data standards and the best-suited data repositories such as the Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF) and Zenodo, with its Biodiversity Literature Repository, and the Plazi TreatmentBank, an emerging species portal, are discussed to illustrate retrospective and prospective data capture of taxonomic revisions

Data from: Review of Namibimydas Hesse, 1972 and Nothomydas Hesse, 1969 (Diptera: Mydidae: Syllegomydinae: Halterorchini) with the description of new species

The Mydidae genera Namibimydas Hesse, 1972 and Nothomydas Hesse, 1969 are reviewed. Both genera were known from two species each occurring in southern Namibia and western South Africa and are here redescribed. Four new species, all from Namibia, are described herein: Namibimydas psamminos sp. n., Namibimydas stuckenbergi sp. n., Nothomydas aquilonius sp. n., and Nothomydas picketti sp. n. A dichotomous key to all species is presented and illustrations and photographs are provided to support the descriptions and future identification. Distribution, occurrence in biodiversity hotspots sensu Conservation International, and seasonal incidence are discussed for all species. Information of all four genera of Syllegomydinae: Halterorchini is summarised and photographs of all genera provided. A novel structure of the male terminalia, termed supra-hypandrial sclerite, is described and illustrated

New species and new records of Mydidae from the Afrotropical and Oriental regions (Insecta, Diptera, Asiloidea)

New Mydidae species are described from the Afrotropical and Oriental regions including the first records of this family from several countries in eastern Africa (Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda) and Mauritania in western Africa as well as Nepal and Thailand in Asia. The new species are, Leptomydinae: Leptomydas notos sp. n. (south-western India), Leptomydas rapti sp. n. (south-central Nepal), Leptomydas tigris sp. n. (north-central Thailand); Syllegomydinae: Mydaselpidini: Mydaselpis ngurumani sp. n. (south-eastern Kenya, north-eastern Tanzania), Vespiodes phaios sp. n. (south-eastern Kenya); Syllegomydinae: Syllegomydini: Syllegomydas (Notobates) astrictus sp. n. (Kenya), Syllegomydas (Notobates) heothinos sp. n. (Kenya and Uganda), Syllegomydas (Syllegomydas) elachys sp. n. (northern Zimbabwe). Syllegomydas (Syllegomydas) proximus Séguy, 1928 is recorded from western Mauritania and re-described. Syllegomydas (Notobates) dispar (Loew, 1852), which was previously listed as incertae sedis in the Afrotropical Diptera catalogue, is re-described and illustrated based on examination of the type specimens and several additional specimens from Mozambique. Cephalocera annulata Brunetti, 1912 and Syllegomydas bucciferus Séguy, 1928, described from north-eastern India and previously unplaced in the Oriental Diptera catalogue, are newly combined with Leptomydas Gerstaecker, 1868 and together with Leptomydas indianus Brunetti, 1912, also from north-eastern India, placed in Leptomydinae. Comments on the possible synonymy of the genera of Mydaselpidini are made. Illustrations and photographs are provided to support the descriptions and future identification. A provisional dichotomous key to Mydidae genera occurring in eastern Africa (Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Somalia, Tanzania, Uganda) and the Oriental Region is provided. Distribution, occurrence in biodiversity hotspots and high-biodiversity wilderness areas, and seasonal incidence are discussed for all species

Data from: New species and new records of Mydidae from the Afrotropical and Oriental regions (Insecta, Diptera, Asiloidea)

New Mydidae species are described from the Afrotropical and Oriental regions including the first records of this family from several countries in eastern Africa (Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda) and Mauritania in western Africa as well as Nepal and Thailand in Asia. The new species are, Leptomydinae: Leptomydas notos sp. n. (south-western India), Leptomydas rapti sp. n. (south-central Nepal), Leptomydas tigris sp. n. (north-central Thailand); Syllegomydinae: Mydaselpidini: Mydaselpis ngurumani sp. n. (south-eastern Kenya, north-eastern Tanzania), Vespiodes phaios sp. n. (south-eastern Kenya); Syllegomydinae: Syllegomydini: Syllegomydas (Notobates) astrictus sp. n. (Kenya), Syllegomydas (Notobates) heothinos sp. n. (Kenya and Uganda), Syllegomydas (Syllegomydas) elachys sp. n. (northern Zimbabwe). Syllegomydas (Syllegomydas) proximus Séguy, 1928 is recorded from western Mauritania and re-described. Syllegomydas (Notobates) dispar (Loew, 1852), which was previously listed as incertae sedis in the Afrotropical Diptera catalogue, is re-described and illustrated based on examination of the type specimens and several additional specimens from Mozambique. Cephalocera annulata Brunetti, 1912 and Syllegomydas bucciferus Séguy, 1928, described from north-eastern India and previously unplaced in the Oriental Diptera catalogue, are newly combined with Leptomydas Gerstaecker, 1868 and together with Leptomydas indianus Brunetti, 1912, also from north-eastern India, placed in Leptomydinae. Comments on the possible synonymy of the genera of Mydaselpidini are made. Illustrations and photographs are provided to support the descriptions and future identification. A provisional dichotomous key to Mydidae genera occurring in eastern Africa (Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Somalia, Tanzania, Uganda) and the Oriental Region is provided. Distribution, occurrence in biodiversity hotspots and high-biodiversity wilderness areas, and seasonal incidence are discussed for all species

Review of Anasillomos Londt, 1983 with the description of a new species (Insecta: Diptera: Asilidae)

The southern African assassin-fly genus Anasillomos Londt, 1983 is reviewed. A new species, Anasillomos juergeni sp. n., is described from the Namib desert and represents the second species in the genus. Descriptions/re-descriptions, photographs, and identification keys are provided to aid in the identification. Distribution, occurrence in biodiversity hotspots sensu Conservation International, and seasonal incidence are discussed