Plagiostenopterina sagarensis sp. nov. (Diptera: Platystomatidae: Platystomatinae) from Sunderban Biosphere Reserve, India with a key to Indian species

Roy, Sankarsan, Parui, Panchanan, Mitra, Bulganin (2017): Plagiostenopterina sagarensis sp. nov. (Diptera: Platystomatidae: Platystomatinae) from Sunderban Biosphere Reserve, India with a key to Indian species. Zootaxa 4294 (4): 487-493, DOI: https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.4294.4.

Developmental Variation of Indian Thermophilic Variety of Scuttle Fly Megaselia (Megaselia) scalaris (Loew, 1866) (Diptera: Phoridae) on Different Substrates

The scuttle flies (Diptera: Phoridae) are important in forensic dipterology, because of their necrophagous habit. They are amongst the first wave of insects visiting human corpses in mechanically barricaded environments; hence their immature stages are generally used for estimation of PMI. The effect of different substrates commonly used for developmental studies was studied to analyze the variation of growth of the thermophilic variety of Megaselia (M.) scalaris prevalent in India on GDM, EDM, and SMS (n=3). One approach of PMI estimation depends on larvae collected from the crime scene and comparing them with reference data derived from larval rearing to establish PMI. Results showed that there was a significant variation in avg. length (F(2,111)=15.79873, p=0.000000917), width (F(2,111)=14.60528, p=0.00000234), and biomass (F(2,111)=37.01727, p=0.000000000000482) of the immature stages in the three media and the larvae grow maximally in the SMS medium. The results of the present study thus provide baseline data on the growth and developmental pattern of the Megaselia (M.) scalaris, which can be utilized in conjunction with specific geoclimatic reference data, for forensic entomological studies and also for using the phorid as a biocontrol agent of pestiferous insects

Tabanid flies (Insecta: Diptera) from Chhattisgarh, India

The paper presents an account on the Tabanidae (Diptera) from Chhattisgarh, which includes 16 species representing five genera under three subfamilies: Pangoniinae, Chrysopsinae and Tabaninae. Among these species, Haematopota latifascia Ricardo is new addition to the fauna of Chhattisgarh. The distributional area of the collection localities, key characters are also provided. </div

Tabanid flies (Insecta: Diptera) from Chhattisgarh, India

The paper presents an account on the Tabanidae (Diptera) from Chhattisgarh, which includes 16 species representing five genera under three subfamilies: Pangoniinae, Chrysopsinae and Tabaninae. Among these species, Haematopota latifascia Ricardo is new addition to the fauna of Chhattisgarh. The distributional area of the collection localities, key characters are also provided. </div

Seroepidemiology of bluetongue in South Bengal

Aim: With the aim of revealing the epidemiological intricacies of bluetongue (BT) in the southern part of West Bengal state, the present study was undertaken to assess seroprevalence of BT along with identification of the vector of the disease, i.e., Culicoides midges available in the region in their breeding season with conducive environmental factors, if any. Materials and Methods: A total of 1509 (sheep-504, goat-1005) samples were collected from three different agroclimatic zones of South Bengal viz. new alluvial, red laterite and coastal saline. To detect anti-BT antibodies in the collected serum samples, indirect-enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (i-ELISA) was performed. Culicoides midges were collected from those agro-climatic zones of South Bengal for species identification. The meteorological parameters, viz. temperature (maximum and minimum), rainfall and relative humidity of three agro-climatic zones of South Bengal were analyzed for the months of July to December during 2010-2013. Results: The overall seropositivity was 33.13% and 30.24% in sheep and goat, respectively as assessed by i-ELISA. In South Bengal, the predominant species of Culicoides found were Culicoides schultzei, Culicoides palpifer and Culicoides definitus. Conclusion: Since virus transmitting species of Culicoides midges could be detected in South Bengal, besides high seropositivity in ruminants, the possibility of circulating BT virus in South Bengal is quite imminent