Etymology of the earwigfly, Merope tuber Newman (Mecoptera: Meropeidae): Simply dull or just inscrutable?

The naturalist Edward Newman did not provide an etymology for the mecopteran Merope tuber when he described it in 1838. In 1872 Asa Fitch asserted that the genus was named after Merope one of the Pleiades sisters of Greek mythology; however, he provided no reason for his assumption. We researched several etymological alternatives. We concur with Fitch and conclude that Newman did indeed name the genus Merope after the dullest of the Pleiades sisters

New collections and records for earwigflies and scorpionflies (Mecoptera: Meropeidae and Panorpidae) in Florida

I add new collection and phenological data on the North American earwigfly, Merope tuber Newman, and new county records for the red scorpionfly, Panorpa rufa Gray, and veined scorpionfly, Panorpa venosa Westwood, in Florida. Additionally, I report on a new Georgia county record for the extralimital species, Panorpa ferruginea Byers, the ferruginous scorpionfly, and speculate on its potential occurrence in Florida

A state record for the Oconee scorpionfly, Panorpa oconee Byers (Mecoptera: Panorpidae), in Florida

I provide the first state record for the Oconee scorpionfly, Panorpa oconee Byers, from Putnam County, Florida. This is the southernmost record for P. oconee, extends its range 321 km south of its known distribution and, if valid, adds a seventh described species of panorpid, and twelfth mecopteran, indigenous to Florida

Records for Bittacus Hangingflies and Panorpa Scorpionflies (Mecoptera: Bittacidae and Panorpidae) in Florida

We provide new county records for four species of panorpids (Panorpa americana Swederus, Panorpa lugubris Swederus, Panorpa sp. undetermined, and one undescribed species from the Panorpa rufescens Rambur species group) and two species of bittacids (Bittacus pilicornis Westwood, Bittacus punctiger Westwood), and call attention to a previously published county record for another species, Panorpa rufa Gray, in Florida. Additionally, we reject a previously published record for the scorpionfly Panorpa claripennis Hine in Florida, which we overlooked in our 2008 preliminary checklist of Florida mecopterans. The record for P. lugubris in Miami-Dade County is the southernmost record for any panorpid in the continental United States

Preliminary Checklist of the Mecoptera of Florida: Earwigflies, Hangingflies, and Scorpionflies

We provide the first species checklist of Mecoptera indigenous to Florida, based upon preliminary data gathered primarily from specimens housed in the Florida State Collection of Arthropods. There are 11 described and one undescribed species of mecopterans, representing three families, inhabiting the state of Florida. These include the recently discovered meropeid (earwigfly), Merope tuber Newman, four species of bittacids (hangingflies), represented by the genus Bittacus Latreille, and 7 species (one undescribed) of panorpids (scorpionflies), represented by the genus Panorpa Linnaeus. We are not certain if one of these, Bittacus texanus Banks, is indigenous, represents a nonindigenous occurrence, or is simply erroneous. Two of the species on our list, Bittacus stigmaterus Say and Panorpa venosa Westwood, represent first state records and one species, Panorpa floridana Byers, is endemic. Six of the species which have been recorded in Florida, M. tuber, Bittacus punctiger Westwood, Panorpa rufa Gray, Panorpa pachymera Byers, Panorpa lugubris Swederus and P. venosa, represent the southernmost records for these species in the continental United States. Perceived diversity and abundance of mecopteran species in Florida are limited by climate, biogeography, and collection bias

Geographic Distribution: Anolis sagrei (Brown Anole). USA: Florida: Escambia Co.

Pensacola: Agriculture Interdiction Station 1-10, Station 19: 1-10 eastbound (30.54519°N, 87.35201°W, WGS84). 15 November 2012. Katrina Simmons and Randal St. Louis. Verified by Kenneth L. Krysko, Florida Museum of Natural History, University of Florida (UF 169126). First county interdiction and westernmost vouchered specimen for the Florida Panhandle (Krysko et al. 2011. Atlas of Amphibians and Reptiles in Florida. Final report, Project Agreement 080l3, Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, Tallahassee. 524 pp.). Currently, A. sagrei is not known to be established in Escambia Co., but is present in adjacent Santa Rosa Co. and at least 54 other Florida counties (Krysko et al. 2011, op. cit.). One adult male was confiscated from a truck delivering horticultural plants from Alvin, Brazoria Co., Texas, where non-indigenous A. sagrei is previously established (McCoid 2006. Herpetol. Rev. 37:361). The specimen was originally turned in to Division of Plant Industry, Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Gainesville, Florida; Entomology Log No. E2012- 8695. The vehicle\u27s destination was Boynton Beach, Palm Beach Co., Florida, where an established population of this Caribbean anole already exists (Krysko et al. 2011, op. cit.), and potentially could have contributed to the known genetic admixture among various invasive populations (Kolbe et al. 2004. Nature 431:177- 181; Kolbe et al. 2008. BioI. Lett. 4:434-437). I thank Dyrana Russell for details regarding confiscation locality

Possible Addition of the Prairie Skink to the Diet of the Grackle

On 8 June 1984, at the intersection of California Street and the Union Pacific RR tracks, just west of Saddle Creek Road in Omaha, a Common Grackle (Quiscalus quiscala) was seen flying approximately 2 m above the observer, with a large adult prairie skink, (Eumeces septentrionalis) (Reptilia; Sauria) in its bill. The Grackle had difficulty flying, since the skink was somewhat heavy and struggling violently, The Grackle dropped to the ground about 7 m away and released the lizard. The skink lay on its back, twitching slightly. The distal half of its tail was missing. The lack of male breeding colors and presence of a relatively stout abdomen during this season indicated that it was a gravid female. When I approached to within 3 m of the Grackle, it immediately grabbed the skink and flew away. This observation occurred at 1315. It is not known if the lizard was eventually ingested

\u3ci\u3eEumeces septentrionalis\u3c/i\u3e (Prairie Skink): Piscivory.

The prairie skink is a North American lizard characterized by a diet that is primarily insectivorous (Breckenridge 1943. Amer. MidI. Nat. 29:591-606). Fish have not been previously recorded as a food item (reviewed in Somma and Cochran 1989. Great Basin Nat. 49:525-534). On 3 June 1990 between 0930 and 1030 h, six Eumeces septentrionalis (three gravid females, one male, and two juveniles) were captured from amongst riprap and beneath stone slabs on the earthen dam forming the windward shoreline of Burchard lake, Pawnee Co., Nebraska (T.12N., R.10E., Sec. 4). The three females and one juvenile were placed in the same collecting bag. Within ca. 1 h a large fecal pellet was found in the bag. It contained the remains of a small fish (probably a cyprinid), represented by numerous small (ca. 2 mm diam), cycloid scales, two fin rays, and one partially digested amphicoelous vertebra. It was not possible to determine which lizard excreted the pellet

Geographic Distribution: Ramphotyphlops braminus (Brahminy Blindsnake). USA: Florida: Alachua Co.

One adult within a temiite colony, beneath rock. UF 151211; additional specimens (UF 151212-14) were also found. All specimens were collected between 1200-1240 h at the Division of Plant Industry (DPI), Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. In 2006, another adult R. braminus was collected by an employee at this site,.near a greenhouse, and . was kept in captivity until it escaped. Rhamphotyphlops is occasionally encountered by employees of DPI and it may be expanding its range, as there is one specimen (UF 147001) collected from the University of Florida campus (Powell Hall) adjacent to the DPI site (29°38\u277.9080 N, 82°22\u2712.4320 W) on 10 May 2006, by J. Weber. The first evidence of this species from Gainesville is an unpublished single specimen record (29°39\u2723.0761. N, 82°22\u2733.0240 W), from November 1999, 1. A. Minno (UF 120116). The first published account referenced a specimen found at the USDA lab on the University of Florida campus (Townsend et al. 2002. Herpetol. Rev. 33:75). Although these specimens reported here do not expand the range of this species, they establish the presence of a population of R. braminus in Gainesville, Alachua Co. This Southeast Asian, parthenogenic typhlopid has been col~ lected from at least 17 counties in Florid

Geographic Distribution: Hemidactylus mabouia (Wood Slave). USA: Florida: St. Lucie Co.

FLORIDA: ST. LUCIE Co.: Fort Pierce, 2100 Elizabeth Avenue (27.40840oN, 80 .34595OW). 11 May 2009. Ken Hibbard. Verified by Kenneth L. Krysko. Florida Museum of Natural History, University of Florida. UF 155444. First county record. One adult female; heavily infested with ec~oparasitic pterygosomatid mites, collected from a porch screen of a residence at 2200 h. Three otJ:}.er H. mabouia were observed at this same locality at 2000 h on 13 May 2009; they are common in sections of the Fort Pierce area. This invasive African species is currently the most widespread and rapidly spreading nonindigenous gecko in southern and central Florida (Meshaka et al. 2004. The Exotic Amphibians and Reptiles of Florida. Krieger Pub!. Co., Malabar, Florida; Krysko and Daniels 2005. Caribb. J. Sci. 41 :28-36), with a .more recently established population in northern peniIlsular Florida (Krysko and Somma f007. HerpetoI. Rev. 38:352)