Mimegralla Rondani, 1850

Marshall, S. A., 2019, Micropezidae (Diptera, Nerioidea) of Mauritius, with a description of Paraeurybata new genus, Zootaxa 4624 (4), pp. 576-582 : 577

Mimegralla Rondani

Mimegralla Rondani, 1850: 180 . Type species Calobata coeruleifrons Macquart, 1843 .

Mimegralla is a large, mostly Oriental genus in need of revision and redefinition. All Afrotropical species previously included in the genus are now treated as either Hybobata or Tanypomyia Verbeke ( Marshall 2017) , so the Mimegralla species here newly recorded from the Mascarenes represents the first legitimate record of the genus from the Afrotropical Region. Mimegralla splendens ( Figs 1 G-H) is probably introduced from India or Sri Lanka and is now abundant at a few coastal locations in Mauritius, where larvae probably develop in taro roots. Species identification of Mimegralla is a problem in the absence of a current revision or even useable descriptions; this species was identified as M. splendens (Wiedemann) by matching it to the type specimen (labelled M. leucopeza splendens ) in the Naturhistorisches Museum in Vienna. Mimegralla splendens , which was treated by Steyskal (1977: 17) as a subspecies of M. albitarsis (Wiedemann) , otherwise occurs in India and Sri Lanka.

Material examined: MAURITIUS: Savanne, Baie du Cap at: 20°29ʹ32”S, 57°22ʹ40”E, 11.xii. 2016, 1 m, S.A. Marshall (12 specimens); same date and locality, A.H. Kirk-Spriggs & B.S. Muller, sweeping coastal swamp (9 specimens, National Museum , Bloemfontein , South Africa); Mahebourg, roadside swamp, 4.xii.2016, S.A. Marshall (5 specimens) .

Figures

FIGURE 1. Paraeurybata taeniata (Macquart), n. comb. A, female ovipositing; B, female; C, wing of male; D, apex of male abdomen, right; E, male; F, head of male. Mimegralla splendens (Wiedemann). G and H, in copula.