Ptilomyia angustigenis ( Becker, 1926 )

Stuke, Jens-Hermann, 2021, Taxonomic and faunistic remarks on European Ptilomyia Coquillett (Diptera Ephydridae), Zootaxa 5068 (4), pp. 579-586 : 581-582

Ptilomyia angustigenis ( Becker, 1926)

Atissa angustigenis Becker 1926: 26 ; type-locality: “bei Novi am Strande der Adria” [ Croatia]; holotype ♀ probably lost (see Remarks below).

Ptilomyia angustigenis . ( Papp 1975, generic combination).

= Ptilomyia orsovana auct ., nec. Enderlein, 1922.

Material examined: CROATIA: 1♀, 14.vii.2018, Čikola 1.2 km wsw Gradac [43.817°N 16.268°E] ; 1♂ 1♀, 5.vii.2018, Čikola 1.4 km se Ključ [43.838°N 16.049°E] ; 1♀, 14.vii.2018, Čikola 1.9 km wnw Cavoglave [43.791°N 16.315°E] ; 1♂ 1♀, 14.vii.2018, Čikola 2 km w Otavice [43.841°N 16.239°E] ; 2♂♂ 2♀♀, 5.vii.2018, Čikola 2.5 km ssw Drniš [43.845°N 16.178°E] ; 1♂ 2♀♀, 13.vii.2018, Čikola 2.5 km ssw Drniš [43.845°N 16.178°E] ; 1♀, 5.vii.2018, Čikola 2.8 km ese Drniš [43.852°N 16.120°E] ; 1♂ 1♀, 14.vii.2018, Čikola in Drniš [43.857°N 16.160°E] ; 2♂♂ 4♀♀, 25.vi.2017, Ðuračica 5 km s Magić Mala [45.133°N 17.596°E] ; 1♀, 25.vi.2017, fishponds 2 km s Oriovac [45.147°N 17.747°E]; 1♀, 24.vi.2017, fishponds nw Hrastovac [45.561°N 16.973°E]; 2♀♀, 27.vi.2017, floodplain Danube 1 km se Tikveš [45.668°N 18.853°E] ; 1♀, 27.vi.2017, floodplain Danube 1.5 km ne Kopačevo [45.612°N 18.800°E] ; 1♂, 27.vi.2017, floodplain Danube 2.5 km n Batina [45.864°N 18.837°E] ; 6♂♂ 4♀♀, 28.vi.2017, floodplain Danube 3.5 km ne Sarvaš [45.551°N 18.862°E] ; 1♂ 1♀, 29.vi.2017, floodplain Danube 4.3 km ese Vukovar [45.337°N 19.059°E] ; 2♂♂ 1♀, 28.vi.2017, floodplain Danube n Aljmaš [45.531°N 18.946°E]; 1♀, 28.vi.2017, floodplain Danube n Bijelo Brdo [45.524°N 18.874°E] ; 1♂ 1♀, 29.vi.2017, floodplain Danube n Borovo [45.432°N 18.984°E]; 1♀, 28.vi.2017, floodplain Danube n Erdut [45.528°N 19.067°E] ; 1♂ 1♀, 29.vi.2017, floodplain Danube n Ilok [45.230°N 19.380°E]; 1♂, 28.vi.2017, floodplain Drava n Kopačevo [45.608°N 18.789°E] ; 2♀♀, 23.vi.2017, floodplain Sava 2 km e Sonja [45.365°N 16.726°E] ; 1♀, 25.vi.2017, floodplain Sava s Davor [45.109°N 17.518°E] ; 1♀, 25.vi.2017, floodplain Sava s Pričac [45.134°N 17.672°E] ; 1♂, 23.vi.2017, floodplain Sava s Suvoj [45.372°N 16.687°E] ; 1♂, 19.vii.2018, Krka 3.9 km nw Ljubotić [44.009°N 16.036°E] ; 1♂ 3♀♀, 4.vii.2018, Krka n Lozovac [43.802°N 15.966°E] ; 2♂♂, 8.vii.2018, Lake Vrana , lakeside n Pakoštane [43.924°N 15.506°E] ; 3♀♀, 8.vii.2018, Lake Vrana , marsh 3.4 km n Pakoštane [43.939°N 15.516°E] ; 2♂♂ 1♀, 10.vii.2018, Lake Vrana , marsh 4 km nne Pakoštane [43.945°N 15.527°E] ; 2♂♂ 5♀♀, 10.vii.2018, Lake Vrana , marsh 4.5 km nne Pakoštane [43.939°N 15.548°E] ; 1♀, 23.vi.2017, oxbow lake between Plesmo and Krapje [45.306°N 16.836°E] ; 1♀, 22.vi.2017, river valley between Piljenice and Ilova [45.442°N 16.840°E] ; 1♂ 1♀, 19.vii.2018, Šarena Jezero near Knin [44.027°N 16.223°E]; 2♂♂ 4♀♀, 6.vii.2018, small marsh 2 km sw Bićine [43.820°N 15.887°E]; CYPRUS: 1♂ 1♀, 29.vi.2016, creek e Goudi [34.993°N 32.445°E] ; CZECH REPUBLIC: 1♂ 1♀, 29.vii.1993, Duchcov , 2 km E, deciduous wood [50.36°N 13.43°E], 220 m , det. as P. orsovana by Zatwarnicki , leg. M. Barták ; FRANCE: 1♂ 2♀♀, 1.viii.2019, Etang de Gruissan [43.117°N 3.082°E] ; 2♀♀, 30.vii.2019, L´Aude , 3 km w Roubia [43.249°N 2.758°E] ; 1♀, 30.vii.2019, La Cesse, Cabezac [43.298°N 2.871°E]; 1♀, 1.viii.2019, rice field 4 km w Gruissan [43.113°N 3.038°E]; 1♂, 3.viii.2019, river nw Lagrasse [43.096°N 2.605°E]; 1♂ 4♀♀, 3.viii.2019, Ruisseau de Saint-Felix , Montséret [43.112°N 2.808°E] ; 1♀, 1.viii.2019, salt swamp 4 km nwn Gruissan [43.129°N 3.047°E]; 3♂♂ 2♀♀, 25.vii.2019, wetland 1.5 km nw Périès [43.282°N 3.059°E]; 2♂♂ 2♀♀, 30.vii.2019, wetland s Salleles d´Aude [43.248°N 2.955°E]; GEORGIA: 1♀, 7.vii.2019, Aragvi River ne Zhinvali [42.112°N 44.778°E] ; 2♂♂ 6♀♀, 30.vi.2019, Debeda River e Kirach-Mughanlo [41.334°N 45.068°E] ; 1♂, 30.vi.2019, Debeda River n Khanji-Gazlo [41.357°N 45.005°E] ; 1♂, 2.vii.2019, Jandara reservoir 2.8 km se Mzianeti [41.451°N 45.212°E] ; 1♀, 2.vii.2019, Jandara reservoir 4.7 km se Mzianeti [41.440°N 45.228°E] ; 1♂ 1♀, 29.vi.2019, Kura River 2 km s Karajalari [41.599°N 44.960°E] ; 1♀, 8.vii.2019, Kura River n Akhalsheni [42.005°N 43.723°E] ; 3♀♀, 8.vii.2019, Kura River nw Akhalsopeli [42.013°N 43.765°E] ; 3♂♂ 2♀♀, 7.vii.2019, Kura River nw Dzegvi [41.850°N 44.599°E] ; 1♂, 9.vii.2019, Kura River se Gori [41.971°N 44.121°E] ; 1♂, 29.vi.2019, Kura River . Rustawi [41.551°N 45,010°E] ; 3♂♂ 3♀♀, 29.vi.2019, Kura valley se Rustawi [41.520°N 45.023°E] ; 1♀, 2.vii.2019, Mariini Canal 3.4 km n Jandari [41.473°N 45.167°E] ; 1♂ 1♀, 8.vii.2019, Soramula River 1.7 km ene Agara [42.047°N 43.841°E] ; GERMANY: 1♂ 1♀, 1.viii.2013, Brandenburg, floodplain Oder, Reitwein [52.499°N 14.630°E] ; 1♀, 17.v.2020, Lower Saxony, floodplain Elbe ö Wussegel [53.136°N 11.080°E] ; 1♀, 17.vi.2020, Lower Saxony, Wymeerster Hammrich n Olldiek [53.164°N 7.226°E] ; 1♂, 28.vi.2010, Sachsen-Anhalt, Salziger See, Teufe [51.470°N 11.673°E] ; GREECE: 1♀, 24.x.2011, Lesbos , floodplain above Apothika [39.126°N 26.0853°E] ; 1♂, 24.x.2011, Lesbos, Lake Metochi [39.226°N 26.189°E] ; 2♀♀, 26.x.2011, Lesbos, Voulgaris e von Gavathas [39.281°N 26.0138°E] ; ITALY: 1♂ 1♀, 31.viii.2004, Latina, Circeo, Sabaudia, Selva del Circeo, mixed forest pond [41.21°N 13.01°E], 10 m, det. as P. angustigenis by Zatwarnicki 2007, leg. Merz, Ceretti, Nadi.

Remarks. Mathis & Zatwarnicki (1995) stated that the holotype of P. angustigenis is in Berlin, but it could not be found recently and was probably never actually deposited there (J. Pohl in corresp., May 2021). Becker (1926) noted that Kertész originally collected the type specimen and contrary to the other species described in the same work, did not state that the specimen was deposited in “Meine Sammlung” (“my – i.e. Becker’s – collection”). Therefore it is assumed that Becker sent the specimen back to Kertész, whose collection was deposited in Hungarian Natural History Museum in Budapest where it may have been destroyed in the 1956 revolution which saw the bombing of the main building of the museum ( Evenhuis 1997), although it is possible that it may have survived within an acalyptrate collection which was being held elsewhere at the time ( Földvári & Papp 2007). If the latter, however, it has not come to light since. At the locus typicus in Croatia P. angustigenis is common and is seemingly the only Ptilomyia species recorded in that country to date.

Ptilomyia angustigenis was misidentified as P. orsovana by Beschovski (2009) and Papp (1975), and probably also by numerous subsequent authors. Published records standing under the name ” P. orsovana ” refer at least partly to P. angustigenis , including all of the records previously published by the present author. On the other hand, some of the published records of P. angustigenis may actually be of P. kairensis . Where the criteria used in the identification of species in past papers were not specified in detail it is extremely difficult to reliably interpret the published records. Based on the material presented here, however, P. angustigenis is widely distributed in Europe and is the only species known to occur in Central Europe. This minute species is easily overlooked, and this may explain gaps in the known distribution. Ptilomyia angustigenis has not so far been recorded from Scandinavia, European Russia, the British Isles or the Benelux region, however, which may indicate a northern (and probably eastern) distributional limit, with the most northerly records known to date being from north Germany at about 53°N. Ptilomyia angustigenis has mainly been recorded from freshwater wetland vegetation in standing waters or rivers. In Germany almost all specimens have been swept from Phragmites stands. At least regionally P. angustigenis appears to be a common species.

Distribution. Palearctic: Bulgaria ( Beschovski 2009, as orsovana auct., [?] Zatwarnick 1996 as orsovana auct.), Croatia (original material, Becker, 1926), Cyprus (original material), Czech Republic (original material, [?] Zatwarnick 1996 as orsovana auct.), France (original material, [?] Martinez 2002), Georgia (original material), Germany (original material, Stuke 2011 as orsovana auct., Stuke & Bährmann 2013 as orsovana auct.), Greece (original material, Stuke 2014 as orsovana auct.), Hungary ( Papp 1975, as orsovana auct.), Italy (original material, ([?] Canzoneri & Orlandini 1991, [?] Raffone 2001, [?] Rossi & Cesari Rossi 1979, [?] Zatwarnicki 2012), [?] Malta ([?] Gatt & Ebejer 2003), [?] Morocco ([?] Vitte 1988, 1991), [?] Poland ([?] Zatwarnick 1996 as orsovana auct.), [?] Portugal ([?] Rossi et al. 2013 as orsovana auct.), [?] Romania ([?] Zatwarnick 1996 as orsovana auct.), [?] Slovakia ([?] Zatwarnick 1996 as orsovana auct.), [?] Spain ([?] Canzoneri & Rallo 1996, [?] Ebejer et al. 2006, [?] Zatwarnicki & Blasco-Zumeta 2004), [?] Tunisia ([?] Pârvu & Zaharia 2007 as orsovana auct., [?] Popescu-Mirceni 2011 as orsovana auct.).