Megistopoda aranea ( Coquillett, 1899 )

Autino, Analía Gladys, Idoeta, Fabricio Miguel, Claps, Guillermo Luis & Barquez, Rubén Marcos, 2020, Ectoparasite insects of bats from the fields and weedlands eco-region of Argentina, Papéis Avulsos de Zoologia 60, pp. 1-9 : 3

Megistopoda aranea ( Coquillett, 1899)

Pterellipsis aranea Coquillett, 1899: 334 .

Megistopoda aranea: Wenzel et al., 1966: 541-542 .

Material examined: Misiones: Estancia Prates, Barra Concepción, 28°05′S, 55°32′W, 05.iii.2011, 1 ♀ ( CMLA 725 ) and 1 ♂ ( CMLA 726 ) on Artibeus fimbriatus ♀ ( FMI 271 ) ; 27.iii.2011, 1 ♀ ( CMLA 728 ) and 1 ♂ ( CMLA 727 ) on A. fimbriatus ♀ ( FMI 285 ) ; Parque Provincial Teyú Cuaré , 27°17′S, 55°35′W, 11.xii.2009, (4) 2 ♀ ( CMLA 732 , 733 ) and 2 ♂ ( CMLA 730 , 731 ) on A. lituratus ♀ ( FMI 151 ) ; Reserva Ecológica Tupá Puojhá ( Fachinal ), 27°37′S, 55°43′W, 30.iv.2010, 1 ♀ ( CMLA 729 ), on A. fimbriatus ♀ ( FMI 20 ) .

Identification: This species is easily distinguishable from M. proxima by its long and narrow wings with two veins that unite with the costa; very long legs, including a hind femur nearly as long as the entire body; prescutum with very weak setae along the median suture; and lateral margins along the longitudinal membranous suture that include one or two stronger setae.

Comments: This species had only been previously identified in one locality in Corrientes province (Autino et al., 2009) and several in Misiones, having recently been cited for the Osununú-Teyú Cuaré AICOM (Area of Importance for the Conservation of Bats) (Autino et al., 2018). It has also been cited for some localities in the northwestern Argentina (Jujuy, Salta and Tucumán) (Autino et al., 1999, 2009).

The known host records for Megistopoda aranea are mainly from bats of the family Phyllostomidae , as Artibeus fimbriatus , A. lituratus , A. planirostris (Spix, 1823) and Desmodus rotundus É. Geoffroy, 1810 ( García, 1959; Barquez et al., 1991; Autino et al., 1992, 1998, 1999, 2000b, 2009, 2018).