Procladius lugens Kieffer, 1915

Brodin, Yngve, 2025, Procladius (Diptera, Chironomidae) of Europe and a global view, Zootaxa 5591 (1), pp. 1-127 : 73-74

Procladius lugens Kieffer, 1915

Procladius lugens Kieffer, 1915 — Kieffer (1915c), Germany, adult male, adult female, description.

Procladius lugens Kieffer, 1915 — Kieffer (1918a), Lithuania, adult male, key, description.

Procladius lugens Kieffer, 1915 — Goetghebuer (1927), France and Germany, adult male, adult female, key, description.

Procladius lugens Kieffer, 1915 — Edwards (1929), England, adult female, description.

Psilotanypus lugens (Kieffer, 1915) — Goetghebuer & Lenz (1936a), England and Germany, adult male, adult female, key, description.

Procladius macrotrichus Roback, 1971 — Roback (1971), United States, adult male, adult female, key, description, illustrations.

Procladius lugens Kieffer, 1915 — Pinder (1978), adult male, key, illustration.

Procladius lugens Kieffer, 1915 — Langton (1991), England, pupa, key, illustration.

Procladius lugens Kieffer, 1915 — Langton & Visser (2003), England, pupa, key, illustration.

Procladius lugens Kieffer, 1915 — Langton & Pinder (2007), adult male, key, illustration.

Procladius cf. flavifrons Edwards, 1929 — Ratnasingham et al. (2024), Norway and Canada, adult males, adult females, larvae, photos.

Procladius sp. — Ratnasingham et al. (2024), Netherlands, Japan and Canada, adult males, adult females, larvae, photos.

? Tanypus serratus Kieffer, 1909 — Kieffer (1909), Germany, adult male, key, description.

? Procladius serratus ( Kieffer, 1909) — Kieffer (1918a), Lithuania, adult male, key, description.

? Procladius serratus ( Kieffer, 1909) — Goetghebuer (1927), France and Germany, adult male, key, description.

? Psilotanypus serratus ( Kieffer, 1909) — Goetghebuer & Lenz (1936a), Germany, adult male, key, description.

? Procladius sp. — Fittkau & Murray (1986), Germany, pupa, illustration.

Material examined (n = 23). ENGLAND, 1 adult male ( BMNH), Timworth , 52.29°N 0.71°E, 27 m a.s.l., +10 °C m.a.t., 1948 .— ESTONIA, 4 adult males ( NHRS), Lake Ülemiste , 59.24°N 24.46°E, 36 m a.s.l., +5 °C m.a.t., 21.v.1993,leg. Y.Brodin. — FINLAND, 4 adult males (as Psilotanypus sp. , MZHF), Vantaa , Lake Kuusijärvi, 60.31°N 25.11°E, 44 m a.s.l., +5 °C m.a.t., 20.v.1965, 16.v.1975, leg. B. Lindeberg ; 2 adult males (as Psilotanypus sp. , HECH), Aidassaari , Lake Vanajavesi, 61.17°N 24.08°E, 79 m a.s.l., +5 °C m.a.t., 25.viii.1978, leg. P.H. Kansanen ; 2 adult males, Baltic Sea , Storskär Island, Lake Käringsund, 63.43°N 21.07°E, 1 m a.s.l., +4 °C m.a.t., 30.v‒ 13.vi.2017, leg. L. Paasivirta ; 1 adult male (as P. flavifrons ), Kiikala , Lake Tervakas, 60.49°N 23.70°E, 117 m a.s.l., +5 °C m.a.t., 9.v.2023, leg. L. Paasivirta. — GERMANY, 1 adult male ( ZSMG), Plön , 54.1°N 10.4°E, 18 m a.s.l., +9 °C m.a.t., circa 1947, leg. A. Thienemann. — NORWAY, 2 adult males (as P. cf. flavifrons, NTNU ), Rohkosjavri , Stabbursdalen, 70.17°N 24.90°E, 12 m a.s.l., 0 °C m.a.t., 15.vi.2010, leg. T. Ekrem and E. Stur [Barcode CHRFI500- 11 and CHRFI501-11 ] .— SWEDEN, 1 adult male ( SLUU), Lake Mälaren , Görväln, 59.43°N 17.73°E, 2 m a.s.l., +6 °C m.a.t., vii.1971, leg. T. Wiederholm ; 2 adult males ( SLUU), Lake Mälaren , Västeråsfjärden, 59.56°N 16.54°E, 3 m a.s.l., +6 °C m.a.t., vii.1971, leg. T. Wiederholm ; 1 adult male ( NHRS), Lake Boren , Borenshult, 58.57°N 15.10°E, 74 m a.s.l., +6 °C m.a.t., 11.vi.1980, leg. Y. Brodin ; 1 adult male ( NHRS), Eriksberg nature reserve , Stenåsa bog pond, 56.16°N 15.01°E, 10 m a.s.l., +7 °C m.a.t., 29.iv.2015, leg. J. Wolgast [ Barcoded ] .— UNITED STATES, 1 adult male (as. P. macrotrichus, USNM ), Lake Eagles Nest , 47.84°N 92.10°W, 447 m a.s.l., +5 °C m.a.t., 27.v.1959, leg. W. V. Balduf .

Diagnostic characters. Figs. 45 , 122‒124 , key couplet 26. P. lugens lacks or has a very short gonostylus process with a GspR that overlaps that of three other species of Procladius in Europe. Of these, P. flavifrons and P. simplicistilus are easily separated from P. lugens by several characters including gonostylus form, setae on katepisternum and number of macrotrichia on the wing membrane.

The only similar species in Europe is P. imicola . The genitalia of P. lugens is very similar that of P. imicola , but the outer margin of the base section of the gonostylus is rounded in P. lugens , while usually distinctly angled in P. imicola . P. lugens is on average smaller than P. imicola (wing length 2.1‒2.8 versus 2.6‒3.4 mm, mid leg tibia length 0.8‒1.1 versus 1.1‒1.4 mm, body length 3.5‒4.6 versus 4.8‒5.5 mm) and the antenna AR mostly lower (1.7‒2.3 versus 2.2‒2.6).

P. lugens has mostly been correctly identified in taxonomic literature regarding findings in Europe. The adult female has been briefly described, the pupal exuvia in detail, while the larva seems not to have been described. Barcodes of adult males, adult females and larvae are available.

Geographical distribution and ecology. Sites with records of P. lugens have an extraordinary broad temperature spectrum, ranging from about +14 °C in Japan to about ‒14 °C in Canada. The temperature span of P. lugens in Europe is more moderate, ranging from +11 °C in Ireland to 0 °C in Norway.

The latitude range of P. lugens in Europe stretches from France at latitude 46°N in the south to northern Norway at 70°N in the north. Worldwide the distribution is from 35°N in Japan to 73°N in Canada. The altitude records of the species are usually within 0‒200 m above sea level , but sometimes up to 540 m.

Larvae of P. lugens inhabit oligotrophic to eutrophic, sometimes even hypereutrophic, lakes, lake-like reservoirs and ponds. The species is also known from shallow oligohaline water of the Baltic Sea and in samples of insects emerging from puddles in a temporarily inundated swamp. The bathymetric distribution of P. lugens larvae is mainly littoral on bottoms with vegetation such as Cladophora and reed ( Phragmites ). There are a few findings of P. lugens from the profundal, but not more than down to 5 m water depth, while its closest relative P. imicola is frequently found in the profundal and sometimes down to 30 m.

Diatom remains have been found in the gut of P. lugens larvae, but otherwise nothing is known about the feeding of the larvae. Adults are known from late April to early August.

Countries with records of P. lugens in Europe are Austria, England, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Lithuania, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Russia and Sweden. The species has also been recorded in Canada, China, Japan and the United States including Alaska, possibly also Algeria.

References. Bowser & Bowser 2020; Brodin & Wolgast 2019; Brundin 1949; Davids et al. 1980; Edwards 1929; Fittkau & Murray 1986; Goetghebuer 1927; Goetghebuer & Lenz 1936a; Janeċek 1985; Kansanen 1985; Kontula & Haldin 2012; Kieffer 1909; Kieffer 1915c; Kieffer 1918a; Langton 1991; Langton & Pinder 2007; Langton & Visser 2003; Moubayed-Breil 2007; Mundie 1957; Murray et al. 2018; Paasivirta 2012; Paasivirta 2020; Pinder 1978; Ratnasingham et al. 2024; Roback 1971; Sandberg 1969; Takamura et al. 2017; Takamura et al. 2021; Vallenduuk & Moller Pillot 2007; Wang & Zheng 1992; Wiederholm 1974; Zerguine et al. 2108.

Figures

FIGURES 44‒46. Male genitalia of Procladius species. 44: P. flavifrons from France. 45: P. lugens from Sweden. Fig. 46: P. imicola from Sweden.

FIGURES 122‒124. Male genitalia left gonostylus of Procladius lugens. Fig. 122: Estonia. Fig. 123: Norway. Fig. 124: Finland.