Lispe scalaris Loew, 1847

Dawah, Hassan A., Abdullah, Mohammed A. & Deeming, John C., 2020, The Muscidae (Diptera) of Saudi Arabia, descriptions of two new species, new records and updated list of species, Zootaxa 4869 (1), pp. 1-54 : 39-40

Lispe scalaris Loew, 1847 ( Fig. 64 )

Lispe scalaris Loew, 1847: 28 .

This species was until recently known by the name of its junior synonym Lispe persica Becker, 1904:22 .

Specimens examined. 1m, 1f, Najran, Al-Shurfa, Saleh Maqbol Farm , 10–20.i.2014, Malaise trap, H.A. Dawah ( CERS) ; 1f, Asir, Keratha, Al-Ethrebany Fruit Farm , 15.v.–11.vi.2006, Malaise trap, H.A. Dawah ( NMWC) ; 1m, Asir, Maraba, Al-Hudaithy Fruit Farm , 1–30.v.2004, Malaise trap, H.A. Dawah ( NMWC) .

Distribution. This species was previously recorded from Saudi Arabia by Dawah & Abdullah (2009). It was described from Turkey and is further recorded in the Middle East from Egypt, Iran, Israel, Oman, United Arab Emirates and Yemen ( Pont 1986; Deeming 2008; Vikhrev 2014). All these records have been given under the name of its synonym L. persica .

Taxonomic remarks. There is variation within L. scalaris individuals collected from Niger, Oman and Yemen in that some specimens have the silvery white marking at the bases of the vertical bristles broadly connected to the pale markings of the lower occiput and also some females having all femora and tibiae yellow. There are slight differences in the shapes of male surstyli between material from Niger (Aïr Massif) and Maraba.

Figures

FIGURE. 63–66. Muscidae species habitus: 63) Lispe rigida Becker, 1903, Male; 64) Lispe scalaris Loew, 1847, Male; 65) Lispe tentaculata (Degeer, 1776), Male; 66) Anaphalantus longicornis (Macquart, 1843), Female.