Meromacrus laconicus ( Walker, 1852 )

Barahona-Segovia, Rodrigo M., Riera, Pamela, Pañinao-Monsálvez, Laura, Guzmán, Vicente Valdés & Henríquez-Piskulich, Patricia, 2021, Updating the knowledge of the flower flies (Diptera: Syrphidae) from Chile: Illustrated catalog, extinction risk and biological notes, Zootaxa 4959 (1), pp. 1-178 : 43-44

Meromacrus laconicus ( Walker, 1852)

Figs 51–54

Milesia laconica Walker, 1852: 277 *

Meromacrus pratorum Sack, 1920: 268

Type locality and data. “ Brazil ” (T, ♀, BMNH) .

Material examined. Arica y Parinacota: 1♂, Lluta , km 31, 13.XII.1979, Leg. G. Días P. (UTA); 1♀, Lluta, km 40 , Tarapacá Province, 21.I.1968, Leg. R.H. González ( MEUC); 1♀, Azapa, Km 12, 20.III.1980, Leg. G. Díaz P. (UTA); 1♀, Azapa , Km 12, 3.I.1977, Leg. H . Vargas (UTA).

References. Walker, 1852: 227 (desc.); Sack, 1920: 268 (mesonotum, desc., key ref.), Sack, 1921: 144 (larvae desc.); Hine, 1924: 22 (key, descriptive notes); Curran, 1934: 416 (distr.); Curran, 1936: 2 (taxonomic notes, distr.); Hull, 1942b: 3 (key reference); Fluke, 1957: 151 (cat.); Doesburg, 1962: 27 (distr.); Doesburg, 1966: 102 (distr.); Thompson et al., 1976: 113 (cat.); Lagrange, 1990a: 496 (distr.); Thompson, 2002 (cat., key reference); Blatch et al., 2003: 13–36 (key); Montoya, 2016: 494 (cat.); Ricarte et al., 2020: 1-29 (desc. & phylogeny).

World distribution. Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Guyana, Panamá, Paraguay, United States, Venezuela and Chile.

Chilean distribution. Only recorded from Arica y Parinacota region ( Fig. 55 ).

Altitudinal range. This species inhabits transverse valleys between 80 and 500 m. a.s.l.

Biology and notes. Meromacrus laconicus is here reported from Chile for the first time. The genus Meromacrus is distributed from the southern United States to northern Argentina (Sierra Madre to Chacoan province; Morrone, 2014). Thompson et al. (2010) recorded the genus from northern Chile without citing any particular species. Considering the collection site, it is associated with crops and semi-natural environments. This species is widely distributed in South America and Chile, probably is the most southern distributional record. Therefore, it should be classified as a Least Concern species. The larvae have been recorded recycling organic material in rot-hole trees and bromeliads ( Blatch et al. 2003). Adults visit flowers of tropical fruit trees in rainforests or crops ( Blatch et al. 2003).

Conservation status. LC; EOO = 14 km 2; AOO = 12 km 2 (see biology and notes for explanaition).

Genus Palpada Macquart, 1834

Palpada Macquart, 1834: 512 . Type-species, Palpada scutellata Macquart (mon.) = scutellaris (Fabricius) . Refs. Curran, 1928: 42 (key to Puerto Rico spp.); Bean, 1949 (M genitalia); Hull, 1949b: 390, fig. 241 (head); Thompson, 1972b: 142–144 (Milesinae rev. & desc.); Thompson et al., 1976: 113 (cat.); Thompson, 1997: 209–237 (rev, key and notes); Morales & Marinoni, 2009: 301–347 (Cladistic analysis and taxonomic rev. of scutellaris group); Thompson, 2003: 4, 13 (key, syn. and taxonomic notes); Mengual & Thompson, 2008 (species group and rev. of ruficeps subgroup).

Doliosyrphus Bigot, 1882: 120 . Type-species, Doliosyrphus scutellatus Bigot (subs. des.by Williston, 1887: 178) = scutellaris (Fabricius) .

Dolyosyrphus, Bigot, 1883: 228. Misspelling.

Figures

FIGURE 55. Distribution map of Habromyia lipoflava Fluke, 1937 (blue circles); Meromacrus laconicus (Walker, 1852) (red circles), and Ohmyia omya Thompson, 1999 (yellow circles) in Chile.

FIGURES 51–54. Meromacrus laconicus (Walker, 1852): (51) lateral view; scale bar = 0.25 mm; (52) head, frontal view; scale bar = 0.1 mm; (53) dorsal view; scale bar = 0.25 mm, and (54) wing; scale bar = 0.25 mm. Photos by Patricia Henríquez.