Simulium (Wilhelmia) lineatum (Meigen)

Crosskey, R. W., 2002, A taxonomic account of the black y fauna of Iraq and Iran, including keys for species identi cation (Diptera: Simuliidae), Journal of Natural History 36 (15), pp. 1841-1886 : 1875-1876

17. Simulium (Wilhelmia) lineatum (Meigen)

Iran references. Rubtsov (1940, ‘ Iran: Shachrud (Kiritshenko) ’ cited in description of Simulium (Wilhelmia) salopiense var. turgaicum ), Rubtsov (1951, ‘ Iran: Shachrud (Pavlovsky) ’, cited for Wilhelmia salopiensis var. turgaica ), Crosskey (1967, citation after Rubtsov, as turgaicum ), Crosskey (1988, as turgaicum , world inventory entry), Crosskey and Howard (1997, as lineatum , world inventory entry).

Iraq references. Crosskey and Howard (1997, world inventory entry).

Material seen

Iran: 1, Tabriz (38ss05¾/46ss18¾), 6 April 1914 (Andrievsky) ( ZISP). 2, Isfahan, Lanjanat, Falavârjan (32ss33¾/51ss28¾), 22 December 1933 (Abtahi). 2 pupae, Lashg [? co-ordinates], 2 December 1979 (Mesghali) (from D. J. Lewis slide collection, BMNH) . Iraq: 1, Diyala Province, Shaykh Lankar (5Langar) (34ss22¾/45ss14¾), 30 January 1977 (Kassal) [slide]. 3 pupae, Diyala Province, Khanakin, Qoratu (5Kuretu) (34ss36¾/45ss29¾), 20 December 1976 (Kassal) .

Remarks

This is one of the most widespread simuliids of the Palaearctic region, occurring in central and southern Eurasia from western Europe to China. In Russian literature it has been generally known as S. (W.) turgaicum or Wilhelmia turgaica but Crosskey and Howard (1997) have recently synonymized that nominal species with lineatum . Rubtsov’s (1940) description of turgaicum was based on specimens from Kazakhstan and Iran but the Iranian specimens (from Shahrud, now Emamrud) cannot be found in ZISP and are presumed lost; there is, however, one pinned female without type status (data as listed above). In an earlier work ( Crosskey, 1967) I listed the Iranian specimens from Falavârjan cited above as probably belonging to S. (W.) paraequinum but at that time it was not known that the spermatheca provides taxonomic characters allowing females of Wilhelmia species to be diVerentiated. This organ in the Falavârjan specimens has the very large ovoid or slightly pear-shaped form characteristic of S. (W.) lineatum females (gure 33), not the smaller spherical form of S. (W.) paraequinum females (gure 37). Reared females with associated exuviae are easily diVerentiated by the pupal gill tubes, these being wrinkled and narrow at the base in paraequinum (gure 34) but unconstricted basally in lineatum (gure 30).

Khalaf (1963), in a list of Iraqi Diptera , included ‘ S. ( Wilhelmia ) prob. salopiemse Ed’ (error for salopiense ) on the basis of identi cation by Dr Alan Stone. As salopiense is a synonym of lineatum it is possible that the record applies to this species. However, as the whereabouts of the specimen(s) on which it is based is unknown this cannot be veri ed.