Forcipomyia sp. 1

Rogers, D. Christopher & Cruz-Rivera, Edwin, 2021, A preliminary survey of the inland aquatic macroinvertebrate biodiversity of St. Thomas, US Virgin Islands, Journal of Natural History 55 (13 - 14), pp. 799-850 : 833

Forcipomyia sp. 1

At least 24 species in this genus are known from the Caribbean ( Borkent and Dominiak 2020). However, there are few records from the Virgin Islands. Cazorla et al. (2018) report Forcipomyia (Thyridomyia) nana (Macfie, 1939) from the Virgin Islands, but do not provide specific localities. We found larvae ( Figure 2 ) of an unidentified species very commonly in bromeliad phytotelmata across St. Thomas. We also found one specimen of the same form in dense decomposing vegetation in a road rut near Bolongo pond on St. Thomas. The body form of these larvae is surprisingly different than the typical form for the genus.

Figures

Figure 2. Forcipomyia sp. 1 larvae: (a) head, right lateral view; (b) head, prothorax and mesothorax, right half, dorsal view; (c) metathorax and abdominal segment I, dorsal view; (d) terminal abdominal segments, right lateral view; (e) terminal abdominal segments, dorsal view. Scale bar = 1 mm.