Pegesimallus pedunculatus (Loew, 1858)

Londt, Jason G. H., 2020, A survey of grassland Asilidae (Diptera) at Jacana Eco Estate, Hilton, South Africa, African Invertebrates 61 (1), pp. 29-48 : 29

5. Pegesimallus pedunculatus (Loew, 1858)

Remarks.

This widely-distributed and commonly encountered Southern African species was reviewed along with other Afrotropical species and recorded from many South African localities, as well as some in the neighbouring countries of Mozambique, Namibia and Zimbabwe ( Londt 1980). The species has been commonly encountered in the Pietermaritzburg area where it is also known to frequent suburban gardens and has been recorded from October through to April.

A single adult female of this species was collected in week seven of the survey. The genus is not commonly encountered in grassland situations, but generally prefers indigenous forests and their margins ( Londt’s (1994) ecological category 5b (tips of shrubs and bushes)). This species may also be commonly encountered in suburban gardens.

Members of the genus are active fliers and so it is highly likely that the encountered specimen was moving from one suitable habitat to another or had been swept into the area by wind.