New Findings of Species of the Tribe Palpomyiini (Diptera: Ceratopogonidae) in Argentina

Nuevos Hallazgos de Especies de la Tribu Palpomyiini (Diptera: Ceratopogonidae) en la Argentina

Spinelli, Gustavo R. and Carla G. Cazorla

División Entomología, Museo de La Plata , Paseo del Bosque. 1900 La Plata , Argentina; e-mail: spinelli@museo.fcnym.unlp.edu.ar

ABSTRACT. New findings in Argentina of the following five species of the tribe Palpomyiini are reported: Amerohelea pseudofasciata Grogan and Wirth and Bezzia venustula (Williston), in the Somuncurá plateau in Río Negro province; Bezzia chilensis Ronderos and Spinelli, in western Río Negro and Salta provinces; Bezzia fluminensis Lane, in northern Corrientes province; and Clastrieromyia uruguayensis Spinelli and Grogan, in La Pampa province.

KEY WORDS. Argentina. Records. Amerohelea . Bezzia . Clastrieromyia .

RESUMEN.  Se informa acerca de nuevos hallazgos en la Argentina de las siguientes cinco especies de la tribu Palpomyiini: Amerohelea pseudofasciata Grogan and Wirth y Bezzia venustula (Williston), en la meseta de Somuncurá en la provincia de Río Negro; Bezzia chilensis Ronderos and Spinelli, en el Oeste de las provincias de Río Negro y Salta; Bezzia fluminensis Lane, en el norte de la provincia de Corrientes; y Clastrieromyia uruguayensis Spinelli and Grogan, en la provincia de La Pampa.

PALABRAS CLAVE. Argentina. Registros. Amerohelea. Bezzia. Clastrieromyia.

The tribe Palpomyiini includes medium or large-sized midges of the family Ceratopogonidae. Females are predaceous, preying on small soft-bodied insects, while immatures inhabit a great variety of aquatic and semiaquatic environments.

The following six genera are recognized within the tribe: Amerohelea Grogan and Wirth (exclusive for the Americas), Bezzia Kieffer (cosmopolitan), Clastrieromyia Spinelli and Grogan (exclusive Neotropical), Pachyhelea Wirth (exclusive Neotropical), Palpomyia Meigen (cosmopolitan) and Phaenobezzia Haeselbarth (cosmopolitan). Except for Palpomyia , the species composition and when applicable, the supraspecific arrangement of these genera are well known in the Neotropics through a series of relatively modern revisions: Grogan and Wirth (1981) for Amerohelea , Spinelli and Wirth (1989a, 1989b, 1990, 1991) for Bezzia , Spinelli and Grogan (1986) for Clastrieromyia , Grogan and Wirth (1980) for Pachyhelea and Spinelli and Wirth (1986) for Phaenobezzia . Further information may be found in Dippolito et al . (1995), Spinelli (1987, 1989, 1996) and Spinelli and Ronderos (2001).

The aim of this contribution is to report new findings from Argentina, some of them notorious, of one species belonging to Amerohelea , three to Bezzia and one to Clastrieromyia . The recorded specimens are deposited in the collection of the Museo de la Plata , Argentina.

Amerohelea pseudofasciata

Grogan and Wirth

Amerohelea pseudofasciata Grogan and Wirth, 1981: 1286 (female; southeastern Brazil, northeastern Argentina).

New record. Argentina, Río Negro prov., Somuncurá plateau, Estancia “El Rincón”, 30-XI/3-XII-1999, J. Muzón, 2 females, Malaise trap.

Distribution. Argentina (Misiones, Río Negro), Brazil (Goias, Santa Catarina).

Remarks. The genus Amerohelea is known by 12 species distributed in tropical and subtropical areas in the Neotropics with only one, A. frontispina (Dow and Turner), reaching the U.S.A from California to Texas, while the southernmost recorded species is A. similis Spinelli from Mocoreta in Corrientes province. The presence of A. pseudofasciata in the Somuncurá plateau contributes to the hypothesis about the relictual character of several components of its biota, particularly for those species belonging to Paranaense linages, as it was recently suggested by Muzón et al . (2002).

Bezzia chilensis Spinelli and Ronderos

Bezzia chilensis Spinelli and Ronderos, 2001: 752 (female, male; Chile).

New records. Argentina, Río Negro prov., El Bolsón, 28-XI- 1999, G . Spinelli, 1 female, at light; Salta prov., Cachi, 18-I- 2000, G . Spinelli, 1 female, swept net.

Distribution. Argentina (Río Negro, Salta), Chile (Valparaiso).

Remarks. Bezzia chilensis was previously known only from its type locality in Valparaiso, Chile. The two records herein provided are the first ones from Argentina, significantly enlarged northward and southward its distributional range.

Bezzia fluminensis Lane

Bezzia fluminensis Lane, 1948: 236 (female; Brazil); Lane, 1958: 31 (male; Brazil); Spinelli and Wirth, 1989a: 111 (redescrip.).

New records. Argentina, Corrientes prov., Colonia Pellegrini, 1/7-XII- 2000, M . Coscarón, 2 females, 1 male, Malaise trap; Corrientes, 10 km W Santo Tomé, 9-IX- 2002, G . Spinelli, 2 females,  swept net.

Distribution. Argentina (Corrientes), Brazil (Rio de Janeiro, Brasilia).

Remarks. These are the first records of B. fluminensis from Argentina. The species was previously known from its type-locality in Rio de Janeiro, and from Brasilia.

Bezzia venustula (Williston)

Ceratopogon venustulus Williston, 1896: 278 (female; St. Vincent, Trinidad).

Bezzia concoloripes Macfie, 1940: 31 (female; Guyana); Lane, 1958: 26 (in key).

Bezzia venustula: Lane, 1958: 27 (in key); Spinelli and Wirth, 1991: 7 (synonymy; redescrip; distrib.).

New records. Argentina, Río Negro prov., Somuncurá plateau, Estancia “El Rincón”, 29-I-1999, P. Marino, swept net; same data except 30-XI/3-XII-1999, J. Muzón, 6 females, Malaise trap.

Distribution. From Mexico to Argentina.

Remarks. Bezzia venustula is a widely distributed species, previously known in Argentina from Pocitos in Salta province, nearby Bolivia. The biogeographic importance in connection with the finding of this species in the Somuncurá plateau is similar to the one pointed in the case of Amerohelea pseudofasciata .

Clastrieromyia uruguayensis Spinelli and Grogan

Clastrieromyia uruguayensis Spinelli and Grogan, 1986: 458 (female; Uruguay); Spinelli, 1987: 160 (Argentina record).

New record. Argentina, La Pampa prov., Pedro Luro, I- 2000, C . Storti, 6 females, at light.

Distribution. Argentina (Corrientes, La Pampa ), Uruguay.

Remarks. This species was previously known from Uruguay and from the neighboring Argentinian locality Monte Caseros in Corrientes province.

LITERATURE CITED

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11. SPINELLI, G. R. & W. L. GROGAN. 1986. Two new species of the predaceous midges genus Clastrieromyia from Uruguay with a new record of C. schnacki for Argentina (Diptera: Ceratopogonidae). Proc. Entomol. Soc. Wash. 88: 455-460.         [ Links ]
12. SPINELLI, G. R. & M. M. RONDEROS. 2001. First record of the genus Bezzia in Chile, with a description of a new species of the venustula group (Diptera: Ceratopogonidae). Rev. Chil. Hist. Nat. 74: 751-754.         [ Links ]
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15. SPINELLI, G. R. & W. W. WIRTH . 1989b. The neotropical predaceuos midges of the genus Bezzia (Diptera: Ceratopogonidae). Part I. The glabra and brevicornis g roups. Limnobios 2: 772-778.         [ Links ]
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18. WILLISTON, S. W. 1896. On the Diptera of St. Vincent (West Indies). Trans. Entomol. Soc. London 1896: 253-446.         [ Links ]

Recibido: 25-II-2003
Aceptado: 17-VI-2003