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 Meigenia?: parasitoid of chrysomelid larvae
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| Rui Andrade |
Posted on 08-04-2009 20:55
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 Member Location: Posts: 3122 Joined: 19.06.07 |
On the last 20th of March I collected several chrysomelid larvae on Rumex sp. in a meadow. Five of these larvae were parasitized by tachinids. At first I thought that two tachinids species were present because there are specimens that look different, but now I think that it could be the same species and the difference lies on sexual dimorphism. What can be said about them? location: Barcelos, Portugal Male  Image HostingFemale  Image HostingPupa  Image HostingHost larva  Image HostingAdult host  Image HostingAre the arrows pointing to the erect apical scutellar bristles?:  Image Hosting |
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| neprisikiski |
Posted on 08-04-2009 21:39
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Member Location: Posts: 876 Joined: 23.02.09 |
They are indeed Meigenia mutabilis-group, with five species known in Europe, identification of females is not possible. The group include such young species, that even molecular biology is not successful for identification using several genes, that usually work on other Tachinidae
Edited by neprisikiski on 08-04-2009 21:39 Erikas |
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| Rui Andrade |
Posted on 08-04-2009 22:07
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Member Location: Posts: 3122 Joined: 19.06.07 |
Thank you very much Erikas ! That's a really nice info you've got. I have read that tachinids are probably going through an adaptive radiation explosion. |
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| ChrisR |
Posted on 09-04-2009 07:50
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 Administrator Location: Posts: 7699 Joined: 12.07.04 |
Great sequence of photos Rui - and good job rearing them out!  Females of your Meigenia spp. are more heavily dusted - in your photos you can see the narrow frons of the male and the wider frons of the female.
Manager of the UK Species Inventory in the Angela Marmont Centre for UK Biodiversity at the Natural History Museum, London. |
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| Zeegers |
Posted on 09-04-2009 20:39
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Member Location: Posts: 18446 Joined: 21.07.04 |
Great work ! Don't despair, the males are rather easy on genitalia and you have a male ! Theo |
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| Rui Andrade |
Posted on 09-04-2009 23:13
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Member Location: Posts: 3122 Joined: 19.06.07 |
Thanks Chris and Theo. Recently I discovered that last year I've photographed one of the known hosts of Rondania dispar, the curculionid Brachyderes lusitanicus, in the same place where I've seen Rondania. I hope this year will be a good one in respect to rearing tachinids from their hosts. Unfortunately this winter the tachinid pupae I had didn't hatch . |
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| Zeegers |
Posted on 10-04-2009 08:55
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Member Location: Posts: 18446 Joined: 21.07.04 |
Please keep all documentation and the specimens. We might publish it in Tachinid Times. Theo |
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| Rui Andrade |
Posted on 10-04-2009 22:46
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Member Location: Posts: 3122 Joined: 19.06.07 |
That would be great! |
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| Zeegers |
Posted on 11-04-2009 19:53
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Member Location: Posts: 18446 Joined: 21.07.04 |
For that, I would need to check the genitalia. in due time, there is no hurry. THeo |
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but don't see the image in the post.