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ARS Home » Northeast Area » Beltsville, Maryland (BARC) » Beltsville Agricultural Research Center » Systematic Entomology Laboratory » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #332297
Research Project: Systematics of Flies of Importance in Agroecosystems and the Environment

Location: Systematic Entomology Laboratory

Title: A revision of the early taxa of Australian gall midges (Diptera: Cecidomyiidae)

Author
item KOLESIK, PETER - Non ARS Employee
item GAGNE, RAYMOND - Retired ARS Employee

Submitted to: Zootaxa
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 10/27/2016
Publication Date: 12/8/2016
Citation: Kolesik, P., Gagne, R.J. 2016. A revision of the early taxa of Australian gall midges (Diptera: Cecidomyiidae). Zootaxa. 4205:301–338.

Interpretive Summary: It is of critical importance to know the identity of the earliest-known species so that further work can have a solid basis. The oldest-named Australian gall midges were poorly known so their type specimens were sought out and studied or accounted for. Many types were found to be lost or lacking critical parts, so their species can forever be considered officially unknown. Types that are in good condition were thoroughly studied and properly redescribed and placed within the existing classification. This necessary work provides the necessary foundation for further advancements on the systematics and biology of Australian gall midges.

Technical Abstract: Australian Cecidomyiidae described by Schiner (1868), Skuse (1888, 1890), Koebele (1893), Felt (1915), Edwards (1916) and Rübsaamen (1916), totalling 111 species and three subgenera, are revised. Subgenus Chastomera Skuse is confirmed to be a junior synonym of the genus Haplusia Karsch and subgenera Gonioclema Skuse and Necrophlebia Skuse are declared nomina dubia. Twenty-two species are placed to genus, a additional four species are placed to supertribe or subfamily, while the remaining species are declared junior synonyms or nomina dubia. Diadiplosis koebelei (Koebele 1893) is a new junior synonym of Diadiplosis plumbea (Skuse 1888). Dasineura tomentosa Dorchin (in Dorchin & Adair 2011) is a new junior synonym of Dasineura frauenfeldi (Schiner 1868). Sphenolasioptera Kolesik & Gagné gen. nov. (Cecidomyiinae: Lasiopterini) is erected to contain Sphenolasioptera vastatrix (Skuse 1888) comb. nov. The following genera are recorded from Australia for the first time: Ledomyia Kieffer (Cecidomyiinae: Ledomyiini), represented by L. vitulans (Skuse), comb. nov.; Bremia Rondani (Cecidomyiinae: Aphidoletini), represented by B. actiosa (Skuse) comb. nov. and B. oreas (Skuse) n. comb.; Divellepidosis Fedotova & Sidorenko (Porricondylinae: Porricondylini), represented by D. pallidina (Skuse) comb. nov. and D. indubitata (Skuse) comb. nov. Additions are made to the key to genera of Cecidomyiinae of Australia and Papua New Guinea (Kolesik 2014) to accomodate Bremia, Ledomyia and Sphenolasioptera.