The female, male, pupa and mature larva of Simulium (Simulium) poolpholi sp. nov. collected from a large and seasonal stream in northeastern Thailand are described. This new species is placed in the S. striatum species-group by the female sternite 8 concave posteromedially in form of the inverted-U shape, ovipositor valve with a ventrally produced process along its inner margin, male ventral plate saddle-shaped, style with a basal protuberance, and pupal gill with 10 filaments. It is morphologically similar to S. (S.) phraense Takaoka, Srisuka & Saeung from northern Thailand by lacking annular ridges on the surface of pupal gill filaments but it is distinguished from the latter species by the arrangement of pupal gill filaments. Molecular analysis using the fast-evolving nuclear big zinc finger (BZF) gene shows that S. (S.) poolpholi sp. nov. formed a distinct clade, being separated from the seven other Thai species of this species-group by a genetic distance of 1.84-4.55%. Our discovery increases the number of species in the S. striatum species-group in Thailand to nine.
This article presents characteristics of the habitats of Melitaea gina Higgins, 1941 and describes the behavior of adults under natural conditions, their host plant, egg chorion, caterpillars, and pupa morphology. The morphology of the early stages and the taxonomy of M. gina are discussed.
Two new blackfly species, Simulium (Gomphostilbia) azhari and Simulium (Gomphostilbia) johorense, are described based on adult females, males, pupae, and larvae collected from Peninsular Malaysia, and assigned to the parahiyangum subgroup and the duolongum subgroup of the batoense species group of the subgenus Comphostilbia, respectively. S. (G.) azhari sp. nov. is characterized in the female by the narrow frons, and in the male by the broad style and the ventral plate moderately produced ventrally. S. (G.) johorense sp. nov. is also remarkable in having the female subcosta lacking hairs or bearing a reduced number of hairs ranging from one to five. The pupae of both new species share a similar arrangement of the eight gill filaments (i.e., stalks of dorsal and middle triplets and ventral pair arising at the same level from the short common basal stalk), although relative lengths of filaments of the ventral pair to those of the dorsal and middle triplets are different between the two new species. Taxonomic notes are given to distinguish these new species from other related species. Keys to identify all 10 species of the batoense species group in Peninsular Malaysia are provided for adult females, males, pupae, and mature larvae.
Simulium (Comphostilbia) izuae sp. nov. is described from female, male, pupal, and larval specimens collected from Cameron's Highlands, Peninsular Malaysia. This new species is placed in the asakoae species-group of the subgenus Gomphostilbia. The pupa of this new species is characterized by the gill with eight long filaments arranged as (3 + 3) + 2 filaments, of which the ventral pair of filaments is borne on a stalk that is always shorter than the common basal stalk. Taxonomic notes to distinguish this new species from five other Malaysian species and 12 other species of the asakoae species-group from other countries are given. Keys to identify all 18 species of the asakoae species-group are also provided for females, males, pupae, and mature larvae.
ABSTRACT A new black fly species, Simulium (Comphostilbia) langkawiense, is described based on adult female, adult male, pupal, and larval specimens collected from Langkawi Island, Malaysia. This new species is similar in the configuration of the pupal gill to Simulium (Comphostilbia) gombakense Takaoka & Davies, 1995, originally described from Peninsular Malaysia, but differs from the latter species by the female genital fork with an anterolaterally angulated plate on each arm, the female tarsal claw tooth shorter than one half of the claw, the small number of male upper-eye large facets, the ventral plate with its ventral margin nearly flat in the middle when viewed posteriorly, and the inflated structure of the pupal gill with a less produced middle portion (width of middle inflated portion: length of inflated structure = 0.24). Taxonomic notes are also given to separate this new species from two other related species from Nepal and India. This represents another example of a unique species of black fly on one of the continental islands of Peninsular Malaysia.
Simulium (Asiosimulium) furvum sp. nov. (Diptera: Simuliidae) is described from female, male, pupal, and larval specimens collected from Maewa National Park, Lampang Province, Thailand. This new species represents the fourth member of the subgenus Asiosimulium Takaoka & Chochoote, one of two small black fly subgenera endemic in the Oriental Region. It is characterized by a pear-shaped spermatheca in the female; a ventral plate in the male with a laterally compressed median keel directed ventrally and with a deep notch posteromedially, and aedeagal membrane with stout spines; and by 22 gill filaments in the pupa. Taxonomic notes are provided to separate this new species from three known species, Simulium (Asiosimulium) oblongum Takaoka & Choochote and Simulium (Asiosimulium) wanchaii Takaoka & Choochote, both from Thailand, and Simulium (Asiosimulium) suchitrae Takaoka from Nepal.
Two new species of black flies, Simulium (Comphostilbia) terengganuense sp. nov. and Simulium (Gomphostilbia) aziruni sp. nov. (Diptera: Simuliidae), are described on the basis of reared adult, pupal, and larval specimens collected from Peninsular Malaysia. Both species are placed in the batoense species-group within the subgenus Gomphostilbia, one of two dominant subgenera of the genus Simulium in Peninsular Malaysia as well as in the Oriental Region. Strikingly, three morphological characteristics that rarely occur in the subgenus Gomphostilbia are found in these two new species: the very narrow female frons and the mushroom-like pupal terminal hooks in S. (G.) terengganuense sp. nov. and the pupal gill composed of an inflated horn-like structure and eight slender filaments in S. (G.) aziruni sp. nov.
Simulium (Simulium) kisapense sp. nov. is described on the basis of reared adult, pupal, and larval specimens collected from Langkawi Island, Peninsular Malaysia, and placed in the multi-striatum species-group in the subgenus Simulium. This new species is characterized by the bare basal section of the female radial vein, the male ventral plate with setae, the eight pupal gill filaments divergent at an angle of >90 degrees, and the shoe-shaped cocoon with small lateral window(s). Taxonomic notes are given to separate this new species from S. (S.) hirtinervis Edwards and S. (S.) malayense Takaoka and Davies, both from Peninsular Malaysia, and several other known species from Bhutan, India, Nepal, and Thailand.
Simulium (Gomphostilbia) merapiense sp. nov. is described based on females, males, pupae, and mature larvae from Yagyakarta, Java, Indonesia. This new species is placed in the Simulium epistum species-group, and is characterized by the pupal gill with eight short filaments all arising at the same level from a short stalk, somewhat enlarged basal fenestra, entirely bare pupal head and thoracic integument, and small and short larval postgenal cleft. These characters rarely are found in the subgenus. Taxonomic notes are given to separate this new species from related species of the S. epistum species-group.
Simulium (Simulium) lomkaoense sp. nov. is described from females, males, pupae, and larvae in Thailand. This new species is assigned to the Simulium malyschevi Dorogostaisky, Rubtsov & Vlasenko species-group of the subgenus Simulium, and appears to be closely related to Simulium baimaii Kuvangkadilok & Takaoka from Thailand in having a similar shape of the female and male genitalia, pupal gill with two inflated filaments, and simple wall-pocket-shaped cocoon. This new species is compared taxonomically with S. baimaii and other related species. It represents the third species of the S. malyschevi species-group known from Thailand.
Three new species of black flies from Thailand, Simulium wangkwaiense, S. tadtonense and S. maeklongkeense, are described based on their adults, pupal exuviae and cocoons. All three new species are assigned to the Simulium (Simulium) striatum species-group, bringing its total number in Thailand to seven. Simulium wangkwaiense sp. nov. is the species formerly called S. quinquestriatum in Thailand. Certain male and pupal morphological characteristics are shown to separate all seven Thai species of this species-group. All of the three new species have been analyzed genetically for their phylogenetic relationships, with three known related species (except for S. thailandicum), by using the fast-evolving nuclear big zinc finger (BZF) gene.
A new black fly species, Simulium (Gomphostilbia) kiewlomense, is described from females, males, pupae and mature larvae in Thailand. This new species is placed in the S. asakoae species-group and is characterized by having a combination of the elongate female sensory vesicle, widened male hind basitarsus, which is much wider than the hind femur, small pupal terminal hooks, and light greenish larval abdominal segments 1-3. Taxonomic notes are given to separate this new species from other related species. A DNA analysis using the COI gene shows that this new species has two genoforms with 1.21% difference. This is the 28th species of the S. asakoae species-group in Thailand, strengthening the evidence for high species diversity of this species-group.
The male, pupa and mature larva of Simulium (Asiosimulium) wanchaii Takaoka & Choochote, one of the four species of the small Oriental black fly subgenus Asiosimulium, are described for the first time based on samples collected from Thailand. The male S. (A.) wanchaii is characterized based on the enlarged hind basitarsus and the ventral plate which is much wider than long. The pupa and larva are characterized by the gill with 19 filaments and the deep postgenal cleft, respectively. Keys are provided to identify all the four species of the subgenus Asiosimulium for females, males, pupae and mature larvae.
Simulium (Simulium) hackeri Edwards, 1928 of the Simulium variegatum species-group from Malaysia was described initially based on the female specimen from Cameron Highlands, Pahang. In the present study, the pupa and larva of this species are described for the first time. Their morphological characters resemble those of the Simulium variegatum species-group by having six gill filaments per side, abdomen with dorsal spine-combs at least on segments 7 and 8, cocoon with wall-pocket shaped and with or without an anterodorsal projection. Postgenal cleft of the larva medium-sized, rarely small, ventral papillae small or absent. The DNA barcode of this species is also reported herein.
Larvae and adults reared from pupae of Simulium (Gomphostilbia) gombakense Takaoka & Davies from eight streams in five provinces of Thailand were genetically analyzed by using cytochrome c oxidase subunit 1 sequences. The material was composed of four lineages, of which lineages 2, 3 and 4 are genetically closely related to one another, but more distantly related to lineage 1, which is equivalent to typical S. (G.) gombakense from Peninsular Malaysia. Lineages 2, 3 and 4, which are morphologically indistinguishable, are designated as genoforms A, B and C within a species complex of S. (G.) paiense sp. nov., which is described based on specimens of lineage 2 (=genoform A). Simulium (G.) paiense sp. nov. is similar to S. (G.) gombakense from Peninsular Malaysia but appears to be barely distinguished by the relative length of the female fore basitarsus. Simulium (G.) thuathienense Takaoka & Sofian-Azirun is newly recorded from Thailand and its male is described for the first time. The female of S. (G.) gombakense is briefly described based on females reared from pupae collected from Peninsular Malaysia.
Two new species of black flies, Simulium (Simulium) srisukai and S. (S.) kiewmaepanense, are described from specimens collected in Thailand. Both species are assigned to the Simulium variegatum species-group of the subgenus Simulium (Simulium) Latreille. They are characterized by the darkened female femora and tibiae and six inflated pupal gill filaments, and the darkened female tibiae and six ordinary thread-like pupal gill filaments, respectively. Taxonomic notes are given to separate these new species from 10 related species among the group. These new species represent the third and fourth species of the S. variegatum species-group from Thailand.
Two new species of Simulium (Gomphostilbia), S. (G.) myanmarense and S. (G.) monglaense, are described from females, males, pupae and larvae from Myanmar. The two new species are placed in the S. asakoae species-group, and are similar to each other in the female and male but distinguished in the pupa by the presence or absence of an anterodorsal projection of the cocoon, and in the larva by a unique pattern of colored markings on the abdomen. Taxonomic notes are given to separate these species from related species. The COI gene sequences of both species are compared with those of eight species of the S. asakoae species-group and three species of the S. ceylonicum species-group. Both new species are most closely related to each other, further supporting their morphological classification in the S. asakoae species-group.
A black fly species of the Simulium feuerborni species-group of Simulium (Nevermannia) from Cameron Highland, Peninsular Malaysia, previously regarded as S. feuerborni Edwards, originally described from East Java, is described as Simulium pairoti sp. nov. based on complete life stages. High intraspecific variations in the arrangement of the six pupal gill filaments, length of the stalk of the ventral paired filaments, and length of the anterodorsal projection of the cocoon, are noted in this species. This new species is readily distinguished from its congeners by having the characters of male genitalia with simple lamellate ventral plate, short inwardly-twisted styles, several parameral hooks, and a simple narrow median sclerite. Morphological data reported herein plus the chromosomal and molecular data presented elsewhere support S. pairoti as a novel pseudocryptic species.
In recent decades, the numbers of cryptic taxa have increased significantly with current progress in DNA barcoding, yet, most of these cryptic taxa have not been formally named and recognized as valid species. To address this issue, we provide a guide for applying the procedure of describing new cryptic species in the family Simuliidae. Simulium (Simulium) vanluni from Pahang, Peninsular Malaysia, previously treated as S. nobile De Meijere, is described as a new species by using an integrated morpho-taxonomical and genetic approach. This new species is morphologically identical to S. nobile from Java and S. kiuliense Smart & Clifford from Borneo, but their distinctiveness is supported by an expanded multigene phylogeny analysis.
A new species of black fly, Simulium (Gomphostilbia) rampae, is described, based on adult male, its pupal exuviae and mature larvae collected from Doi Inthanon National Park, northern Thailand. This new species is placed in the Simulium asakoae species-group, and is characterized in the male by the high number of upper-eye facets in 17 vertical columns and 18 horizontal rows, in the pupa by the gill with a long common basal stalk, cone-shaped terminal hook, and cocoon with an anterodorsal projection, and in the larva by the medium-long postgenal cleft. A DNA analysis using COI gene supported its assignment to the S. asakoae species-group and showed its close relationship to S. (G.) udomi Takaoka & Choochote and S. (G.) chiangdaoense Takaoka & Srisuka. This is the fourth member of the S. asakoae species-group recorded from Thailand.