Carla G. Cazorla

Redescription of pupa and adult of Stilobezzia fiebrigi Kieffer 1917 (Diptera: Ceratopogonidae)

Abstract The adult of the predaceous midge Stilobezzia fiebrigi Kieffer is redescribed and illustrated by using binocular compound microscope, and the pupa is redescribed by using binocular microscope and Scanning Electron Microscope. Immature stages were collected as pupae in mud in flooded soil in Corrientes province, Argentina. Adult and pupae are compared with their similar congener Stilobezzia coquilletti Kieffer.

A new species of Stilobezzia Kieffer from the neotropical region (Diptera, Ceratopogonidae)

A new species from the Neotropical Region, Stilobezzia (Stilobezzia) pseudopunctulata Cazorla & Ronderos, is described and illustrated based on male and female adults and pupal exuviae. Adults were collected in the Argentinian provinces of Chaco, Formosa, Corrientes and Buenos Aires, and in Santa Cruz, Bolivia. The pupa was collected from mats of floating aquatic macrophytes in a lagoon in Ilha da Marchanteria, in the vicinities of Manaus, Brazil. This new species is compared with its similar congener Stilobezzia punctulata Lane, from which it can be mainly distinguished by the wing with only two dark spots, the parameres longer and hook-shaped, the pupal respiratory organ with 11-12 pores and the very short apicolateral processes of the anal segment.

A new species of Patagonian Stilobezzia (Acanthohelea) and a redescription of S. (A.) nigerrima Ingram and Macfie (Diptera: Ceratopogonidae)

Abstract A new species, Stilobezzia (Acanthohelea) curvistyla from Argentinean and Chilean Patagonia is described and illustrated, and compared with the similar species S. (A.) nigerrima Ingram and Macfie. The latter species is redescribed, including the first description of the male, and for the first time recorded from Chile.

A revision of the Neotropical predaceous midges allied to Stilobezzia (Acanthohelea) edwardsi Ingram & Macfie (Diptera: Ceratopogonidae), with a phylogenetic analysis

A revision of the Neotropical predaceous midges allied to Stilobezzia (Acanthohelea) edwardsi Ingram & Macfie from Argentinean and Chilean Patagonia is presented. Stilobezzia (Acanthohelea) edwardsi and Stilobezzia (Acanthohelea) furva Ingram & Macfie are redescribed and illustrated, and the distribution of both species is expanded. The male of S. (A.) furva is described for the first time, and four new species are described and illustrated. The Stilobezzia (Acanthohelea) edwardsi group is proposed to include these six species, a key to recognition of males and females is provided and a phylogenetic analysis of the New World species in the subgenus Acanthohelea is included.

New contributions to the knowledge of the immatures of Stilobezzia punctulata Lane and Stilobezzia fiebrigi Kieffer (Diptera: Ceratopogonidae).

The fourth instar larva of Stilobezzia punctulata Lane is described for the first time and the one of Stilobezzia fiebrigi Kieffer is redescribed. They are illustrated and photomicrographed from material collected in different aquatic environments of the province of Corrientes, Argentina. Both species show features typical to carnivorous-predatory larva.

The fate of endemic insects of the Andean region under the effect of global warming

Three independent but complementary lines of research have provided evidence for the recognition of refugia: paleontology, phylogeography and species distributional modelling (SDM). SDM assesses the ecological requirements of a species based on its known occurrences and enables its distribution to be projected on past climatological reconstructions. One advantage over the other two approaches is that it provides an explicit link to environment and geography, thereby enabling the analysis of a large number of taxa in the search for more general refugia patterns. We propose a methodology for using SDM to recognize biogeographical patterns of endemic insects from Southern South America. We built species distributional models for 59 insect species using Maxent. The species analyzed in the study have narrow niche breadth and were classified into four assemblages according to the ecoregion they inhabit. Models were built for the Late Pleistocene, Mid-Holocene and Present. Through the procedure developed for this study we used the models to recognize: Late Pleistocene refugia; areas with high species richness during all three periods; climatically constant areas (in situ refugia); consistent patterns among in situ refugia, Pleistocene refugia and current distribution of endemic species. We recognized two adjacent Pleistocene refugia with distinct climates; four in situ refugia, some of which are undergoing a process of fragmentation and retraction or enlargement. Interestingly, we found a congruent pattern among in situ refugia, Pleistocene refugia and endemic species. Our results seem to be consistent with the idea that long-term climate stability is known to have a key role in promoting persistence of biodiversity in an area. Our Pleistocene and in situ refugia are consistent with refugia identified in studies focusing on different taxa and applying other methodologies, showing that the method developed can be used to identify such areas and prove their importance for conservation.

A revision of the Patagonian predaceous midges of the subgenus Acanthohelea of Stilobezzia excluding the S. (A.) edwardsi group (Diptera: Ceratopogonidae)

In this revision of the Patagonian predaceous midges of Stilobezzia (Acanthohelea) (Diptera: Ceratopogonidae), the seven previously known species, Stilobezzia bicinctipes Ingram and Macfie, S. hirsuta I. and M, S. ornaticrus I. and M, S. patagonica I. and M, S. rava I. and M, S. succinea I. and M. and S. varia I. and M. are redescribed, illustrated and their distributions are expanded. Diagnoses are provided for Stilobezzia curvistyla Cazorla and Spinelli, S. longisternalis Cazorla and Spinelli and S. nigerrima I. and M, and the male of S. bicinctipes and the female of S. ornaticrus are described for the first time. Seven new species are described with photographs: S. estepae, S. mapuche, S. megatheca, S. monomorphica, S. pabloi, S. spinosa and S. tridentis. The species are illustrated by photographs, and a key to males and females is provided as well as distributional maps for all species. http://zoobank.org/urn:lsid:zoobank.org:pub:CCEB2CB7-2FB3-4ABF-BCD4-75021AD6C338

Synanthropy and Community Structure of Ceratopogonidae From the Northeast of Buenos Aires Province, Argentina

Abstract Synanthropy and community structure of Ceratopogonidae in temperate Argentina were compared across an urbanization gradient to assess the impact of urbanization on species diversity and abundance. Adult ceratopogonids were collected from one natural, one Peri-urban, and two urban sites monthly for 12 months using CDC light traps. Nine-hundred one individuals belonging to nine genera and 59 species were collected. Forcipomyia Meigen was the genus with the highest species richness (n = 20), followed by Atrichopogon Kieffer (14), Dasyhelea Kieffer (8), Stilobezzia Kieffer (7), Culicoides Latreille (5), Bezzia Kieffer (2), Alluaudomyia Kieffer, Monohelea Kieffer, and Palpomyia Meigen (1). Only 15 species were present at the three different areas. Indices of species abundance (ISA) values were statistically similar between urban and Peri-urban areas, but these were significantly lower than those from the natural area. Atrichopogon balseiroi Spinelli, Dasyhelea sp. C., Forcipomyia poulaineae Ingram, and Macfie and F. nana (Macfie) were positively associated with rain fall, while A. albinensis, A. delpontei, D. suarezi, Forcipomyia sp. B, F. sp. I, F. pinamarensis, and F. calchaqui were associated to relative humidity. Species diversity was reduced in urbanized areas and these areas favored ubiquitous species: Forcipomyia taragui Marino, Spinelli and Cazorla, F. poulaineae, and Culicoides venezuelensis Ortiz and Mirsa.