Journal of
Threatened Taxa | www.threatenedtaxa.org | 26 January 2019 | 11(1): 13188-13190
New records of Chrysomya putoria
and C. thanomthini (Diptera: Calliphoridae) from India, with a revised key to the known
Indian species
Meenakshi Bharti
Department
of Zoology and Environmental Sciences, Punjabi University, Patiala, Punjab
147002, India.
doi: https://doi.org/10.11609/jott.4470.11.1.13188-13190 | ZooBank:
urn:lsid:zoobank.org:pub:DDD913B5-3123-4F81-8699-B9513181DA4E
Editor: Heo Chong
Chin, Universiti Teknologi MARA
(UiTM), Selangor, Malaysia. Date of publication:
26 January 2019 (online & print)
Manuscript details: #4470 | Received 03 August 2018 | Final received 02
November 2018 | Finally accepted 08 January 2019
Citation: Bharti, M. (2019). New records of Chrysomya putoria and C. thanomthini
(Diptera: Calliphoridae)
from India, with a revised key to the known Indian species. Journal
of Threatened Taxa 11(1): 13188–13190; https://doi.org/10.11609/jott.4470.11.1.13188-13190
Copyright: Bharti 2019. Creative Commons Attribution 4.0
International License. Creative Commons Attribution
4.0 International License. JoTT allows
unrestricted use, reproduction, and distribution of this article in any medium
by adequate credit to the author(s) and the source of publication.
Funding: Department of Science and Technology, Ministry of Science and Technology, New Delhi, vide
Project No. SR/WOS-A/LS-109/2016(G)
Competing interests: The author declares no competing interests.
Acknowledgements: I acknowledge the Department of Science and
Technology, Ministry of Science and Technology, New Delhi.
The
cosmopolitan genus Chrysomya Robineau-Desvoidy, 1830 comprises 36 species across the
globe. The members of this necrophagous group are associated with carrion, garbage,
ordure, and other fermenting substances.
Due to their feeding habits, the Chrysomya,
or blow flies, provide an excellent spatio-temporal indicator for forensic entomologists. Furthermore, blowflies are incriminated as
agents of disease or vectors in medicine, public health, and veterinary (Lutz
et. al. 2017).
To
date, nine species are known from the Indian region (excluding Chrysomya defixa,
which is of a dubious record from India) (Senior-White et al. 1940; Bharti 2011). Chrysomya putoria (Wiedmann, 1830) and C. thanomthini
Kurahashi & Tumrasvin, 1977 are the new additions to the group. Both species were collected from Himachal Pradesh. An updated key to the known Indian species is
provided herewith.
The
specimens were collected with sweeping nets from apple orchards in the state of
Himachal Pradesh. The material was
examined under a Nikon SMZ 1500 stereozoom
microscope. Digital images of C. putoia and C. thanomthini
were captured using MP Evolution Digital camera (with auto-montage software, Syncroscopy, Division of Synoptics
Ltd.) mounted on the microscope. The
images were then processed with Adobe Photoshop CS5. The specimens are housed at Punjabi
University, Patiala (PUPDC: Punjabi University Patiala Diptera
collection).
Chrysomya putoria (Wiedemann,
1830)
(Images 1, 2)
Material
examined: #101 PUPDC, 2 ex.,
24.vi.2018, female, Jubbal, Himachal Pradesh, India,
31.1090N, 77.6620E, 2,000m, coll. M. Bharti.
Distribution: India (new record),
Saudi Arabia, Iran, all over Africa south of Sahara (including western Africa,
northwest to Senegal and Gambia, northeast to Sudan, Eritrea and Ethiopia, and
south to South Africa), and the Neotropical region.
Remarks: The species differs from
other closely related species like C. chloropyga
in having conspicuous dusting in the dorsal part of its thorax, black marginal
bands on abdominal segment III broad, even up to one-half of tergite length, and posterior edge of tergite
V of the female entire, without incisions.
Ecology: The species was collected
from a heap of rotten apples in the apple orchards in the town of Jubbal, Shimla District, Himachal
Pradesh. The region is famous for its apple
orchards and generally remains cool throughout the year with summers ranging
from 15˚C to 30˚C. The temperature falls
below zero degrees in the winter season.
Chrysomya thanomthini Kurahashi & Tumrasvin,
1977 (Images 3, 4)
Material examined: #102 PUPDC,
10 ex., 26.vi.2018, females, Jubbal,
Himachal Pradesh, India, 31.1090N, 77.6620E, 2,000m,
coll. M. Bharti.
Distribution: India (new record),
Nepal, Myanmar, Thailand, Malaysia (peninsular and Borneo), and southern China
(Yunnan).
Remarks: Chrysomya
thanomthini could be differentiated from closely
related species like C. megacephala (Fabricius) and C. pinguis (Walker)
on the basis of its purple colour and absence of presutular intra-alar bristles. The post-humeral bristle does not occur in
the male but is weakly developed in females.
Ecology: The species was collected
from the forests near the town of Jubbal, Shimla
District, Himachal Pradesh.
Key to the Indian
species of the genus Chrysomya Robineau-Desvoidy, 1830
1 Anterior spiracle white/yellow ……………………………………..……….……………………
……………….....……………………... 2
- Anterior spiracle black to
dark brown …………………………………………………………………………...……….…………………. 5
2 Only one katepisternal setae developed (0+1), all hairs on the
surface of tergite V black ………………...………… C. nigripes Aubertin
- Two katepisternal
setae developed (1+1), at least some hairs on the surface of tergite V white ………….…………………………...….
3
3 Dorsal part of thorax with
conspicuous dusting; black transverse marginal abdominal bands on abdominal
segment III broad,
even up to one-half of tergite length,
posterior edge of tergite V of the female entire,
without incision …………………………………… C. putoria (Wiedemann)
- Dorsal part of thorax
shiny, with little dusting, black transverse marginal abdominal segments III and
IV very narrow, up to about a quarter
on segment III and usually not more than about 1/6th in segment IV,
posterior edge of tergite V of female with incision . ……………………….. 4
4 Third antennal segment
wholly dark, blackish brown; proepimeral seta absent ………………………………………. C. albiceps Wiedmann
- Third antennal segment pale
brown-reddish on the inner surface; proepimeral seta present ……………………….... C. rufifacies (Macquart)
5 Femora swollen in male and female,
but more noticeably so in male, eyes dichoptic in both the sexes;
outer-verticals (ov) well developed in male,
female tergite V with median incision, facial ridge
well-developed, high ……..………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
C. villeneuvi Patton
- Femora normal ……………………
………………… ……………………………………………………...………… 6
6 Eyes dichoptic in both
sexes, facets small and uniform, outer verticals well developed in male; female
tergite V with median cleft/incision ………………… ………………..… C. phaonis (Seguy) -
Eyes holoptic
in the male, anterior facets enlarged; dichoptic in the female; outer verticals
absent in male; female tergite V without median
incision ……… … ……..… .……... 7
7 Both upper and lower calypter entirely fuscous black, parafacialia
and genae fuscous ………………………...…………………………..……. 8
- At least base of upper calypter white ………..……………………………………….………………………………………………....……….
9
8 Post humeral bristle
usually developed, medium-sized dark blue or green species, body length less
than 11mm ................. ………………... C.
pinguis (Wiedmann)
- Post humeral bristle
absent, sometimes weakly developed in the female, large dark purple flies, body
length more than 11mm ……………… C. thanomthini Kurahashi
9 Parafacialia
and genae fuscous to black; setulae
and hairs on parafacialia and facialia
blackish; venter of tergite V with black hairs
only;
basal part of upper calypter opaque white, bare
ventrally except for fringe ………………………………………….. C. chani Kurahashi
- Parafacialia
and genae entirely orange; setulae
and hairs on the parafacialia and facialia
yellowish; venter of tergite V intermixed
with
yellow hairs; opaque white basal part of upper calypter
haired ventrally ……………… …………….……………… 10
10 Upper and lower calypter white; facets of male eye somewhat enlarged above,
but not sharply demarcated from the area of
smaller
facets below; frontal stripe of female parallel-sided
……………………………………………………………….......................C. bezziana
Villeneuve
- Upper and lower calypters largely brown except for the pale base; facets of
male eye much enlarged above, sharply demarcated
from
the area of the smaller facets below; frontal stripe of female broader at the
middle of frons, not parallel-sided
………….…………… C. megacephala
(Fabricius)
For
images/figures – click here
References
Bharti, M. (2011). An updated checklist of blow flies (Diptera: Calliphoridae) from
India. Halteres 3: 34–37.
Lutz, L., K.A. Williams, M.H. Villet, M. Ekanem & K. Szpila (2017). Species identification of adult African
blow flies (Diptera: Calliphoridae)
of forensic importance. International Journal of Legal
Medicine 132(3): 831–842.
Nandi, B.C. (2004). Checklist of Calliphoridae (Diptera) of India.
Records of Zoological Survey of India, Occasional Paper 231:
1–47.
Senior-White, R., D. Aubertin
& J. Smart (1940). The Fauna of British India including the Remainder of the Oriental
Region. Today & Tomorrow’s Printers and Publishers,
New Delhi, 288pp.