BIHAREAN BIOLOGIST 10 (2): 74-78 ©Biharean Biologist, Oradea, Romania, 2016 Article No.: e151206 http://biozoojournals.ro/bihbiol/index.html

    

Taxonomic study of the genus Meromyza Meigen, 1830 (Diptera: Chloropidae) in Shabestar region with two species as new records for the Iranian fauna

Roya Namaki KHAMNEH1, Samad KHAGHANINIA1,* and Stepan KUBIK2

1. University of Tabriz, Department of Plant Protection, Faculty of Agriculture, 51664, Tabriz, I.R. Iran. 2. Department of Zoology and Fishery, Faculty of Agrobiology, Food and Natural Resources, Czech University of Agriculture, Czech Republic.

*Corresponding author, S. Khaghaninia: E-mail: skhaghaninia@gmail.com

Received: 18. January 2015 / Accepted: 20. May 2015 / Available online: 08. August 2016 / Printed: December 2016

Abstract. Based on the collected specimens from Shabestar region located in East Azarbaijan during 2013–2014, eight species of the genus Meromyza Meigen, 1830 were recognized which among them, M. filippovi Ozerov, 2009 and M. ornata (Wiedemann, 1817) are reported as new records to the Iranian insect fauna. A key to the studied species along with their diagnostic characters, geographical distribution and supplementary figures are given.

Key words: Chloropidae, Meromyza, Iran, Shabestar, new records.

Introduction The family Chloropidae, commonly named grass flies, has 204 genera and more than 2500 described species belongs to 4 subfamilies (Siphonellopsinae, Rhodesiellinae, Oscinelli-nae, Chloropinae) are a fairly large family of Acalyptratae flies (Nartshuk 2012). The frit flies of the genus Meromyza Meigen, 1830 belong to the subfamily Chloropinae which has 95 species in the Holarctic region, 67 of which are identi-fied from Palaearctic and 23 of them are from Nearctic Re-gion and the rest are found in other zoogeographical re-gions. Larvae of this genus are considered as pests of several species of poaceus plants, including the wheat, rye, and bar-ley (Nartshuk & Fedoseeva 2011a). The main characteristics of these flies are as follow: yellowish and greenish elongated body, except of the subgenus Nippomera Fedoseeva et Nart-shuk, 1983 which has a completely black body; the mesono-tum with black, brownish or rufous longitudinal stripes; head square with short setae; ocellar triangle with a black ocellar tubercle and black spots; the hind femur is thickened with two rows of black spines ventrally, the hind tibia is curved accordingly; wing veins R2+3 and R4+5 are curved sharply towards its anterior margin (Nartshuk et al. 1988, Nartshuk & Fedoseeva 2011a, Nartshuk & Andersson 2013). The presence of a wide phenotypic plasticity in the genus like seasonal as well geographical colorations make some difficulties in their identifications (Nartshuk & Fedoseeva 2011a).

In the nearest studies, Ozerov (2009) described Meromyza filippovi Ozerov from the European part of Turkey, Nartshuk & Fedoseeva (2011a, b) reviewed the genus Meromyza in the Palaearctic region, Nartshuk (2011- 2012) studied the chloropids of Turkey and described the Meromyza turcica Nartshuk. Nartshuk & Andersson (2013) published a com-prehensive book entitled “The Frit Flies (Chloropidae, Dip-tera) of Fennoscandia and Denmark” about this family and, Safonkin et al. (2013) studied the distribution of the genus Meromyza in Vologda Oblast and East Poland.

Before this study 19 species of the genus Meromyza had been identified from Iran (Behdad 1982, Rajabi et al. 1997, Nartshuk & Fedoseeva 2011b, Khaghaninia & Gharajedaghi 2013, Khaghaninia et al. 2014). Faunistic study on this genus has not been carried down in Shabestar region so far, there-fore this study was conducted in this.

Materials and Methods Materials were collected by sweeping the poaceus plants’ heads us-ing entomological net from Shabestar region in East Azerbaijan province- Iran during 2013- 2014. Shabestar region is located in the northern east of East Azerbaijan province with X from 45˚5ʹ to 46˚9ʹ E, Y from 37˚5ʹ to 38˚24ʹ N, and varying in altitude from 1275 m to 3195 m a.s.l. The collected specimens were killed in a potassium cya-nide jar. In order to dissection of the male genitalia, the postabdo-men was removed and soaked in boiling 10% KOH solution for about 10 minutes. The specimens were kept in 75% ethanol in glass vials. These Collected specimens were stored in both the Insect Col-lection of Professor Hasan Maleki Milani, Tabriz, Iran (ICHMM) and Czech University of Life Sciences collections (CULS). The species were identified according to Nartshuk et al. (1988), Nartshuk & Fe-doseeva (2011a), and Nartshuk & Andersson (2013). The distribu-tions of the studied species mostly were provided from Nartshuk & Fedoseeva, (2011b) and Nartshuk & Andersson (2013). Results In this study, eight species of the genus Meromyza from the Shabestar region were collected and identified which among them, M. filippovi Ozerov, 2008 and M. ornata (Wiedemann, 1817) as well as M. curvinervis Zetterstedt, 1848; M. facialis Fedoseeva, 1962 and M. pluriseta Péterfi, 1961 are newly re-ported from Iran and the East Azarbayjan province, respec-tively. Key to the studied species of the genus Meromyza Meigen, 1830 (With same modification from Nartshuk et al. 1988, Nartshuk & Fedoseeva 2011a, Nartshuk & Andersson 2013) 1. Abdomen black dorsally (Fig. 16). Ocellar triangle with a large black semisquare spot (Fig. 15). Postgonite as in Fig. 17 Spring form of M. nigriventris Macquart, 1835 — Abdomen pale with or without 1 or 3 black or brown lon-gitudinal stripes 2 2. The last tarsal segment distinctly black (Fig. 7). Postgonite as in Fig. 9 M. filippovi Ozerov, 2008 — All tarsal segments pale or slightly darkened 3 3. Palpi pale, occasionally weakly darkened only apically 4 — Palpi black in apical halves 5 4. Male genitalia (Fig. 21, 22): Epandrium with long setae, end of anterior process of postgonite tapered M. ornata (Wiedemann, 1817)

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— Male genitalia: Epandrium with short setae, postgonite norrower at the apex (Fig. 32) M. variegata Meigen, 1830 5. Median stripe of mesonotum not passing onto scutellum (Fig. 2). Postgonite as in Fig. 1 M. curvinervis Zetterstedt, 1848 — Median stripe of mesonotum passing onto scutellum 6 6. Lower margin of gena with a row of black setae (Fig. 23). Postgonite as in Fig. 25 M. pluriseta Péterfi, 1961 — Lower margin of gena without or with a row of yellow se-tae 7 7. Stripes of mesonotum black and brown (Fig. 12), Postgo-nite as in Fig. 13 Summer form of M. nigriventris Macquart, 1835 — All stripes on mesonotum black 8 8. Postgonite very large, with tip of anterior process de-pressed (Fig. 29) M. saltatrix (Linnaeus, 1761) — Anterior process of postgonite black, with slightly con-cave lower margin (Fig. 6) M. facialis Fedoseeva, 1962 The List of studied Meromyza Meigen, 1830 species Meromyza curvinervis Zetterstedt, 1848 (Fig. 1-3) Material examined: East Azarbaijan province: Shabestar (Shanejan), 38°13'39.3" N, 45°43'07.6" E, 1602 m, 1♂, 28 Jul. 2014; leg. R. Namaki Khamneh.

Host: Ammophila arenaria and Corynephorus canescens (Poaceae) (Nartshuk & Andersson 2013).

Distribution: This species is commonly distributed in palaearctic region including Kazakhstan, Central Asia, Af-ghanistan, East Siberia and the steppes of Mongolia, Iran. Meromyza facialis Fedoseeva, 1962 (Fig. 4-5) Material examined: East Azarbaijan province: Shabestar (Sharafkhaneh), 38°11'30.0" N, 45°30'05.7" E, 1320 m, 2♂♂, 10 Jun. 2014; leg. R. Namaki Khamneh.

Host: Unknown Distribution: This species is identified from the north

Caucasus (Ciscaucasia) and Iran (Rajabi et al. 1997). Meromyza filippovi Ozerov, 2009 (Fig. 7-9) Material examined: East Azarbaijan province: Shabestar (Heris), 38°15'04.2" N, 45°31'02.3" E, 1595 m, 3♂♂, 15 Jun. 2014; leg. R. Namaki Khamneh.

Diagnostic characters: Stripes on mesonotum brownish, median stripe ends before scutellum; abdomen without any stripe; ocellar triangle yellow without black lateral margins; only ultimate tarsal segment black; palpi entirely yellow; lower margin of gena without setae; body length 4 mm.

Host: Unknown Distribution: This species is identified from the European

part of Turkey. First record from Iran. Meromyza nigriventris Macquart, 1835 (Figs. 10-17) Material examined: East Azarbaijan province: Shabestar (Heris), 38°15'04.2" N, 45°31'02.3" E, 1595 m, 90♂♂ 81♀♀, 15 Jul. 2014; (Haftcheshmeh), 38°12'24.1" N, 45°27'29.8" E, 1313 m, 75♂♂ 80♀♀, 19 Jun. 2013; (Khamneh), 38°11'26.2" N, 45°38'08.9" E, 1501 m, 103♂♂ 96♀♀, 12 Jul. 2014; (Kuzekonan), 38°11'07.6" N, 45°33'41.8" E, 1383 m, 119♂♂ 103♀♀, 7 Jun. 2014; (Shanejan), 38°13'39.3" N, 45°43'07.6" E, 1602 m, 351♂♂ 358♀♀, 4 Jun. 2014; (Sharafkhaneh), 38°11'30.0" N, 45°30'05.7" E, 1320 m, 131♂♂ 120♀♀, 3 May. 2014; (Til), 38°15'31.7" N, 45°28'50.8" E, 1489 m, 83♂♂ 101♀♀, 4 Jul. 2014; leg. R. Namaki Khamneh.

Comment: The spring and summer forms are found from

Figure 1-3. Meromyza curvinervis (male): 1. postgonite, lateral view, 2. dorsal view, 3. lateral view.

Figure 4-6. Meromyza facialis (male): 4. dorsal view of head, 5. dorsal view, 6. postgonite, lateral view.

Figure 7-9. Meromyza filippovi (male): 7. lateral view, 8. dorsal view, 9. postgonite, lateral view.

fields near the Orumieh Lake with about 1300 m latitude and mostly from Mishov mountainside with about 1700 m alti-tude, respectively. Host: Larvae develop in different cereals: wheat, barley, rye and many wild grasses: Aegelops sp., Elytrigia repens, E. ten-erum, Agropyron cristatum, Lolium perenne, Arrhanatherum elatius, Phleum pratense, Hierochloe odorata and Calamagrostis

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epigeios. Therefore, this species is a pest of cereals (Nartshuk & Andersson 2013).

Distribution: This species has Holarctic distribution; in the Palaearctic Region, from Western Europe to China and Japan, also in Iran (Khaghaninia et al. 2014). Meromyza ornata (Wiedemann, 1817) (Fig. 18-22) Material examined: East Azarbaijan province: Shabestar (Khamneh), 38°11'26.2" N, 45°38'08.9" E, 1501 m, 2♂♂ 4♀♀, 12 Jul. 2014; leg. R. Namaki Khamneh.

Diagnostic characters: Background color greenish; body elongated; ocellar triangle longer than wide basally, surface of ocellar triangle wrinkled, ocellar triangle yellow; occiput

black; head setae predominantly black; palpi greenish; stripes of mesonotum black, but the middle stripe brownish in anterior part, median stripe passing through scutellum; abdomen with 2 spots on posterior margin of 1st tergit, other tergites with 1 spot at the middle; hind femora 2.5 times as thick as tibiae; epandrium covered with long pale setae; body length 4.0– 4.5 mm.

Host: Larvae live in shoots of Deschampsia caespitosa. The first instar hibernate and in spring move into another plant to continue development (Nartshuk & Fedoseeva 2011b).

Distribution: This species is distributed in Palaearctic Region from Europe to the Russian Far East. The First

Figure 10-13. Summer form of Meromyza nigriventris (male): 10. lateral view, 11. dorsal view of head, 12. dorsal view, 13. postgonite, lateral view.

Figure 18-22. Meromyza ornata (male): 18. dorsal view of head, 19. lateral view of head, 20. dorsal view, 21. dorsal view of epandrium, 22. postgonite, lateral view.

Figure 14-17. Spring form of Meromyza nigriventris (male): 14. Hind femora, 15. dorsal view of head, 16. dorsal view, 17. postgonite, lateral view.

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Figure 23-25. Meromyza pluriseta (male): 23. lateral view of head, 24. dorsal view, 25. postgonite, lateral view.

record from Iran. Meromyza pluriseta Péterfi, 1961 (Fig. 23-25) Material examined: East Azarbaijan province: Shabestar (Til), 38°15'31.7" N, 45°28'50.8" E, 1489 m, 1♂, 4 Jul. 2014; leg. R. Namaki Khamneh.

Host: Larvae feed and develop in shoots of Hierochloe odorata, Elytrigia repens and perhaps on other grasses (Nart-shuk & Andersson 2013).

Distribution: This species is distributed in Palaearctic Region including Kazakhstan, Central Asia, Afghanistan, East Siberia and Mongolia and Iran. Meromyza saltatrix (Linnaeus, 1761) (Fig. 26-29)

Material examined: East Azarbaijan province: Shabestar (Heris), 38°15'04.2" N, 45°31'02.3" E, 1595 m, 5♂♂ 8♀♀, 15 Jul. 2014; (Khamneh), 38°11'26.2" N, 45°38'08.9" E, 1501 m, 7♂♂ 10♀♀, 12 Jul. 2014; (Kuzekonan), 38°11'07.6" N, 45°33'41.8" E, 1383 m, 5♂♂ 2♀♀, 7 Jun. 2014; (Shanejan), 38°13'39.3" N, 2013).

Figure 30-32. Meromyza variegata (male): 30. lateral view of head, 31. dorsal view, 32. postgonite, lateral view.

45°43'07.6" E, 1602 m, 10♂♂ 12♀♀, 4 Jun. 2014; (Sharafk-haneh), 38°11'30.0" N, 45°30'05.7" E, 1320 m, 7♂♂ 6♀♀, 3 May. 2014; (Til), 38°15'31.7" N, 45°28'50.8" E, 1489 m, 10♂♂ 8♀♀, 4 Jul. 2014; leg. R. Namaki Khamneh.

Host: Larvae are phytophagous. The recorded plants as host are Poa pratensis, Elytrigia repens and Festuca rubra (Nart-shuk & Andersson

Distribution: This species has Holarctic distribution which in the Palaearctic Region from Europe to China, and

in the Nearctic Region, only in Alaska. Also in Iran (Behdad 1982, Khaghaninia et al. 2014) Meromyza variegata Meigen, 1830 (Fig. 30-32) Material examined: East Azarbaijan province: Shabestar (Heris), 38°15'04.2" N, 45°31'02.3" E, 1595 m, 3♂♂ 1♀, 15 Jul. 2014; (Shanejan), 38°13'39.3" N, 45°43'07.6" E, 1602 m, 9♂♂ 4♀♀, 4 Jun. 2014; (Til), 38°15'31.7" N, 45°28'50.8" E, 1489 m, 4♂♂ 1♀, 4 Jul. 2014; leg. R. Namaki Khamneh.

Host: This species feed on Phleum phleoides and also can feed on cultivated cereals. (Nartshuk & Andersson 2013, Sa-fonkin et al. 2013).

Distribution: This species is distributed in Europe, Af-ghanistan and Iran (Khaghaninia & Gharajedaghi 2013). Discussion Shabestar region with special situation, between Urmiyeh salty lake in the south and the Mishov mountain in the north, has diverse environments with very rich flora and subsequently insect fauna like frit flies. Species of the genus Meromyza are found in forest, open habitats such as grass-lands, steppe and less frequently, in floodland meadows, on pastures, on roadsides and in fields (Nartshuk & Fedoseeva 2011b). The results show the species M. nigriventris has a large frequency among the other species which followed by M.saltatrix. The species M. nigriventris, one of the most im-portant pests of cereals is collected more significantly from

Figure 26-29. Meromyza Saltatrix (male): 26. lateral view, 27. dorsal view of head, 28. dorsal view, 29. postgonite, lateral view.

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the wheat and barley fields than grasslands, evidently this species prefer the cereals as host more than the grasslands (Nartshuk & Andersson 2013). As the species of this genus could be serious pests of the cereal thus in order to know the fauna of this genus in the other parts of Iran, further studies are necessary. References Behdad, E. (1982): Pests of field crops in Iran. Plant Pests and Diseases Research

Institute, Esfahan, Iran. Khaghaninia, S., Gharajedaghi, Y. (2013): Study of grassland pests of grass flies

(Diptera: Cloropidae) in East Azerbaijan province. Iranian Journal of Forest and Range Protection Research 11(1): 68–77.

Khaghaninia, S., Gharajedaghi, Y., Namaki Khamneh, R. (2014): Some of the chloropid flies (Diptera: Chloropidae) of wheat fields from East Azerbaijan province with new pest records for Iran. Applied Researches in Plant Protection 3(1): 65– 75.

Nartshuk, E.P. (2011-2012): Chloropidae (Diptera) of Turkey with descriptions of new species and new records. Israel Journal of Entomology 41–42: 115–144.

Nartshuk, E.P. (2012): A check list of the world genera of the family Chloropidae (Diptera, Cyclorrhapha, Muscomorpha). Zootaxa 3267: 1–43.

Nartshuk, E.P., Andersson, H. (2013): The Frit Flies (Chloropidae, Diptera) of Fennoscandia and Denmark. Fauna Entomologica Scandinavica, vol. 43, Brill Academic Publishers, Leiden.

Nartshuk, E.P., Fedoseeva, L.I. (2011a): A Review of the Grass flies of the Genus Meromyza Meigen, 1830 (Diptera, Chloropidae) of the Palaearctic Fauna, with a key to the species, analysis of synonymy, host specialization, and geographical distribution: Part 1. Entomological Review 91(1): 103-120.

Nartshuk, E.P., Fedoseeva, L.I. (2011b). A review of grass flies of the genus Meromyza Meigen, 1830 (Diptera, Chloropidae) of the Palaearctic Fauna with a key to species, analysis of the synonymy, host specialization, and geographic distribution. Part 2. Entomological Review 91(6): 778-795.

Nartshuk, E.P., Smirnov, E.S., Fedosceva, L. (1988): Family Chloropidae. pp. 669–731. In: Bei-Bienko G.Y. (eds.), Keys to the insects of the European part of the USSR, vol.5(1): Diptera (Insecta): NHBS- GY Bei-Bienko, Pensoft Publishers.

Ozerov, A.L. (2009): Contributions to the knowledge of European species of the genus Meromyza (Diptera: Chloropidae). Zoologicheskii Zhurnal 88(1): 127-128.

Rajabi, GH.R., Hosseyni, S.M., Mansour Ghazi, M. (1997): Diptera species occurring in Wheat and barley in Iran. Applied Entomology and Phytopathology 64(1/2): 1-12.

Safonkin, A.F., Triseleva, T.A., Akent’eva, N.A. (2013): Distribution of Frit Flies (Chloropidae: Meromyza Mg.) in Vologda Oblast and East Poland. Biology Bulletin 40(5): 479-487.