Researchers have discovered two new species of very rare wasp-like flower flies from north-eastern India and the Western Ghats.
The newly described species, Monoceromyia flavoscutata and M. nigra, belong to the Syrphidae family. They were discovered by researchers H. Sankararaman, a Ph.D scholar from Annamalai University, Tamil Nadu, Anooj S.S., an assistant professor of entomology at the Kerala Agricultural University, Padannakkad, and Ximo Mengual, a scientist from Alexander Koenig Zoological Research Museum, Germany. The study was recently published in the Journal of Asia-Pacific Entomology.
Mr. Anooj told The Hindu that members of the genus are extremely rare with only 12 species reported from India previously. “The new species discovery in this rare genus is happening in India after 80 years,” he said. As part of the study, surveys were done in the forests of Kerala, Tamil Nadu, and Arunachal Pradesh, he added.
Mr. Anooj said in addition to the two new species researchers had revised the genus and redefined seven existing species in the genus.
He explained that the new species, M. flavoscutata, discovered from Thadiyankudisai in Dindigul district, Tamil Nadu, was named after its yellow coloured thoracic ends and can be differentiated from the closely resembling species based on the colouration of the thorax and the wing vein characters, whereas the other new species, M. nigra discovered from West Siang of Basar district of Arunachal Pradesh, differed from the other species based on thoracic, abdominal and facial colouration and wing vein character. It was named as nigra based on the black-coloured thorax.
This genus is recognised by their facial projection from which their antennae arises, petiolated abdomen and colouration which mimic thread-waisted wasps to escape predators.
The one discovered from Western Ghats (Thadiyankudisai) was found to show a peculiar habit of egg laying on tree sap. The immature stages of the genus are reported to show interesting habitat preferences like sap runs and rot holes of trees, colonies of stingless bees and water fills of plants like bamboo.
Mr. Anooj said the discovery of such rare species with specialised habitat preferences highlighted the diversity of the Western Ghats and north-eastern India and the need for the conservation of natural vegetation in these region.
