Sciophila fractinervis
Scientific classification
Kingdom:
Animalia
Phylum:
Arthropoda
Class:
Insecta
Order:
Diptera
Family:
Mycetophilidae
Subfamily:
Sciophilinae
Genus:
Sciophila
Species:
S. fractinervis
Binomial name
Sciophila fractinervis

Sciophila fractinervis is a species of fungus gnat in the family Mycetophilidae.

Distribution

Sciophila fractinervis is a tropical species and was originally described in 1940 by Frederick Wallace Edwards using specimens collected by Friedrich 'Fritz' Plaumann from the neighbourhood of Nova Teutonia, Santa Catarina, Brazil.[1] S. fractinervis has been found on cultivated greenhouse plants in the United Kingdom[2] and was recorded by Peter J. Chandler in 2010 on examples of commercially-grown Eustoma grandiflorum from Warwickshire. [3] This species was also recorded on greenhouse examples of Platycerium and Beaucarnea in the Netherlands in 2005.[4] S. fractinervis is considered by RINSE (Registry of non-native species in the Two Seas region countries) as a non-native species in Great Britain, France, Belgium and the Netherlands.[5]

Wing of the fungus gnat Sciophila fractinervis (male lectotype specimen, NHMUK010626504 BMNH258029).

Description

The larvae of Sciophila fractinervis are brown in colour and have a glossy appearance, due to being enclosed in a mucus tube created from labial glands around the mouth.[2]

The adults have a dark grey head with a yellowish face, a yellowish thorax, brown abdomen and yellow legs.[1][3] The mouthparts are black.[1] The wings of the male measure 2.5 - 2.7mm and the wings of the female are 2.9 - 3.2mm.[3][4] Females of the species have shorter antennae than males.[1]

Edwards observed that the macrotrichia (hairs or bristles) on the wings of S. fractinervis are less dense, and therefore more conspicuous than on the comparable species Sciophila ciliata.[1]

Life cycle

Sciophila fractinervis larvae build silky cocoons of webbing either on the basal leaves of their host plant or on the soil underneath.[3] The larvae eat fungus spores which grow upon the webbing to sustain themselves, mainly from saprophytic species of fungus that feed on decaying plant matter.[2] The webbing built by the larvae likely also provides a protective environment against predators as larvae have been observed retreating when the webbing is suddenly vibrated.[2] The leaves of the host plant do not appear to be damaged by the larval activity, at least in cultivated plant examples[2][3] but the webbing is considered unsightly by commercial plant growers.[2] The larvae take about 7-10 days to pupate and emerge as adults.[3][2]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 Edwards, Frederick Wallace (June 1940). "New Neotropical Mycetophilidae (IV) (Diptera)". Revista de Entomologia. Rio de Janeiro. 11 (1–2): 440–465.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Deady, Rob J.; Delaney, Mark A.; Jones, Eleanor; Chandler, Peter J. "Further interceptions of the Neotropical fungus gnat Sciophila fractinervis Edwards, 1940 (Diptera, Mycetophilidae) in Britain with comments and observations on its biology and spread". Biodiversity Data Journal.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Chandler, Peter John (2010). "The South American fungus gnat Sciophila fractinervis (Edwards, 1940) (Diptera, Mycetophilidae) present in Britain" (PDF). Dipterists Digest. 17 (1): 50–52 – via dipterists.org.uk.
  4. 1 2 Chandler, Peter; Pijnakker, Juliette (January 2009). "Tropical fungus gnats established in nurseries in the Netherlands (Diptera: Keroplatidae and Mycetophilidae)". British Journal of Entomology and Natural History. 22 (2): 81–93 – via www.researchgate.net.
  5. ↑ "Sciophila fractinervis". GBIF.org.
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