Hemipyrellia Townsend, 1918: 154

Kurahashi, Hiromu & Kirk-Spriggs, Ashley H., 2006, The Calliphoridae of Namibia (Diptera: Oestroidea), Zootaxa 1322 (1), pp. 1-131 : 57-58

Genus: Hemipyrellia Townsend, 1918: 154 .

TYPE SPECIES: Hemipyrellia curriei Townsend, 1918 (= Lucilia fernandica Macquart, 1855 ), by original designation.

NOTES: A genus restricted to the Old World. Hemipyrellia spp. superficially resemble Lucilia spp. and have sometimes been classified in that genus (Zumpt 1956: 63). Species of the genus all appear to breed in dung and carcasses. Ishijima (1967: 68), for example, reared H. ligurriens (Wiedemann, 1830) from carrion, rubbish and dung in Japan. Some species have been implicated as a facultative cause of wound myiasis (vide infra).

Hemipyrellia fernandica (Macquart, 1855: 132 (112)) ( Lucilia ).

= toeniops misspelling of taeniops Bigot, 1860: 542 ( Lucilia ) by Pont (1980: 793).

Fig. 49 .

TYPE LOCALITY: Fernando Póo [‘Amérique méridionale. Fernando.’ error] .

DISTRIBUTION: Widespread in the Afrotropical Region: Botswana, Burundi, Cameroon, Democratic Republic of Congo, Côte d’Ivoire, Central African Republic, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Liberia, Malawi, Madagascar, Mozambique, Namibia, Nigeria, Príncipe Is., São Tomé Is.,? Senegal, South Africa (Cape, Natal, Transvaal), Sudan, Togo and Zimbabwe.

MATERIAL: 1♀, Okahandja , 22.iii.[19]51, Gaerdes, H25135 ; 1♀, same except: 16.iii.[19]51, H25146 ; 1♀, Dakota 424(2), 22.ii.1992, Pusch ; 1♀, Ruacana area , 14.iii.1997, Koch ( MT) ; 1♀, Helio (2), 27.iii–4.v.1988, Griffin (1) ( PT) ; 1♀, Sambyo Catholic Mission , 20.ii.1992, Roberts & Cunningham ; 1♀, Okaukuejo , vi.1991, Versfeld ; 1♂, Aha Hills at(1): 21–25.xii.1998, Kirk­ Spriggs (1), Marais & Mann ( MT) ; 1♀, Kwando River: Susuwe , 28.ix–2.x.1998, Kirk­ Spriggs (1) ( MT) dry woodland; 1♂, Salambala campsite, 22–24.ii.2001, Kirk­Spriggs (1) & Marais ( MT) ; 2♂, 6♀, same except: 28.xii.2002, Kirk­Spriggs (2) ( HT) faeces; 3♀, same except: 8–10.ii.2004, Kirk­Spriggs (1) ( HT) fruit; 1♂, 2♀, same except: ( MT) ; 1♀, Salambala , 4 km NE of, 25.ii–1.iii.2001, Kirk­Spriggs (1) & Marais ( MT) ; 1♀, mopane in Salambala M4, 24–26.ii.2001, Marais & Kirk­Spriggs (1) ( YP) .

NOTES: A very common fly in the Afrotropical Region, often mistaken for Lucilia sericata and L. cuprina by non­dipterists. The species is said to be viviparous, but is really oviparous and breeds in faeces and decomposing carcasses. It is also recorded as a facultative cause of wound myiasis in domesticated animals (Zumpt 1956: 63), although later Zumpt (1965: 46 – footnote) noted that the genus Hemipyrellia “… may yet be found to be involved in myiasis ”. No other entry for H. fernandica (or its synonyms) is listed in that work. Zumpt and Ledger (1967), however, reared the species in Africa from wound myiasis in the hedgehog Atelerix frontalis (A. Smith) ( Erinaceidae ) and Disney (1973) reared it from small mammal carrion (lizard, snake, bird, and mouse). Cuthbertson (1933: 104) notes that males feed on the nectar of flowers, while females feed on septic liquids exuding from wounds and dead animals. He observed larvae in dead birds and in the carcasses of cattle and sheep. In Namibia the species has been collected in hanging traps baited with faeces and fermenting fruit, yellow pans, pitfall and Malaise traps. Central, north and north­eastern Namibia; in the ‘arid’ and ‘mesic’ savanna and nama­karoo biomes (Etosha Pan) ( Fig. 49 ). The species appears to occur throughout the year, but is most abundant in the warmer months of February and December (vide Table 2). The 3 rd instar larva was described by Zumpt and Ledger (1967) and Ishijima (1967).

FORENSIC SIGNIFICANCE: This is not a primary biodegrader, so of little significance in forensic investigations. When encountered, it is usually attracted to intestinal tract contents, rather than decomposing tissue (M. Mansell pers. comm.). For general further information vide Greenberg and Kunich (2002).

SUBFAMILY: PHUMOSIINAE

Figures

FIGURES 45–50. 45. Distribution (coverage) of all known records of Calliphoridae from Namibia. 46. Namibian biomes, after Irish (1994), with amendments. 47–50. Distributions of Namibian Calliphoridae species. 47. Lucilia cuprina (Wiedemann). 48. L. sericata (Meigen). 49. Hemipyrellia fernandica (Macquart). 50. Phumosia sp. 1 nr. mossopi Zumpt.