Lucilia cluvia ( Walker, 1849 ), 1926

Whitworth, Terry, 2014, A revision of the Neotropical species of Lucilia Robineau-Desvoidy (Diptera: Calliphoridae), Zootaxa 3810 (1), pp. 1-76 : 24-25

2. Lucilia cluvia ( Walker, 1849)

Figs. 1 , 10 , 161 , Tables 1, 2

Musca cluvia Walker, 1849: 885 . Holotype female (BMNH, examined). Type locality: West Indies (as “ West India. From Mr. Children’s collection”). Note: The holotype is intact and in reasonably good condition; it is typical for the female of the species.

Lucilia cluvia: Shannon 1926: 133 ; Aubertin 1933: 418; Curran 1934: 472, likely a misidentification, see discussion below; Whitworth 2006: 720; Amat et al. 2008: 234; Whitworth 2010: 20 ; Kosmann et al. 2013: 77.

Phaenicia cluvia: Hall 1948: 236 ; James 1970: 10; Mariluis et al. 1994: 30 (misidentification, see discussion section below); Mariluis 2002: 99 (misidentification); Mariluis & Mulieri 2003: 87 (misidentification); Centeno et al. 2004: 388 (misidentification).

Lucilia pilatei Hough, 1899: 287 . Syntypes, 5 males and 17 females (“Type, male” in FMNH according to Hall 1948: 236; no syntypes examined). Type locality: United States, Georgia, Tifton.

Lucilia pilatei: Townsend 1908: 122 ; Shannon 1924: 80.

Notes on synonymy. Both Aubertin (1933) and Hall (1948) synonymized L. pilatei with L. cluvia . Hough (1899) noted this species has a “white beard”; only one species of Lucilia in the Nearctic Region is known to have pale setae on the gena and this is L. cluvia .

Diagnosis. One of seven species in the Neotropical Region with pale setae on the gena. Lucilia cluvia is the only species in the region that has the combination of pale setae on gena and basicosta pale orange ( Figs. 1 , 10 ). The pale orange basicosta is also found in five other species in the region, including two species with three postacrostichals ( L. cuprina and L. sericata ), two species known only from the West Indies ( L. problematica and L. retroversa ), and one species ( L. deceptor ) known only from the Galápagos and Cocos Islands. Both calypters are pale in both sexes, a condition found in only six species in the region (Table 2). Males of L. cluvia have an exceptionally wide frons, 0.12 (0.10–13/13) of head width at narrowest, which readily distinguishes this species from other similar species. The broad frons in males is unique to this species with two postacrostichals on the mainland in the Neotropics. The males of the three species with two postacrostichals in the Galápagos also have a very broad frons, as do the two species with three postacrostichals in the Neotropics. Lucilia cluvia is known only from Central America, the West Indies, and the Nearctic Region.

Description. See Whitworth (2010) for details of characters and figures of species character states.

Specimens examined. (11 males, 17 females). Costa Rica (3 males, 1 female): Guanacaste . 2 males [BNNR186], 14km S Cañas , July 11–20, 1991, F.D. Parker ( LACM) ; 1 male [BNNR187], same data except July 21–31, 1991, F.D. Parker ; same data except July 28, 1991 ; 1 female, 3 mi SE R. Naranjo , July 29–31, 1993, F.D. Parker . Guatemala. 1 female, San Jose , May 1943, D.G. Hall ( USNM) . Honduras. 7 females, Rio Grande, July , 1935, J.J. White ( BMNH) . Mexico (3 males, 3 females): Campeche . 1 male, 1 female, Ciudad del Carmen , Aug. 5, 1964, Paul J. Spangler ( USNM) . Chiapas. 1 male, Puerto Madero , June 6, 1969, B.V. Peterson ( CNC) ; Nayarit. 1 male, San Blas , Dec. 30, 1969, D.L. Briggs ( FSCA) . Oxaca . 1 female, Mitla , April 9, 1953, R.C. Bechtel, E.I. Schlinger ( EMEC) . Vera Cruz. 1 female, Catemaco , Sept. 6, 1974, W. Hanson, G. Bohart ( LACM) . West Indies. Martinque : 1 female, Aug. , 1957, J.W. Boyes ( CNC) . Puerto Rico. 5 males, 4 females : 1 male, Joyuda , Mayaguez, Dec. 8, 1981, Walter Vasquez ( UPR) . 4 males, 2 females, San Juan, Carolina Bosque de Piñones , May 5–9, 1990, flight trap in mangroves, G.B. Fairchild ( FSCA) ; 1 female [BNNR185], Quebradillas, 6.3 km SSE La Casa de Piedra, east side of Lago Guajataca , 18°22'24"N 66°54'22"W, June 15, 1996, C. Young et al. ( CMNH) ; 1 female [BNNR050], Mayaguez, UPRM Campus, Bosque Colegio Ciencias Agricolas , July 14, 2008, S. Yusseff ( UPR) .

Distribution. Widespread, though rare throughout the southeastern United States, Mexico, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Honduras, and the West Indies.

Discussion. Curran (1934a) listed L. cluvia from Guyana (as British Guiana), this is almost certainly a misidentification as this species has not otherwise been found in South America. Lucilia albofusca also has pale setae on the gena (like L. cluvia ), it is a common species in Guyana and French Guiana and is likely what he was seeing. Mariluis et al. (1994) recorded this species from Argentina, Colombia, Ecuador, Mexico, Paraguay, Peru and Venezuela and described three forms of this species. They distinguished L. eximia and L. cluvia based, in part, on the color of setae on the gena (jowls). They described the gena of L. eximia with white pilosity and the gena of L. cluvia without white pilosity. The authors listed L. rica and L. ibis as synonyms of L. cluvia , this was a mistake, both are valid species. The discussion of L. cluvia was repeated in Mariluis (2002). In fact, the reverse condition exists; L. cluvia has pale setae on the gena while L. eximia has dark setae on the gena. Lucilia cluvia is the only mainland species with the combination of a pale yellow to orange basicosta and pale setae on the gena in the region. The frons width of male L. cluvia is distinctive, 0.12 (0.10–0.13) of head width at narrowest; it is broader than any other mainland Neotropical Lucilia with two postsutural acrostichals ( Lucilia males of three species in the Galápagos have a broader frons). Mariluis & Mulieri (2003) recorded this species from Argentina, Brazil and Uruguay and several authors appear to have followed their identification. I believe all records of this species from South America are likely an error. Amat et. al. (2008) provided a key to species of Colombia, the characters given in the key appear to be for L. cluvia , but the authors do not indicate they collected it there and there is no evidence this species occurs there.

Barcodes for four specimens were obtained; two specimens from Puerto Rico and two from Costa Rica and they formed a distinct group ( Fig. 161 ).

Figures

FIGURE 161. A neighbor joining tree of specimens and species of Neotropical Lucilia using CO1 DNA barcode, made with K2P distance and generated in BOLD.

FIGURES 1–6. 1–2. Left lateral view of gena=g and postgena=pg showing color of setae on gena. 1. L. cluvia, setae pale. 2. L. eximia, setae dark. Left lateral view of head showing condition of setae below and behind postocular row on occiput (white arrow). 3. L. albofusca female, setae pale and weak. 4. L. ochricornis female, setae stout and dark. Left lateral view of eye facet size, see white arrows 5. L. ochricornis male, anterior and posterior facets very small. 6. L. purpurascens male, anterior facets twice the diameter of posterior facets.

FIGURES 7–15. 7–9. Upper and lower calypter color. 7. L. eximia female, both pale. 8. L. japuhybensis female both dark, both sexes. 9. L. albofusca female, upper pale, lower dark, both sexes.10–11. Basicosta color left lateral view. 10. L. cluvia female, basicosta orange. 11. L. eximia female, basicosta brown. 12–15. Pattern of microtomentum on thorax viewed from the rear. 12. L. purpurascens female, heavy on whole dorsum of thorax. 13. L. woodi female, broad band on presutural area of thorax. 14. L. rognesi female, patches on presutural area of thorax. 15. L. nitida female, microtomentum absent, presutural area of thorax all polished.