Mallota cimbiciformis (Fallén, 1817)

Żóralski, Robert, Mielczarek, Łukasz, Skitek, Artur & Trzciński, Paweł, 2022, Review of the genus Mallota Meigen, 1822 (Diptera, Syrphidae) in Poland. Przegląd rodzaju Mallota Meigen, 1822 (Diptera, Syrphidae) w Polsce, Dipteron (Oxford, England) 38 (4), pp. 47-63 : 47-63

Mallota cimbiciformis (Fallén, 1817)

= Syrphus cimbiciformis Fallén, 1817

= M. eristaloides Loew, 1856

= M. cristalloides Schiner, 1864 [misspelling of eristaloides Loew ]

MATERIAL EXAMINED (13 ♂♂, 4♀♀, 10 exx. larvae, 5 exx. ova). POLAND. Southern Baltic Coasts (= Pobrzeża Południowobałtyckie). The Beech Forest near Szczecin = „Stettin, Buchheide” [ VV 71], 22 VI 1908, 1 ♂, leg. G. Schroeder, coll. MIZ PAS ( Schroeder 1909, Karl 1935). Southern Baltic Lakes (= Pojezierza Południowobałtyckie). Poznań: Dendrological Garden of the University of Life Sciences [ XU 21], on a Populus trunk, 31 V 2011, 1 ♂, leg. et coll. P. Trzciński. Swarzędz [ XU 41], 6 VI 2015, 1 ♂, on poplar Populus nigra trunk at the entrance to the tree hollow, leg. et coll. A. Skitek. Swarzędz [ XU 30], 1 VI 2016, 1 ♀, meadow – on flowers of green spurge Euphorbia esula , leg. et coll. A. Skitek. Gortatowo [ XU 41], 7 VII 2015, 1 ♀, flying in chestnut Aesculus hippocastanum hollow, female laid eggs – 5 of them preserved in EtOH75%, leg. et coll. A. Skitek, 5 III 2017, imago (room conditions): 12 IV 2017, 1 ♂, 2 exx. 3rd instar larvae preserved in EtOH75%, chestnut Aesculus hippocastanum hollow, leg. et cult. ex larva, coll. A. Skitek; 8 III 2017, 1 ex. larva preserved in EtOH75%, the same as mentioned above, leg. et coll. A. Skitek. Poznań [ XU 30], 22 III 2017, 7 exx. 3rd instar larvae preserved in EtOH75%, fig. 1c, maple Acer platanoides hollow, fig. 1d, leg.

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A. Skitek, 2 exx. coll. Ł. Mielczarek, 4 exx. coll. A. Skitek, 1 ex. coll. R. Żóralski; 1 IV 2017, adults (room conditions): 11 V 2017, 1 ♂, 20 V 2017, 1 ♀, the same as mentioned above, leg. et cult. ex larvae, coll. A. Skitek; 12 IV 2018, adults (room conditions): 15-16 V 2018, 1 ♂, 1 ♀, the same as mentioned above, leg. et cult. ex larvae, coll. A. Skitek; 8 V 2018, 1 ♂, flying around maple Acer platanoides hollow; 7 VI 2018, 1 ♂, on maple Acer platanoides trunk at the entrance to the tree hollow, leg. et coll. A. Skitek; 20 VI 2021, 3 ♂♂, on leaves of Aegopodium podagraria and flying around maple Acer platanoides hollow, fig. 1e. Central Polish Lowlands (= Niziny Środkowopolskie). Sochaczew distr. Trojanów [ DC 48], 2 VI 1957, 1 ♂, leg. A. Mońko, coll. MIZ PAS ( Trojanowa-Bańkowska 1959, Bańkowska 1961, Bańkowska 1982). Małopolska Uplands (= Wyżyna Małopolska). Kielce [ DB 73], 25 V 1954, 1 ♂, fig. 1a, 1b, leg. J. Karczewski, coll. MIZ PAS ( Trojanowa-Bańkowska 1959, Bańkowska 1961, Żóralski et Kowalczyk 2017b).

DIAGNOSTIC FEATURES. In general appearance and size it resembles other bee-like hoverflies, i.a. Eristalis tenax (Linnaeus, 1758) , Criorhina asilica (Fallén, 1816) , Criorhina pachymera (Egger, 1858) , Brachypalpus valgus Panzer, 1798 and B. laphriformis (Fallén, 1816) but differs from them by the wing venation and characteristic shape, length and dusting of the face, with a shining black facial knob. Eyes bare, in males touching at a point; postpedicel orange-brown; abdomen covered with short adjacent hairs; mesoscutal hairs unicolorous and light brown, without admixture of black hairs; scutellum yellow-brown.

Larva of this species was described by Maibach & Goeldlin (1989) and Krivosheina (2002).

BIOLOGY. Flight period in Poland is from the end of May to the beginning of July. Larvae develop in tree-holes of various deciduous trees, filled with standing water. Adult males were observed resting near the trunk cavities of Acer platanoides L., Aesculus hippocastanum L. and Populus nigra L. waiting for females attracted to predictable oviposition sites. Males aggressively defended their position against intruders of the same genus and other groups of insects. Adults were reared from the larvae collected in a hollow of A. platanoides ; the breading of larvae collected in a A. hippocastanum hollow was unsuccessful.

DISTRIBUTION. Europe, North Africa, Near East ( Pennards et al. 2021a). In Poland known from several sites, some of which are located around Poznań (fig. 1f). In a larger number (10 males and 3 females) reported only from Bukowa Natural Forest near Szczecin ( Schroeder 1909); one specimen proving that observation is present in MIZ PAS collection. Except records published in the material sections, M. cimbiciformis was found in further vicinity of Stettin:

6 VI 1910, 1 male, on Aegopodium L. ( Schroeder 1911), in Murowana Goślina near Poznań [XU32] ( Banaszak 1988) and in Łutownia near Budy [FD84] (8 VII 1996, section: 307/308, leg. S. Turnhout), during one of the summer camps organized by Dutch Youth Organization for Nature Study (NJN) in Poland in Białowieża. The latter was recorded in moist environment and was recorded among typical set of marsh species: Pyrophaena Schiner, 1860 , Tropidia scita (Harris, 1776) , Chalcosyrphus nemorum (Fabricius, 1805) , Helophilus Meigen, 1822 , Anasimyia Schiner, 1864 , Parhelophilus Girschner, 1897 ( Dijkstra & Kalkman 1997).

CONSERVATION. Species listed in the “Red List of Threatened Animals in Poland ” ( Palaczyk et al. 2002) in category EN (endangered) and in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species ( Pennards et al. 2021a) in category LC (Least Concern).

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