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 Mythicomyiidae - 2 part proboscis?
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| jorgemotalmeida |
Posted on 02-01-2010 17:01
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 Member Location: Viseu - PORTUGAL Posts: 9296 Joined: 05.06.06 |
what is *really* interesting are Mythicomyiids!!! My lovers! 
Edited by jorgemotalmeida on 02-01-2010 17:02 |
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| jorgemotalmeida |
Posted on 04-01-2010 23:15
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Member Location: Viseu - PORTUGAL Posts: 9296 Joined: 05.06.06 |
I have just received right now an email from my friend Neal Evenhuis. He told me: "I have studied this when working on the pollination behavior of Bombylius. most bee flies have a hypopharynx that can be extended. The proboscis consists of many parts. the top stiff part is the labrum, the bottom part is the labellum, the "tongue" that can be3 extended in many species is the hypophraynx. There are maxillary palps and maxilla on each side, but the palps are reduced or non-existent in Mythicomyiidae. Inside the head, the proboscis can be coiled up to allow its extension when needed. You might see a swelling under the head and this is where the hypopharynx coils inside." (Evenhuis) Isn't it the coolest thing in the Universe? You bet!
Edited by jorgemotalmeida on 04-01-2010 23:18 |
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| Andre |
Posted on 05-01-2010 11:07
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 Member Location: Tilburg, the Netherlands Posts: 2111 Joined: 18.07.04 |
vida wrote: Unfortunately I don't know someone from Portugal. Will look out for your e-mail.  Phil, I think I'll let Roger respond to that one.  Maybe you can hand them over to Ronaldo (he seems to be a very very nice guy), who will have no problem whatsoever to bring them to Jorge personally... |
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| Roger Thomason |
Posted on 05-01-2010 12:52
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 Member Location: Mossbank,Shetland Isles. Posts: 5248 Joined: 17.07.08 |
Ronaldo  . That big car crashing/diving woose comes from Madeira. He wouldn't be able to find his way to Jorge's town.I responded with an anagram or two to Phil via PM. Normal smut. . |
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| vida |
Posted on 05-01-2010 15:15
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Member Location: South Africa Posts: 116 Joined: 28.05.09 |
Hi Jorge. Thanx for clearing up the mystery of the proboscis. Great info. Thx Andre but I'll just send them to Jorge myself. Roger, |
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| jorgemotalmeida |
Posted on 05-01-2010 19:20
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Member Location: Viseu - PORTUGAL Posts: 9296 Joined: 05.06.06 |
Forget that guy... we don't need it.  Thanks a bunch, Vida. (Life in Portuguese I will wait with anxiety for my mythicos. Another thing: look out for nemestrinids and bombyliids (one of the best countries in the world for these families!). The fly with the longer proboscis in all Diptera world is in... SA! Its proboscis reaches 90 to 100 mm in length, this being the longest proboscis of all known Diptera! And it is a nemestrinid. I put that info somewhere here in DI.Found it! Here:  see here other photos: http://www.natura...ngirostris it is Moegistorhynchus longirostris (Nemestrinidae). More on this fly can be read here: http://www.bioone...08.00547.x I transcribed here the text because the site can disappear, so here is: "The idea of coevolution originated with Darwin's proposal that long-proboscid pollinators and long-tubed flowers might be engaged in reciprocal selection, but this has not been demonstrated. Here we test key aspects of Darwin's hypothesis of reciprocal selection in an experiment with naturally interacting populations of extremely long-proboscid flies (Moegistorhynchus longirostris: Nemestinidae) and long-tubed irises (Lapeirousia anceps: Iridaceae). We show that the benefit derived by both the fly (volume of nectar consumed) and the plant (number pollen grains received) depends on the relative length of their interacting organs. Each trait is shown to act both as agent and target in directional reciprocal selection, potentially leading to a race. This understanding of how fitness in both species varies in relation to the balance of their armament allows us to make tentative predictions about the nature of selection across multiple communities. We find that in each community a core group of long-tubed plant species might together be involved in diffuse coevolution with the fly. In poorly matched populations, the imbalance in armament is too great to allow reciprocal selection to act, and these species might instead experience one-sided selection that leads to convergence with the core species. Reciprocal selection drives the evolution of the community, then, additional species become attached to the network of interacting mutualists by convergence." Hopefully you know that flower! If so, please go find that fantastic nemestrinid feeding and hovering on that iris! Finally if you are really interested to know more on this read this all: http://findarticl...n13606619/ Edited by jorgemotalmeida on 06-01-2010 00:43 |
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| nielsyese |
Posted on 05-01-2010 20:25
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 Member Location: Yerseke, NL Posts: 2331 Joined: 13.02.09 |
That's really the most spectacular fly I ever saw! |
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| vida |
Posted on 06-01-2010 15:18
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Member Location: South Africa Posts: 116 Joined: 28.05.09 |
Thank you Jorge. I will keep an eye out for those flies and I will go and look up the flower so that I can look for it. |
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