Thread subject: Diptera.info :: A stray Bibio lanigerus
Posted by John Carr on 06-06-2023 19:15
#1
In 2008 and 2009 in Massachusetts, USA I saw some
Bibio that I couldn't place in the regional key (Hardy, 1958). They almost matched
Bibio vestitus but the posterior wing veins were dark. I assumed I had made a mistake in the key and forgot about them.
This year I learned we have an introduced population of the European species
Bibio lanigerus in northeast USA. It has been observed within ~30 km of the coast from New York City to New Hampshire. It is still outnumbered by native species of
Bibio.
Posted by Zeegers on 06-06-2023 19:30
#2
Posterior veins are not dark in (our) lanigerus, somI am not totally convinced. That said, colour of these veins can be very tricky to determine on single pictures …
Theo
Posted by andrewsi on 06-06-2023 21:27
#3
The hind basitarsus looks a little longer than I'd expect in a UK lanigerus.
Posted by John Carr on 06-06-2023 21:37
#4
Are there any distinctive features of
Bibio lanigerus, if I should collect a specimen?
Posted by Zeegers on 07-06-2023 20:51
#5
lanigerus normally has yellow hairs on bith thorax and abdomen.
otherwise, not many positive features. It is more like: lacking other characteristic features.
But that is against an European background.
I am totally ignorant as far as the Nearctic fauna is concerned.
In the foto, the hairs on thoracic dorsum seem dark, which is atypical (but not unheard of) in lanigerus.
Theo