Male sciarids collected in Australia from inside post-entry quarantine and domestic greenhouses and from vegetable gardens and various plants, were slide mounted and identified. Specimens intercepted ...during on-arrival biosecurity inspections of imported nursery stock plants were also examined, and the New South Wales Department of Primary Industries collection of slide-mounted Sciaridae was reviewed. Plant and mushroom pest species that are present in Australia are Bradysia impatiens (Johannsen), B. ocellaris (Comstock), Lycoriella agraria (Felt), L. ingenua (Dufour) = Sciara womersleyi Séguy, 1940 syn. n., L. sativae (Johannsen) = Sciara auberti Séguy, 1940 syn. n., Sciara jeanneli Séguy, 1940 syn. n., Sciara solispina Hardy, 1956 syn. n., and Cosmosciara hartii (Johannsen, 1912) comb. n. = Plastosciara perniciosa Edwards, 1922 syn. n. The last species is a new record for Australia. Bradysia tilicola (Loew) and Pnyxia scabiei (Hopkins) are potential pest species, but they have not been reported yet from Australia. An identification key to enable separation of the pest species is provided. Species with uncertain connections to plant and mushroom cultures are B. pallipes (Fabricius), B. strenua (Winnertz, 1867) = B. watsoni Colless, 1962 syn. n., Corynoptera concinna (Winnertz), (all three species are new records for the Australian mainland) and Hyperlasion aliens Mohrig (a new record for Tasmania). Bradysia spatitergum (Hardy) and Scatopsciara atomaria (Zetterstedt) were intercepted during the on-arrival biosecurity inspections of live plants imported from China and Canada respectively. Both species are widespread overseas but are not known to occur in Australia.
In this second part on the black fungus gnats of Queensland, Australia, nine species are described as new for science. These are: Pseudolycoriella angustoantennata sp. n., Psl. breviradiata sp. n., ...Psl. consectaria sp. n., Psl. fuscovenosa sp. n., Psl. globostylata sp. n., Psl. notanda sp. n., Psl. paucispinata sp. n., Psl. secura sp. n. and Psl. unispinata sp. n. The following three species are new for Australia: Psl. bisulca Vilkamaa, Hippa Mohrig, 2012, known from New Caledonia; Psl. snellingi Mohrig, 2013, reported from Papua New Guinea and Psl. horribilis (Edwards, 1931), described from Sumatra. All species are illustrated and keyed.
The following 17 species are described as new for science: Austrosciara heterospinata sp. n., Aus. kalliesi sp. n., Aus. multispinulata sp. n., Aus. stockerae sp. n., Aus. trichovenosa sp. n., ...Bradysia chloroantennata sp. n., B. fuscovirgata sp. n., B. loudoni sp. n., B. macrotrichata sp. n., B. nigroantennata sp. n., B. parareflexa sp. n., Cratyna (Peyerimhoffia) subvagabunda sp. n., Euricrium (Austroeuricrium) australiensis sp. n., Phytosciara crocera sp. n., Pseudolycoriella latostylata sp. n., Psl. rubroalata sp. n., and Scatopsciara nigrothoracica sp. n. The following 4 species are new records for Australia: B. aspercera Mohrig, B. centidens Vilkamaa, Hippa Mohrig (both from Papua New Guinea), B. gibbosa Vilkamaa, Hippa Mohrig and Pseudolycoriella capillosa Vilkamaa, Hippa Mohrig (both from New Caledonia). Euricrium australiensis sp. n. is the type species of the subgenus Austroeuricrium subgen. n. First detections of the species B. conjuncta (Skuse), B. exsequialis (Skuse), B. pernitida (Skuse) and B. pictipes (Skuse) were made after their description in the 19th century. One species was declared as a new synonym: B. centidens Vilkamaa, Hippa Mohrig, 2012 = B. mutuata Mohrig, 2016 syn. n. Five species were excluded from the subgenus Peyerimhoffia. Four are newly combined in the genus Corynoptera, crassistylata group C. sparsula (Shi Huang) comb. n., C. brachypoda (Shi Huang) comb. n., C. yunnana (Shi Huang) comb. n., C. shennongjiana (Shi Huang) comb. n., one in Corynoptera s. str. C. longiprojecta (Shi Huang) comb. n.. Corynoptera longiprojecta (Shi Huang) is a junior synonym of Corynoptera diversicalcaria Mohrig, 2004 from Papua New Guinea.
A total of 27 male sciarid types described by Skuse (1888 and 1890), held in the Australian National Insect Collection, Canberra, and the Australian Museum, Sydney, were remounted and examined ...microscopically. Of these, 25 species were described as Sciara Meigen, one as Zygoneura Meigen and one as Trichosia Winnertz. Revision of these species revealed the following: 13 species belong to the genus Bradysia Winnertz (B. amabilis, B. conjuncta, B. crassicornis, B. exsequialis, B. frequens, B. froggatti, B. luctifica, B. maesta, B. mastersi, B. ornatula, B. pernitida, B. pictipes, B. unica), 1 species to the genus Corynoptera Winnertz (C. minutela), 4 species to the genus Austrosciara Schmitz & Mjöberg (Aus. infrequens, Aus. montivaga, Aus. spectabilis, Aus. winnertzi), 2 species to the genus Pseudolycoriella Menzel & Mohrig (Psl. cavatica, Psl. ignobilis), 1 species to the genus Pseudozygomma Mohrig (Pseudoz. maculipennis), 1 species to the genus Sciara Meigen (Sc. tryoni), and 1 species to the genus Scythropochroa Enderlein (Scyth. macleayi). In total 26 species were new combinations. Eight species names were declared as new synonyms: Bradysia pictipes (Skuse, 1888) = Sciara notata Skuse, 1888 syn. n. and = Bradysia seticornis Vilkamaa, Hippa & Mohrig, 2012 (from New Caledonia) syn. n.; Bradysia conjuncta (Skuse, 1890) = Sciara serenipennis Skuse, 1890 syn. n.; Pseudolycoriella cavatica (Skuse, 1888) = Sciara familiaris Skuse, 1888 syn. n. and = Sciara festiva Skuse, 1888 syn. n.; Bradysia luctifica (Skuse, 1888) = Bradysia planistylata Vilkamaa, Hippa & Mohrig, 2012 syn. n.; Sciara tryoni Skuse, 1890 = Sciara insulana Vilkamaa, Hippa & Mohrig, 2015 syn. n. (both species are from New Caledonia); Austrosciara winnertzi (Skuse, 1888) = Sciara rufulenta Edwards, 1927 syn. n. (from New Zealand). Lectotype specimens were designated for 17 species in order to fix the names.
The genus Pseudolycoriella Menzel & Mohrig, 1998 is distributed worldwide and especially species rich within the southern hemisphere. Within the Australasian region it is known from New Zealand ...(Mohrig & Jaschhof 1999; 5 species), New Caledonia (Köhler & Menzel 2013; 14 species) and Papua-New Guinea (Mohrig 2013; 22 species). Here we report the first records of the genus from Norfolk Island and Australia.
The hypothesis that bioluminescence produced by larvae of the New Zealand glowworm, Arachnocampa luminosa, attracts prey was tested experimentally in Reserve Cave, Waitomo, New Zealand, and in its ...bush-clad entrance over a total of 200 days during winter, spring, and summer. We compared catches on transparent adhesive traps placed either over glowworms or over areas from which glowworms had been removed. Adhesive traps over glowworms caught significantly more invertebrates per trap per day than did control traps. Glowworms in bush attracted greater numbers and types of invertebrates than did glowworms in the cave. Dipters predominated in both bush (86% of the total catch) and cave (89%). Also caught were small numbers of Araneae, Coleoptera, Hymenoptera, Orthoptera, Trichoptera, Gastropoda, Acarina, and Neuroptera-listed in order of abundance-but no adults of A. luminosa were caught. Glowworms under adhesive traps survived with little or no food for up to 78 days.
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