Abstract
The flower flies (Diptera, Syrphidae) of French Polynesia are revised. A total of nine syrphid species were recorded from the five archipelagos of French Polynesia. Among them are two species new to science, Allograpta jacqi Mengual & Ramage sp. nov. and Melanostoma polynesiotes Mengual & Ramage sp. nov., and a new record for this country, Syritta aenigmatopatria Hardy, 1964. We provide DNA barcodes for all flower fly species of French Polynesia, making the syrphid fauna of this country the first one in the world to be entirely barcoded. New data on biology, flowers visited and some taxonomic notes are provided. An identification key for the species of Syrphidae in French Polynesia is given, as well as an identification key for the species of Melanostoma Schiner, 1860 in the Australasian and Oceanian Regions.
Highlights
The terrestrial arthropods of French Polynesia form a peculiar fauna, with several missing orders among the Hexapoda, a phenomenon called taxonomic disharmony (Roderick & Gillespie 2016)
A total of 41 DNA barcodes were obtained for the following flower fly species present in French Polynesia: A. jacqi sp. nov. (1), A. nigripilosa (3), I. scutellaris (12), M. polynesiotes sp. nov. (4), O. obesa (9), P. vinetorum (7), S. aenigmatopatria (2) and S. oceanica (3)
The study of the recently collected material and the specimens deposited in the MNHN and BMNH resulted in a new species record for French Polynesia, Syritta aenigmatopatria, and two species new to science, Allograpta jacqi sp. nov. and Melanostoma polynesiotes sp. nov
Summary
The terrestrial arthropods of French Polynesia form a peculiar fauna, with several missing orders among the Hexapoda, a phenomenon called taxonomic disharmony (Roderick & Gillespie 2016). The absence of major taxonomic groups is to some degree counterbalanced by a high endemism rate resulting from numerous local speciation events. Munroe (1996) showed that there is a progressive decrease in the number of founding stocks and an increase in the proportion of radiating speciation with distance from the Papuan source areas, known as the ‘radiation zone’ (MacArthur & Wilson 1967). The pollinator entomofauna is poorly known in French Polynesia. Studies on the pollinator entomofauna of French Polynesia are ongoing and the present work is a first contribution regarding pollinator insects
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