New Records of Ground and Tiger Beetles (Coleoptera: Carabidae) As Prey for Asilidae (Diptera) in the High Plains of New Mexico and Texas

Abstract

One hundred and fifty records of Carabidae (three subfamilies, six tribes, 16 genera, and 24 species) preyed upon by 23 species (in seven genera) of robber flies (Diptera: Asilidae) in the High Plains of eastern New Mexico and adjacent west Texas are listed. Five species of cicindelines represented 42% of all carabid records, while 19 non-cicindelines comprised 58%. Four species of ground/tiger beetles represented 66% of all records: Cicindelidia punctulata (Olivier), 22.7%; Selenophorus pedicularius Dejean, 21.3%; Cicindelidia ocellata (Klug), 11.3%; and Harpalus amputatus amputatus Say, 10.7%. These four species were preyed upon by 9, 11, five, and four species of robber flies, respectively. The top four asilid predators of Carabidae, based on percentage of total records, were Saropogon combustus Loew, 14.7%; Heteropogon patruelis (Coquillett), 14.0%; Efferia helenae (Bromley), 12.7%; and Proctacanthus milbertii Macquart, 10.0%. Twelve species of carabids are represented by only one or two records. No robber flies were identified as specialists on ground beetles; most species, notably in Efferia Coquillet, are considered generalist predators. These new records represent a significant addition to the previous knowledge of carabid prey taken by robber flies, particularly for the non-cicindelines. Asilid predation on tiger beetles may be more significant than previously thought. A review of previously published records on carabid prey taken by Asilidae is given.