Abstract
A new Megaselia species, M. shadeae, with a large, central, pigmented and bubble-like wing spot and a greatly enlarged radial wing vein fork, is described from Zurquí de Moravia, Costa Rica. As part of the Zurquí All Diptera Biodiversity Inventory (ZADBI) project, it represents the first of an incredible number of new phorid species to be described from this one Costa Rican cloud forest site. A new, streamlined method of description for species of this enormous genus of phorid flies is presented.
Highlights
The genus Megaselia Rondani has been characterized as the “Diptera enfant terrible” (Smith 1984) and as an "open-ended taxon" (Bickel 2009)
The life histories within this single genus are more diverse than the rest of the family combined, with some Megaselia species being predators, parasitoids, kleptoparasites, and commercial pests
The species described is distinguished from species once classified in these genera by presence of the wing spot. The presence of such a remarkable and distinct undescribed species of Neotropical Megaselia is indicative of the paucity of taxonomic resources currently available for this fauna
Summary
The genus Megaselia Rondani has been characterized as the “Diptera enfant terrible” (Smith 1984) and as an "open-ended taxon" (Bickel 2009). The life histories within this single genus are more diverse than the rest of the family combined, with some Megaselia species being predators, parasitoids, kleptoparasites, and commercial pests They consume fungi, plants, other insects at every stage, carrion, and many other substrates thought truly uninhabitable (Disney 1994). Due to the prevalence of “tramp” species of Megaselia that appear and establish themselves in areas around the world, all available literature, regardless of geographic region, must be utilized to determine the status of a Megaselia species with any certainty This process can be extremely time consuming and often involves reading dozens of descriptions for each specimen you are attempting to key. The authors hope that comparable systems might be adopted for challenging taxa in Insecta and beyond, as such standardized descriptions allow rapid assimilation into taxonomic databases and larger scale projects
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