Zelia vertebrata
| Zelia vertebrata | |
|---|---|
| |
Scientific classification 
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| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Diptera |
| Family: | Tachinidae |
| Subfamily: | Dexiinae |
| Tribe: | Dexiini |
| Genus: | Zelia |
| Species: | Z. vertebrata
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| Binomial name | |
| Zelia vertebrata | |
| Synonyms | |
Zelia vertebrata is a species of bristle fly in the family Tachinidae. It is a long-bodied fly with strong abdominal bristles and a distinctive abdominal pattern that resembles vertebrae.[5] It has a widespread North American range, with records stretching from east to west from Washington to Maine, north to south from Québec to Florida. Its larval stage parasitizes beetles.[6] It is most active during the day.[7]
Biology[edit]
Zelia vertebrata is a generalist parasitoid, targeting beetle larvae in the families Passalidae, Scarabaeidae, Tenebrionidae, and Cerambycidae.[6] In 1948, Mangrum conducted the most thorough examination of host-parasite interaction of this species, finding that gravid female Zelia vertebrata give birth to live larvae instead of eggs near the entrances of host larval tunnels. These worm-like parasitic larvae crawl through these host tunnels until they encounter a host that they can burrow into. The parasitic larvae possess a modified respiratory system to better take advantage of their hosts. They breathe using spiracles located on their terminal abdominal segments, allowing them to breathe while almost entirely immersed in host tissue. The host's integument responds to this breach by surrounding the protruding larva, enclosing almost the entire length of the parasitoid in cuticle.[8]
As the larva grows within its host, it must disengage from this outgrowth of the host's cuticle in order to better access untapped tissues.[8] Zelia vertebrata is known as saproxylic, depending on moist rotting wood to serve as a habitat for its larval hosts.[9]
Distribution[edit]
Zelia vertebrata can be found across North America, ranging from northern regions of Canada to Northwest Mexico. While more records exist in the eastern portion of the United States, the species has been recorded in Utah.,[10] Guatemala, Mexico.[11]
Taxonomy[edit]
The genus Zelia was erected in 1830 by André Jean Baptiste Robineau-Desvoidy. The synonymous genera Leptoda, Metadexia, Euzelia, and Minthozelia were described after the founding of the genus Zelia by van der Wulp, Coquillett, Townsend, and Townsend respectively.[6]
The species epithet for vertebrata was coined by Say in 1829, describing synonym Dexia vertebrata. Other synonyms include Zelia rostrata and Dexia gracilis.[6]
James E. O'Hara and John O. Stireman collected a morphologically similar fly in the Red River Gorge in eastern Kentucky. Mitochondrial molecular COI and morphological data supported that this was a distinct species to Zelia vertebrata.[12]
References[edit]
- ^ a b Say, T. (1829). "Descriptions of North American dipterous insects". Journal of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia. 6: 149–178. Retrieved 30 December 2022.
- ^ Say, T. (1830). "Descriptions of North American dipterous insects". Journal of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia. 6: 183–188. Retrieved 30 December 2022.
- ^ Wiedemann, Christian Rudolph Wilhelm (1830). Aussereuropäische Zweiflügelige Insekten. Vol. 2. Retrieved 21 April 2020.
- ^ Robineau-Desvoidy, J.B. (1830). "Essai sur les myodaires". Mémoires présentés par divers savans à l'Académie Royale des Sciences de l'Institut de France (Sciences Mathématiques et Physiques). 2 (2): 1–813. Retrieved 7 January 2022.
- ^ "Species Zelia vertebrata". bugguide.net. Retrieved 2021-10-02.
- ^ a b c d "Genus Zelia, Tachinidae of America North of Mexico". www.nadsdiptera.org. Retrieved 2021-10-02.
- ^ "Zelia vertebrata (Say 1829) - Encyclopedia of Life". eol.org. Retrieved 2021-10-28.
- ^ a b Mangrum, James F. (1942-03-01). "The Parasitic Fly, Zelia Vertebrata Say (Diptera, Dexiidae)". Annals of the Entomological Society of America. 35 (1): 73–75. doi:10.1093/aesa/35.1.73. ISSN 0013-8746.
- ^ Ulyshen, Michael D. (2018), Ulyshen, Michael D. (ed.), "Saproxylic Diptera", Saproxylic Insects: Diversity, Ecology and Conservation, Zoological Monographs, vol. 1, Cham: Springer International Publishing, pp. 167–192, doi:10.1007/978-3-319-75937-1_5, ISBN 978-3-319-75937-1, retrieved 2021-10-08
- ^ "Zelia vertebrata (Say, 1829)". www.gbif.org. Retrieved 2021-10-08.
- ^ O’Hara, James E.; Shannon, J. Henderson; D. Monty, Wood (5 March 2020). "World Checklist of the Tachinidae" (PDF). Tachinidae Resources. Retrieved 28 February 2022.
- ^ O'Hara, James E.; Stireman, John O. (2016). "Tachinidae of the Red River Gorge area of eastern Kentucky" (PDF). Tachinidae Resources. Tachinid Times. Retrieved 2021-10-14.