The study of subfamily Sarginae (Diptera: Stratiomyidae) focusing the diversity of the genus Merosargus Loew, 1855

• Grant number: 13/02824-0
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships abroad - Research Internship - Master's degree
• Start date: July 01, 2013
• End date: September 30, 2013
• Field of knowledge: Biological Sciences - Zoology - Taxonomy of Recent Groups
• Principal Investigator: Dalton de Souza Amorim
• Grantee: Diego Aguilar Fachin
• Supervisor: Norman E. Woodley
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Filosofia, Ciências e Letras de Ribeirão Preto (FFCLRP). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). Ribeirão Preto , SP, Brazil
• Institution abroad: Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History, United States
• Associated to the scholarship: 11/14472-6 - Taxonomic revision and phylogenetic analysis of genus Acrochaeta Wiedemann, 1830 (Diptera: Stratiomyidae: Sarginae), BP.MS

Abstract

The family Stratiomyidae presents 2,854 described species worldwide, distributed in 12 subfamilies, one of which is Sarginae. This subfamily is also distributed all over the world, with 530 species in 22 genera-of which 267 species in eight genera are known from Neotropical fauna. The fauna of Sarginae is still poorly known in various parts of the world. There is more over the need of integration in a system of the knowledge on the diversity of the group in the Neotropical region with that of the fauna of the subfamily in other regions-in other words, there is still not a cladistic analysis for the subfamily allowing the insertion of its genera in a global perspective. Merosargus is the Sarginae genus with the highest number of described species-143. However, there is evidence that the genus probably composes a paraphyletic group relative to Acrochaeta. This lack of understanding of the relationship within the Sarginae also refers to the intrageneric relationships. In this case, it is necessary the elucidation of the relationship between Merosargus and genera related, Acrochaeta, Merosargus and Ptecticus. This project proposes a three months stay at the National Museum of Natural History in Washington, United States. Dr. Norman Woodley, presently the most important specialist on Stratiomyidae worldwide, works at this institution. Furthermore, the NMNH collection presents a large amount of material from nearly all Stratiomyidae genera, especially of the Neotropical fauna, and as well a large specimens of species of Merosargus. The visit intends to establish a close collaboration with Dr. Norman Woodley discussing various general issues on the systematics and evolution of the family Stratiomyidae and particularly studying the worldwide diversity of Sarginae, with emphasis on Merosargus. These three months will also include the study of the Stratiomyidae collection. The visit will occur when the student is already working in his MSc in Brazil, after an initial period developing his project. (AU)

Scientific publications

(8)

(References retrieved automatically from Web of Science and SciELO through information on FAPESP grants and their corresponding numbers as mentioned in the publications by the authors)

FACHIN, DIEGO AGUILAR; AMORIM, DALTON DE SOUZA. Taxonomic revision and cladistic analysis of the Neotropical genus Acrochaeta Wiedemann, 1830 (Diptera: Stratiomyidae: Sarginae). Zootaxa, v. 4050, n. 1, p. 1-110, NOV 30 2015. (13/02824-0, 10/16740-5, 03/10274-9, 14/05793-1, 11/14472-6, 08/57949-4)

FACHIN, DIEGO AGUILAR. FAMILY XYLOPHAGIDAE. Zootaxa, v. 4122, n. 1, p. 302-305, JUN 14 2016. (13/02824-0, 14/05793-1, 11/14472-6)

FACHIN, DIEGO AGUILAR; AMORIM, DALTON DE SOUZA. Taxonomic revision of the Neotropical genus Arthropeina Lindner, 1949 (Diptera: Xylomyidae). Zootaxa, v. 3827, n. 2, p. 231-257, JUL 3 2014. (11/14472-6, 13/02824-0)

FACHIN, DIEGO AGUILAR; HAUSER, MARTIN. Taxonomic revision of the Neotropical genus Himantigera James, 1982 (Diptera: Stratiomyidae: Sarginae), including the description of two new species and a key to the known species. Zootaxa, v. 4531, n. 4, p. 451-498, DEC 14 2018. (13/02824-0, 10/52314-0, 14/05793-1, 15/25736-5, 18/00788-0, 11/14472-6)

FACHIN, DIEGO AGUILAR. A new species of the rare Neotropical genus Auloceromyia Lindner, 1969 (Diptera: Stratiomyidae) and the first record of the male of A-pedunculata Pimentel & Pujol-Luz, 2000. Zootaxa, v. 4020, n. 3, p. 554-570, SEP 23 2015. (14/05793-1, 11/14472-6, 10/52314-0, 13/02824-0)

FACHIN, DIEGO AGUILAR; DE ASSIS-PUJOL, CRISTIANE VIEIRA. FAMILY STRATIOMYIDAE. Zootaxa, v. 4122, n. 1, p. 312-341, JUN 14 2016. (14/05793-1, 11/14472-6, 13/02824-0)

FACHIN, DIEGO AGUILAR; DE ASSIS-PUJOL, CRISTIANE VIERA. FAMILY XYLOMYIDAE. Zootaxa, v. 4122, n. 1, p. 342-345, JUN 14 2016. (13/02824-0, 14/05793-1, 11/14472-6)

FACHIN, DIEGO AGUILAR; EINICKER LAMAS, CARLOS JOSE. A catalogue of the types of Stratiomyidae (Diptera: Brachycera) in the collection of the Museu de Zoologia da Universidade de Sao Paulo, Brazil. Zootaxa, v. 3918, n. 3, p. 406-414, FEB 12 2015. (14/05793-1, 11/14472-6, 13/02824-0)