Sciaridae

Abstract: Male sciarids collected in Australia from inside post-entry quarantine and domestic greenhouses and from vegetable gardens and various plants, were slide mounted and identified. Specimens intercepted during on-arrival biosecurity inspections of imported nursery stock plants were also examined, and the New South Wales Department of Primary Industries collection of slide-mounted Sciaridae was reviewed. Plant and mushroom pest species that are present in Australia are Bradysia impatiens (Johannsen), B. ocellaris (Comstock), Lycoriella agraria (Felt), L. ingenua (Dufour) = Sciara womersleyi Seguy, 1940 syn. n., L. sativae (Johannsen) = Sciara auberti Seguy, 1940 syn. n., Sciara jeanneli Seguy, 1940 syn. n., Sciara solispina Hardy, 1956 syn. n., and Cosmosciara hartii (Johannsen, 1912) comb. n. = Plastosciara perniciosa Edwards, 1922 syn. n. The last species is a new record for Australia. Bradysia tilicola (Loew) and Pnyxia scabiei (Hopkins) are potential pest species, but they have not been reported yet from Australia. An identification key to enable separation of the pest species is provided. Species with uncertain connections to plant and mushroom cultures are B. pallipes (Fabricius), B. strenua (Winnertz, 1867) = B. watsoni Colless, 1962 syn. n., Corynoptera concinna (Winnertz), (all three species are new records for the Australian mainland) and Hyperlasion aliens Mohrig (a new record for Tasmania). Bradysia spatitergum (Hardy) and Scatopsciara atomaria (Zetterstedt) were intercepted during the on-arrival biosecurity inspections of live plants imported from China and Canada respectively. Both species are widespread overseas but are not known to occur in Australia.

Abstract: Four Oriental species of Aerumnosa Mohrig, 1999 (Diptera: Sciaridae), a genus previously known only from Papua New Guinea, are newly described and illustrated: Aerumnosa bituberculata sp. n. (India), A. gemmifera sp. n. (Malaysia: Sabah), A. horrifica sp. n. (Brunei, Thailand) and A. impar sp. n. (Malaysia: Sabah). On the basis of the new material, the genus is redefined. A key to the known species of Aerumnosa is presented, including four new species. An updated molecular phylogenetic analysis based on four gene markers (18S, 28S, 16S and COI) shows Aerumnosa to be a member of the subfamily Cratyninae. The monophyly of Cratyninae is well supported, which clade also includes the genera Hyperlasion Schmitz, 1919, Pnyxiopalpus Vilkamaa & Hippa, 1999 and Pseudoaerumnosa Rudzinski, 2006. According to the present phylogenetic hypothesis, the monophyly of Cratyna Winnertz, 1967 s. l. needs to be revisited. The clade including Cratyna (s. str.) ambigua (Lengersdorf, 1934) appears as the sister group of Aerumnosa.

Abstract: The genus Pseudolycoriella Menzel & Mohrig, 1998 is distributed worldwide and especially species rich within the southern hemisphere. Within the Australasian region it is known from New Zealand (Mohrig & Jaschhof 1999; 5 species), New Caledonia (Kohler & Menzel 2013; 14 species) and Papua-New Guinea (Mohrig 2013; 22 species). Here we report the first records of the genus from Norfolk Island and Australia.

Abstract: Sciarid flies are Diptera (two-winged flies) of the suborder Nematocera; the family Sciaridae are commonly known as fungus gnats, since they eat mushrooms and other fungi. Morphological characteristics of Sciara species useful for taxonomic purposes were first tabulated by Johannsen (1909, 1912). More recently, the family of Sciara has been renamed Bradysia (Steffan 1966), but since almost none of the researchers who work with this family have switched over to the new name, I will use the original name of Sciara in this review.