Pegesimallus
| Pegesimallus | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Pegesimallus sp. | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Diptera |
| Family: | Asilidae |
| Subfamily: | Dasypogoninae |
| Tribe: | Megapodini |
| Genus: | Pegesimallus |
| Species | |
|
see text | |
Pegesimallus is a genus of robber flies.
Distribution
Africa and Eurasia.[1]
Biology
These species spend much of their time perched in the shade on shrubs or grass, where they lie in wait for flying insects. Their prey includes a wide variety of arthropods; Hymenoptera and Diptera predominate. Females oviposit in the surface layer of the soil.[2][3]
Female with fly prey
Mating pair; female with wasp prey
Mating pair
Taxonomy
The classification of the species in this genus is difficult for two main reasons: Firstly, many are sexually dimorphic to the extent that females and males of the same species were, for some time, placed in different genera; and secondly, some of the species are so similar that they can only be separated by considering details of the male genitalia.[2]
The genus has been placed in the tribe Megapodini of the subfamily Dasypogoninae.[4] It contains about 54 species, including the following:[2][1]
- Pegesimallus apicalis Bromley, 1947
- Pegesimallus brunneus Londt, 1980
- Pegesimallus bulbifrons Londt, 1980
- Pegesimallus calvifrons Londt, 1980
- Pegesimallus claelius Walker, 1849
- Pegesimallus fusticulus Londt, 1980
- Pegesimallus hermanni Londt, 1980
- Pegesimallus irwini Londt, 1980
- Pegesimallus isanicus Tomasovic, 2005
- Pegesimallus kenyensis Londt, 1980
- Pegesimallus mesasiatica Lehr, 1958
- Pegesimallus namibiensis Londt, 1980
- Pegesimallus oldroydi Londt, 1980
- Pegesimallus saegeri Oldroyd, 1970
- Pegesimallus srilankensis Londt, 1980
- Pegesimallus vansoni Londt, 1980
- Pegesimallus volcata Walker, 1849
- Pegesimallus yerburyi Londt, 1980
References
- 1 2 "Genus Pegesimallus (Loew, 1858), Taxonomy". insectoid.info. Retrieved 28 January 2017.
- 1 2 3 Londt, J.G. (1980). "Afrotropical Asilidae (Diptera) 4. The genus Pegesimallus Loew, 1858 (= Lagodias Loew, 1858; Neolaparus Williston, 1889), including species from other zoogeographical regions and the descriptions of the two new genera, Brevirostrum and Caroncoma". Annals of the Natal Museum. 24 (1): 233–347. Retrieved 28 January 2017.
- ↑ Londt, J.G. (1994). "Afrotropical Asilidae (Diptera) 26. Ethological observations, and a possible ecological classification based on habitats". Annals of the Natal Museum. 35 (1): 97–122.
- ↑ "Asilidae generic classification sensu Dikow 2009 | Asiloid Flies". asiloidflies.si.edu. Retrieved 28 January 2017.
External links
Data related to Pegesimallus at Wikispecies
Media related to Pegesimallus at Wikimedia Commons