An Updated Checklist of the Robber Flies of Gambia with the Description of a New<i>Sphagomyia</i>Londt, 2002 (Diptera: Asilidae)

Londt, Jason G.H.

doi:10.4001/003.020.0103

Cited by 2 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 9 publications

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“…Lepidoptera is the third largest insect order with 149,994 described species worldwide, of which 19,088 are butterflies (Catalogue of life checklist 2022). The prey-predator relationship between Asilidae and Lepidoptera has been reported by Dennis et al (2009), Londt (1999), Nielsen (1977), and Price (1961). The asilid predator-prey database of Lavigne (2016) listed 14,388 records of Asilidae and their prey, of which 1,032 were Lepidoptera.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 77%

“…Some species are distasteful/poisonous and show aposematism while some show Batesian mimicry and automimicry, and some can camouflage remarkably well in their environment all of which can help butterflies evade robber flies. Even though Londt (1999) suggested that asilids can feed on any species of butterflies including the distasteful/poisonous ones and gives some good examples, the toxicity/distaste of such species varies depending on which host plants they consume during their larval stages (Dimarco and Fordyce 2017), i.e., if they feed on less poisonous host plants, they could indeed be palatable to some predators. It should also be noted that the same species of butterfly could have different host plants (with different toxicity) depending on the specific locality within its geographic range.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…It also listed instances of medium sized robber flies, such as Triorla interrupta (Macquart, 1834) and Alcimus setifemoratus Hobby, 1934, feeding on large species of butterflies such as those in the genus Papilio Linnaeus, 1758. Londt (1999) suggested that robber flies can apparently prey on any butterfly species, even the distasteful ones such as Danaus chrysippus aegyptius (Schreber, 1759), Acraea caldarena caldarena Hewitson, 1877, and Acraea neobule neobule Doubleday, [1847].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Rhopalocera (Lepidoptera) prey records of Asilidae (Diptera) in eastern New Mexico and western Texas, United States of America

Pollock

Sapkota

2022

RCHE

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Robber flies with their prey were collected from 2014-2021 in several eastern New Mexico counties and one county in west Texas. A few were merely photographed in the same areas in 2022. One hundred and one asilid-butterfly pairs were collected representing 17 species of robber flies and 19 species of butterflies. Three pairs were photographed representing one robber fly species with two species of butterflies. The prey taxa consisted of five species of Hesperiidae, three species of Pieridae, four species of Lycaenidae, and four species of Nymphalidae. Efferia helenae (Bromley, 1951) was the most frequently collected asilid predator of butterflies, 33 individuals preying on 10 butterfly species followed by Proctacanthus micans Schiner, 1867, 15 individuals preying on seven butterfly species. Nathalis iole Boisduval, 1836 (Pieridae) was the most commonly collected butterfly prey with 21 specimens. However, at the species level, Echinargus isola (Reakirt, [1867]) (Lycaenidae) was found to be preyed upon by the most robber fly species, i.e., seven, followed by Atalopedes campestris (Boisduval, 1852) (Hesperiidae) and Nathalis iole (Pieridae), each by six robber fly species.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 77%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Rhopalocera (Lepidoptera) prey records of Asilidae (Diptera) in eastern New Mexico and western Texas, United States of America

Pollock

Sapkota

2022

RCHE

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“…Changes in predation pressure are further complicated by responses of non-avian predators to urbanisation. For example, robber flies (Asilidae spp), which are important predators of butterflies (Londt, 1999;Lehr et al, 2007), were seen in almost every shrubland site, but rarely in urban areas. Aposematism defence (use of vibrant colours) acts as a warning for predators (Pinheiro and Cintra, 2017), and butterflies with intricate camouflage such as meadow brown and graylings were observed to be more abundant in rural habitats (63 individuals) compared to urban locations (13 individuals).…”

Section: Birdsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Due to the high frequency of beak marks on the wings of butterflies, birds are likely their most significant predator (Pinheiro and Cintra, 2017). Nonetheless, small mammals, toads, and lizards also feed on adult butterflies, and there may be significant predation by a variety of invertebrates (Londt, 1999).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Low-intensity urbanisation alters community composition across multiple trophic levels on Lipsi Island, Greece

Hawkins,

Macrina,

Malcom-McKay

et al. 2023

Preprint

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Urbanisation has reduced the abundance and diversity of many taxonomic groups, and the effects may be more pronounced on islands, which have a smaller regional species pool to compensate. Green spaces within urban environments may help to safeguard wildlife assemblages, and the associated habitat heterogeneity can even increase species diversity. Here, total abundance and species diversity of butterflies, birds, and vegetation at nine rural and nine urban locations were quantified on Lipsi Island, Greece. Sites were assessed using Pollard walks for butterflies, point-count surveys for birds, and quadrats for vegetation. There was no significant difference in the abundance or species diversity of butterflies or vegetation among rural and urban locations, which could pertain to the low building density within urbanised areas and the minimal extent of urbanisation on the island. However, urban areas hosted a significantly greater abundance and richness of birds compared to rural sites. The community composition of butterflies, birds, and vegetation also differed significantly between urban and rural locations, highlighting the impact of urbanisation on species across a broad range of trophic groups. This study contributes to ecological knowledge on the impacts of urbanisation across multiple trophic levels in island ecosystems, with comparisons across a gradient of island size and urbanisation intensity needed in future research.

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An Updated Checklist of the Robber Flies of Gambia with the Description of a NewSphagomyiaLondt, 2002 (Diptera: Asilidae)

Cited by 2 publications

References 9 publications

Rhopalocera (Lepidoptera) prey records of Asilidae (Diptera) in eastern New Mexico and western Texas, United States of America

Rhopalocera (Lepidoptera) prey records of Asilidae (Diptera) in eastern New Mexico and western Texas, United States of America

Low-intensity urbanisation alters community composition across multiple trophic levels on Lipsi Island, Greece

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