Taxonomic Revision of Neotropical Downeshelea Wirth and Grogan Predaceous Midges (Diptera: Ceratopogonidae)

Abstract

The genus Downeshelea was described by Wirth and Grogan based on the diagnostic characters of the Monohelea multilineata species group. The first descriptions of species were based on body coloration, which resulted in confusion and misunderstanding of their identification. The aim of this study was to provide an updated diagnosis and description of Downeshelea, describe 18 new species, and redescribe 10 previously poorly described species. New records of species, a key for identification of all New World species, and a table with important morphometric data to distinguish both males and females of the various species are provided along with distribution maps of the 46 known New World species.

New species and new records of Monohelea Kieffer (Diptera, Ceratopogonidae) from Brazil

“…; fig. parameres; dimorphism); Wirth 1974 : 41 (in catalog); Wirth and Grogan 1988 : 69 (type locality); Borkent and Wirth 1997 : 102 (in catalog); Felippe-Bauer 1998 : 228 (Brazil records); Borkent and Spinelli 2000 : 50 (in catalog); Borkent and Spinelli 2007 : 83 (in catalog); Felippe-Bauer et al 2017 : 159 (Brazil - Pará record); Borkent and Dominiak 2020 : 166 (in catalog); Santarém and Felippe-Bauer 2021 : 18 (in Brazilian catalog).…”

“… Monohelea aguirrei Tavares & Souza, 1980: 97 (in part; male, Brazil - Rio de Janeiro); Wirth and Grogan 1988 : 69 (type locality); Borkent and Wirth 1997 : 101 (in catalog); Felippe-Bauer 1998 : 223 (redescription); Borkent and Spinelli 2000 : 50 (in catalog); Felippe-Bauer and Oliveira 2001 : 1111 (type specimens); Borkent and Spinelli 2007 : 83 (in catalog); Borkent and Dominiak 2020 : 165 (in catalog); Santarém and Felippe-Bauer 2021 : 18 (in Brazilian catalog). …”

“…The predaceous genus Monohelea Kieffer is distributed worldwide and includes 97 extant species ( Borkent and Dominiak 2020 ; Borkent et al 2022 ). Santarém and Felippe-Bauer (2021) recognized 25 species from the Neotropics, of which 16 are cited as present in Brazil. Monohelea is included in the tribe Ceratopogonini , the females of which are known to be predators of other small insects, mainly chironomids ( Diptera , Chironomidae ) ( Wirth and Grogan 1988 ).…”

An Update and Errata for the Catalog of the Biting Midges of the World (Diptera: Ceratopogonidae)

“…surma Dominiak, Szadziewski and Salmela, 2020: 236. Finland. Genus DOWNESHElEA Wirth and Grogan alia Santarém, Borkent andFelippe-Bauer, 2020: 12. Costa Rica.…”

“…divergentis Santarém, Borkent and Felippe-Bauer, 2020. gladius Santarém, Borkent and Felippe-Bauer, 2020: 51. Costa Rica.…”