Twenty years of Dipterology through the pages of Zootaxa

Abstract

We present a summary and analysis of the Diptera-related information published in Zootaxa from 2001 to 2020, with a focus on taxonomic papers. Altogether, 2,527 papers on Diptera were published, including 2,032 taxonomic papers and 1,931 papers containing new nomenclatural acts, equivalent to 22% of all publications with new nomenclatural acts for Diptera. The new nomenclatural acts include 7,431 new species, 277 new genera, 2,003 new synonymies, and 1,617 new combinations. A breakdown by family of new taxa and new replacement names proposed in the journal during the last two decades is provided, together with a comparison of Zootaxa’s output to that of all other taxonomic publications on Diptera. Our results show that the journal has contributed to 20% of all biodiversity discovery in this megadiverse insect order over the last 20 years, and to about 31% in the last decade.

DNA barcoding of Chironomidae from the Lake Skadar region: Reference library and a comparative analysis of the European fauna

“…The actual number of species included in this family could be close to the above‐mentioned number, but still it has been not precisely defined. Anyway, Chironomidae are known as one of the most species‐rich dipteran families (Ashe & O’Connor, 2009; Ashe &O’Connor, 2012; Giłka et al, 2021), continually attracting considerable interest from researchers worldwide (Whitmore et al, 2021). At the larval stage, chironomids inhabit various freshwater ecosystems, such as streams, rivers, ponds, lakes, reservoirs and, to a much lesser extent, brackish waters and soil.…”

Every Single Specimen Counts: A New Docosia Winnertz (Diptera: Mycetophilidae) Species Described from a Singleton

“…According to Deng et al [32], from about 4800 new insect species described in ZooKeys between 2009 and 2017, more than 20% were based on a single specimen. In the case of Mycetophilidae, 410 new species have been described during the last 20 years (2001-2020) in Zootaxa, the world's foremost journal of zootaxonomy [33], whereas 33% of them are described from a singleton.…”

Mimes of the past: Eocene midges of the tribe Pseudochironomini (Chironomidae, Diptera) reveal their peculiarities

“…With approximately 7 500 species, 550 genera and 12 subfamilies, Chironomidae is the largest dipteran family, but still only half of the world’s species are known at best [ 1 , 2 ]. The Chironominae, which is probably the largest chironomid subfamily, is divided into four tribes, among which the Pseudochironomini is far from being well explored, both in terms of species diversity, understanding their morphology, and terminology used in diagnostics.…”