Phylogeny and taxonomy of the shore-fly tribe Scatellini (Diptera: Ephydridae: Ephydrinae)

Abstract

ABSTRACT The tribe Scatellini comprises 247 species (plus five nomina dubia) that are distributed in all biogeographical regions except Antarctica. The tribe currently includes nine genera. One genus, Scatella Robineau-Desvoidy, 1830, includes six subgenera. To test the monophyly of Scatellini and to understand the phylogenetic relationships among the included genera, a cladistic analysis was performed. The optimization criterion chosen was parsimony using implicit character weighting, and the analysis was based on the morphological characters of adult males and females. The species of eight of nine genera of Scatellini from different geographic regions were studied. Species of the other tribes of Ephydrinae were also included to provide insight on the phylogenetic position of Scatellini within this subfamily. The implied weighting analysis showed that the tribe Scatellini, as currently characterized, is a monophyletic group, as are all the genera included in it. From this analysis, two major lineages emerged: 1. Scatella and its included subgenera; 2. All other genera of Scatellini. The latter clade includes (Thinoscatella (Lamproscatella + Haloscatella)) and the clade (Amalopteryx (Philotelma (Limnellia + Scatophila))). Five subgenera of Scatella were recovered as monophyletic groups: Parascatella Cresson, Synhoplos Lamb, Apulvillus Malloch, Scatella, and Teichomyza Macquart. Neoscatella Malloch is synonymized with Scatella sensu stricto. In the implied weighting analysis, Ephydrini and Scatellini are sister-groups. Based on this phylogenetic reconstruction, the taxonomy of Scatellini is presented at the generic level. A key to the included genera and subgenera is also presented.

Keywords

• Cladistic analysis
• taxonomy
• Scatella
• Ephydrini
• Dagini