Thoughts on the iNat taxonomy of Platycheirus

This post forms part of a discussion on a flag (https://www.inaturalist.org/flags/496291#activity_comment_9906ca40-8da7-489f-bcda-e6c0516f5b16) - but I couldn't embed the spreadsheet there

This covers just over 130 species - there are said to be around 220 in total. It should include all of the Nearctic (North of Mexico) and all of Europe except muelleri and laskai.

SOURCES:
General:
Mengual https://brill.com/view/journals/ctoz/89/2/article-p210_210.xml#R000026%20R000088%20R000111

Young/Marshall/Skevington https://www.mapress.com/zt/article/view/zootaxa.4082.1.1/4574

SOURCES:
General:
Mengual https://brill.com/view/journals/ctoz/89/2/article-p210_210.xml#R000026%20R000088%20R000111
Young/Marshall/Skevington https://www.mapress.com/zt/article/view/zootaxa.4082.1.1/4574

For peltatus group
van Steenis – (considered as a subgroup of albimanus group = Subgenus Platycheirus)
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/269107486_Description_of_and_key_to_the_European_females_of_the_Platycheirus_peltatus_sub-group_Diptera_Syrphidae_with_description_of_the_male_and_female_of_P_islandicus_Ringdahl_1930_statn
Limited to Europe

For scutatus group
Doczkal - https://www.zobodat.at/pdf/Volucella_6_0023-0040.pdf
Limited to Europe
plus YMS for atlasi (North African)

For clypeatus group
Ball and Morris British Field Guide (see comments in post)
and Haarto
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/281206992_The_description_of_the_female_of_Platycheirus_troll_Mutin_Diptera_Syrphidae_with_a_preliminary_key_to_the_Northern_Palaearctic_females_of_the_Platycheirus_clypeatus_group
Covers Whole Palearctic - according to title implication but I don’t have access
And
van Veen field guide for angustipes
and
Dipterists digest No 5 1990 Speight

For ambiguous group
Barkalov - as ‘Subgenus Pachysphyria’ http://kmkjournals.com/upload/PDF/EEJ/17/eej17_6_466-510_Barkalov.pdf covers whole of Russia
and Nielsen - as 'ambiguus group' https://www.zobodat.at/pdf/Volucella_7_0001-0030.pdf covers Europe

for manicatus group
Nielsen and Barkalov - https://www.researchgate.net/publication/319312480_A_revision_of_and_key_to_the_Holarctic_and_Oriental_Platycheirus_manicatus_group_species_Diptera_Syrphidae
Covers Holarctic and Oriental species
Plus YMS for sticticus (see tree p98) EDIT: although YMS resolve it with other species in manicatus, it has an expanded male fortibia, and is not listed as manicatus group by Nielsen and Barkalov above - so it is placed in albimanus group.

For a couple of oriental and Asian species see also
http://www.entomologi.no/journals/nje/2016-2/pdf/nje-vol63-no2-169-174-nielsen.pdf for albotibeticus and formosanus
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/330319469_The_species_of_the_genus_Platycheirus_Lepeletier_Serville_1828_Diptera_Syrphidae_from_Taiwan_with_a_discussion_on_intersex_specimens for perpes
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/316505699_New_material_of_Central_Palaearctic_Platycheirus_Diptera_Syrphidae_with_description_of_three_new_species for dudkoi, latens and transbaikalicus

Posted on 27 October, 2021 23:23 by matthewvosper matthewvosper

Comments

Nielsen, T. R. (2014). "Synopsis of the Platycheirus ambiguus species group (Diptera, Syrphidae), with description of Platycheirus arnei sp. n. and a preliminary key to the species." Norwegian Journal of Entomology 61: 57-75.

Posted by ximo_mengual over 2 years ago

UPDATES:

These changes to the spreadsheet resulting from checking the species on the list of Platycheirus (Platycheirus) species in Barkalov's Russian checklist.

ciliatus moved from Nearctic to Holarctic section. (source: Barkalov's checklist)

From the following sources:

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/237674532_An_extraordinary_new_Platycheirus_from_the_Russian_Altai_Mountains_Diptera_Syrphidae
https://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/download?doi=10.1.1.716.2581&rep=rep1&type=pdf
http://www.entomologi.no/journals/nje/2008-1/pdf/NJE-vol55-no1-Barkalov.pdf
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/316505699_New_material_of_Central_Palaearctic_Platycheirus_Diptera_Syrphidae_with_description_of_three_new_species
dudkoi moved from stegnus group to chilosia group (this confusion arises because chilosia group was once regarded as a subgroup of stegnus group. Source is explicit that there are no non-chilosia stegnus in the Palearctic.
Addition of a number of species to the chilosia group. This should have been a complete Palearctic list as of 2009.
Addition of sibiricus to the scutatus complex and fuscitarsis and pamiricus to albimanus group.

http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/download?doi=10.1.1.638.1407&rep=rep1&type=pdf
beringiensis apparently clypeatus complex due to similarity with immarginatus

Another few species here, but not useful for categorisation: https://catalog.lib.kyushu-u.ac.jp/opac_download_md/2405/97.pdf

151 species included

Posted by matthewvosper over 2 years ago

Further updates with sources, grouped into three categories, from going through the additional names on iNat and Systema Dipterorum:

.1) Placements based on clear statements in literature:

pullatus moved to holartic https://www.researchgate.net/publication/348700323_Hoverflies_Diptera_Syrphidae_of_Wrangel_Island_Chukotka_Autonomous_Okrug_Russia
Add huttoni and lignuda to Eocheilosia
aeratus, magadanensis https://assets.artdatabanken.se/pdf/11144_1000384.pdf
dexter https://bonn.leibniz-lib.de/dateien/dokumente/2020_bacchines_0.pdf
kirgizorum https://www.researchgate.net/publication/316539734_Hoverflies_Diptera_Syrphidae_from_Kirgizia_regions_Chuy_Naryn_and_Issyk-Kul_with_description_of_two_new_species_Platycheirus_nigritarsis_sp_n_and_Platycheirus_kirgizorum_sp_n
pamiricus table 1 https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/New-material-of-Central-Palaearctic-Platycheirus-of-Barkalov-Nielsen/76a672d848f2d415da5ba960d49d50fb321b7090
cryophilus https://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/download?doi=10.1.1.715.5644&rep=rep1&type=pdf
solanarius removed from Tuberculanostoma https://www.researchgate.net/publication/338222161_Phylogenetic_relationships_of_the_bacchine_flower_flies_Diptera_Syrphidae_based_on_molecular_characters_with_a_description_of_a_new_species_of_Melanostoma_Schiner_1860

.2) Neotropical species all in Carposcalis (stegnus group):

https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Diego-Armijos-3/publication/319160908_Checklist_of_the_flower_flies_of_Ecuador_Diptera_Syrphidae/links/599c79330f7e9b892bafd3c9/Checklist-of-the-flower-flies-of-Ecuador-Diptera-Syrphidae.pdf
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/278327559_Falkland_Islands_Syrphidae_Diptera
https://www.gbif.org/pt/species/182785724

.3) The evidence for the placement of the following asterisked species is less than a clear statement in a paper, but perhaps enough to justify a tentative placement which can be altered later if necessary.

*ferrumitarsis https://www.researchgate.net/publication/330319469_The_species_of_the_genus_Platycheirus_Lepeletier_Serville_1828_Diptera_Syrphidae_from_Taiwan_with_a_discussion_on_intersex_specimens/link/5d72eb9d299bf1cb808b929b/download
(Concerning ferrumitarsis the authors suggest that it is sister to parmatus which is placed in peltatus elsewhere, but also related to manicatus group - they actually think these two may form a separate clade from both the peltatus group and the manicatus group. On current morphological definitions it would make no sense to include it in the manicatus group because the male has an apically expanded tibia)
*laskai https://www.nina.no/archive/nina/PppBasePdf/fagrapport/035.pdf called ‘albimanus group’ but apparently in the white spots sense – said to be most similar to sticticus (in the manicatus group)
*pennipes YMS resolve phylogenetically with aeratus, europaeus, angustatus and occultus which are all Complex Clypeatus
*macroantennae similar to pennipes so possibly clypeatus complex (just placed in albimanus group for now) https://en.cnki.com.cn/Article_en/CJFDTotal-SHNX199201006.htm
*jakuticus YMS resolves phylogenetically with chilosia and yukonensis
*pulcherus stated to be most similar to jakuticus https://www.researchgate.net/publication/298215248_Syrphid_fauna_Diptera_Syrphidae_of_Tumnin_river_basin_the_eastern_macroslope_of_the_Northern_Sikhote-Alin_Russia
*beringiensis similarity to immarginatus http://treatment.plazi.org/id/AA2F878DCB2AFFC0FF5F63883185532B/2

Now covers 175 species

Posted by matthewvosper over 2 years ago

There are well over 100 species on iNat. The following species are synonyms or fossils or nomen dubia (usually species known only from females which are assumed to be conspecific with species for which only the male is known).

freyeri fossil
geminatus fossil
holarcticus =naso
notatus =Eocheilosia notata
lignudus =Eocheilosia lignudus/a SD
antipodus =Eocheilosia antipoda
podagrata =podagratus both exist
ronanus =Eocheilosia ronana

I note also the following names (source should be Systema Dipterorum unless ontherwise stated:

asioambiguus =longicornis
bigelowi =parmatus
bimaculatus =angustatus?
boreomonatus =groenlandicus
carinatus =chilosia
chaetopodus =scambus
chirosphena =hyperboreus
erraticus =hyperboreus
felix =immarginatus
femineum Nomen dubium female type - assumed to be conspecific with a species for which only the male is known
fjellbergi =lundbecki
freyeri fossil
frontosus =ciliatus
fumosus =discimanus
geminatus fossil
haidingeri fossil
holarcticus =naso
infumatus fossil
katunicus =complicatus
lethaeus fossil
monticola Nomen dubium female type - assumed to be conspecific with a species for which only the male is known
occidentalis =aeratus
ovalis =parmatus
pacilus Nomen dubium female type - assumed to be conspecific with a species for which only the male is known
palmulosus =immarginatus
pauper =aeratus
pulchellus =cyaneus
reynoldsi =bertrandi
rufimaculatus =pictipes
sareptanus =fulviventris
silesicus Male = Platycheirus clypeatus; female = Melanostoma scalaris
spathulatus =sticticus
rarus =manicatus https://www.researchgate.net/publication/319312480_A_revision_of_and_key_to_the_Holarctic_and_Oriental_Platycheirus_manicatus_group_species_Diptera_Syrphidae/link/5a54310c458515e7b7321724/download
subcomplicatus =latimanus https://www.researchgate.net/publication/319312480_A_revision_of_and_key_to_the_Holarctic_and_Oriental_Platycheirus_manicatus_group_species_Diptera_Syrphidae/link/5a54310c458515e7b7321724/download

Posted by matthewvosper over 2 years ago

Uncertain species: (asterisk indicates that the species exists in iNat)

There are 10 Old World or Holartic species in the albimanus group, some of which may be in one of the complexes (I suspect macroantennae may be a clypeatus for example). But many will not be in a complex (e.g. albimanus itself)

The following 7 species I can place in the subgenus Platycheirus, but not in a group:
dux
mongolicus
sigiktae
glupovi (formerly Pseudoplatycheirus - manicatus Group?)
peteri (formerly Pseudoplatycheirus - manicatus Group?)
solitarius (formerly Tuberculanostoma - manicatus Group?)
marokkanus (albimanus Group?)

The following 5 species I have not been able to place anywhere:
bidentatus
ciliger
isshikii
macrocephalus
muelleri

Posted by matthewvosper over 2 years ago

ciliger is apparently a synonym of tarsalis:
compare https://www.gbif.org/species/1538270 and http://www.diptera.org/Nomenclator/Details/47122

Posted by matthewvosper over 2 years ago

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