
''Austrosimulium'' is a
genus
Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...
of about 30
species
A species () is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate sexes or mating types can produce fertile offspring, typically by sexual reproduction. It is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), ...
of black flies that are distributed in
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...
and
New Zealand
New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...
. There are 2
subgenera
In biology, a subgenus ( subgenera) is a taxonomic rank directly below genus.
In the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature, a subgeneric name can be used independently or included in a species name, in parentheses, placed between the ge ...
: ''
Austrosimulium'' whose species are principally from New Zealand, and ''
Novaustrosimulium'' which are exclusively Australian. ''Austrosimulium'' is a sister genus to the monospecific ''
Paraustrosimulium'' of South America.
Some species are known to spread the
protozoa
Protozoa (: protozoan or protozoon; alternative plural: protozoans) are a polyphyletic group of single-celled eukaryotes, either free-living or parasitic, that feed on organic matter such as other microorganisms or organic debris. Historically ...
n blood parasite ''
Leucocytozoon tawaki'' in
penguin
Penguins are a group of aquatic flightless birds from the family Spheniscidae () of the order Sphenisciformes (). They live almost exclusively in the Southern Hemisphere. Only one species, the Galápagos penguin, is equatorial, with a sm ...
s.
In New Zealand, where they are known as ''
sandflies'' or namu (in
Māori
Māori or Maori can refer to:
Relating to the Māori people
* Māori people of New Zealand, or members of that group
* Māori language, the language of the Māori people of New Zealand
* Māori culture
* Cook Islanders, the Māori people of the Co ...
from
Proto-Austronesian
Proto-Austronesian (commonly abbreviated as PAN or PAn) is a proto-language. It is the reconstructed ancestor of the Austronesian languages, one of the world's major language families. Proto-Austronesian is assumed to have begun to diversify in ...
*''ñamuk'' "
mosquito
Mosquitoes, the Culicidae, are a Family (biology), family of small Diptera, flies consisting of 3,600 species. The word ''mosquito'' (formed by ''Musca (fly), mosca'' and diminutive ''-ito'') is Spanish and Portuguese for ''little fly''. Mos ...
", compare with ),
three species – ''
A. australense'', ''
A. tillyardianum'' and ''
A. ungulatum'' – bite humans.
[
]
Species
These 30 species belong to the genus ''Austrosimulium'':[
; Subgenus Austrosimulium Tonnoir, 1925
: '' Austrosimulium albovelatum'' Dumbleton, 1973 (New Zealand (South Island))
: '' Austrosimulium alveolatum'' Dumbleton, 1973 (New Zealand (South Island))
: '' Austrosimulium australense'' (Schiner, 1868) (New Zealand, ]Stewart Island
Stewart Island (, ' glowing skies', officially Stewart Island / Rakiura, formerly New Leinster) is New Zealand's third-largest island, located south of the South Island, across Foveaux Strait.
It is a roughly triangular island with a la ...
)
: '' Austrosimulium bicorne'' Dumbleton, 1973 (New Zealand (South Island))
: '' Austrosimulium campbellense'' Dumbleton, 1973 ( Campbell Island)
: '' Austrosimulium cornutum'' Tonnoir, 1925 (Australia ( Victoria, NSW
New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a state on the east coast of :Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria to the south, and South Australia to the west. Its coast borders the Coral and Tasman Seas to the east. T ...
, Tasmania
Tasmania (; palawa kani: ''Lutruwita'') is an island States and territories of Australia, state of Australia. It is located to the south of the Mainland Australia, Australian mainland, and is separated from it by the Bass Strait. The sta ...
))
: '' Austrosimulium crassipes'' Tonnoir, 1925 (Australia (Victoria, NSW, Queensland
Queensland ( , commonly abbreviated as Qld) is a States and territories of Australia, state in northeastern Australia, and is the second-largest and third-most populous state in Australia. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Austr ...
))
: '' Austrosimulium dugdalei'' Craig, Craig & Crosby, 2012 (New Zealand (North Island))
: '' Austrosimulium dumbletoni'' Crosby, 1976 (New Zealand (South Island))
: '' Austrosimulium extendorum'' Craig, Craig & Crosby, 2012 (New Zealand (Stewart Island))
: '' Austrosimulium fiordense'' Dumbleton, 1973 (New Zealand (South Island))
: '' Austrosimulium fulvicorne'' Mackerras & Mackerras, 1950 (Australia (Queensland
Queensland ( , commonly abbreviated as Qld) is a States and territories of Australia, state in northeastern Australia, and is the second-largest and third-most populous state in Australia. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Austr ...
))
: '' Austrosimulium laticorne'' Tonnoir, 1925 (New Zealand (South Island))
: '' Austrosimulium longicorne'' Tonnoir, 1925 (New Zealand)
: '' Austrosimulium mirabile'' Mackerras & Mackerras, 1948 (Australia (Queensland))
: '' Austrosimulium montanum'' Mackerras & Mackerras, 1952 (Australia (NSW, Victoria))
: '' Austrosimulium multicorne'' Tonnoir, 1925 (New Zealand (South Island))
: '' Austrosimulium stewartense'' Dumbleton, 1973 (New Zealand (Stewart Island, South Island))
: '' Austrosimulium tillyardianum'' Dumbleton, 1973 (New Zealand)
: '' Austrosimulium tonnoiri'' Craig, Craig & Crosby, 2012 (New Zealand (South Island))
: '' Austrosimulium ungulatum'' Tonnoir, 1925 (New Zealand (South Island, Stewart Island))
: '' Austrosimulium unicorne'' Dumbleton, 1973 (New Zealand (South Island))
: '' Austrosimulium vailavoense'' Craig, Craig & Crosby, 2012 (New Zealand (Stewart Island, South Island))
: '' Austrosimulium vexans'' (Mik, 1881) (Auckland Islands
The Auckland Islands ( Māori: ''Motu Maha'' "Many islands" or ''Maungahuka'' "Snowy mountains") are an archipelago of New Zealand, lying south of the South Island. The main Auckland Island, occupying , is surrounded by smaller Adams Island ...
)
; Subgenus Novaustrosimulium Dumbleton, 1973
: '' Austrosimulium bancrofti'' (Taylor, 1918) (Australia)
: '' Austrosimulium furiosum'' (Skuse, 1889) (Australia)
: '' Austrosimulium magnum'' Mackerras & Mackerras, 1955 (Australia (Queensland))
: '' Austrosimulium pestilens'' Mackerras & Mackerras, 1948 (Australia (Queensland, NSW, Northern Territory
The Northern Territory (abbreviated as NT; known formally as the Northern Territory of Australia and informally as the Territory) is an states and territories of Australia, Australian internal territory in the central and central-northern regi ...
))
: '' Austrosimulium torrentium'' Tonnoir, 1925 (Australia (Tasmania, NSW, Victoria))
: '' Austrosimulium victoriae'' (Roubaud, 1906) (Australia)
Literature cited
External links
*
*
*
* https://web.archive.org/web/20130208160901/http://www.waitakere.govt.nz/AbtCit/ei/EcoWtr/macroinv/macroinvertebrates.asp , page with many Macroinvertebrates listed, described and illustrated
Simuliidae
Culicomorpha genera
{{Chironomoidea-stub