''Euaresta'' is a genus of

flies Flies are insects of the Order (biology), order Diptera, the name being derived from the Ancient Greek, Greek δι- ''di-'' "two", and πτερόν ''pteron'' "wing". Insects of this order use only a single pair of wings to fly, the hindwin ...

in the family

Tephritidae The Tephritidae are one of two fly families referred to as fruit flies, the other family being the Drosophilidae. The family Tephritidae does not include the biological model organisms of the genus '' Drosophila'' (in the family Drosophilidae ...

that live in plants of the closely related genera ''

Ambrosia In the ancient Greek mythology, Greek myths, ambrosia (, ) is the food or drink of the Greek gods, and is often depicted as conferring longevity or immortality upon whoever consumed it. It was brought to the gods in Mount Olympus, Olympus by do ...

'', ''

Xanthium ''Xanthium'' (cocklebur) is a genus of flowering plants in the tribe Heliantheae within the family Asteraceae, native to the Americas and eastern Asia and some parts of south Asia. Description Cockleburs are coarse, herbaceous annual plants grow ...

'', and '' Dicoria'', and feed on their flowers and seeds. The 15 species of ''Euaresta'' are

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found only in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also foun ...

the Americas The Americas, sometimes collectively called America, are a landmass comprising the totality of North America and South America.'' Webster's New World College Dictionary'', 2010 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio. When viewed as a sin ...

, eight being native to

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere, Northern and Western Hemisphere, Western hemispheres. North America is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South Ameri ...

and seven to

South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a considerably smaller portion in the Northern Hemisphere. It can also be described as the southern Subregion#Americas, subregion o ...

. Only one specimen has been collected in

Central America Central America is a subregion of North America. Its political boundaries are defined as bordering Mexico to the north, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the southwest. Central America is usually ...

('' E. toba'' in

El Salvador El Salvador, officially the Republic of El Salvador, is a country in Central America. It is bordered on the northeast by Honduras, on the northwest by Guatemala, and on the south by the Pacific Ocean. El Salvador's capital and largest city is S ...

), and one or two species occur in the

Antilles The Antilles is an archipelago bordered by the Caribbean Sea to the south and west, the Gulf of Mexico to the northwest, and the Atlantic Ocean to the north and east. The Antillean islands are divided into two smaller groupings: the Greater An ...

. ''Euaresta bullans'' has been introduced, perhaps accidentally, from South America to

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

and

Arizona Arizona is a U.S. state, state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States, sharing the Four Corners region of the western United States with Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah. It also borders Nevada to the nort ...

southern Europe Southern Europe is also known as Mediterranean Europe, as its geography is marked by the Mediterranean Sea. Definitions of southern Europe include some or all of these countries and regions: Albania, Andorra, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, C ...

, the

Middle East The Middle East (term originally coined in English language) is a geopolitical region encompassing the Arabian Peninsula, the Levant, Turkey, Egypt, Iran, and Iraq. The term came into widespread usage by the United Kingdom and western Eur ...

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

and

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 ...

, where it attacks spiny cocklebur (''

Xanthium spinosum ''Xanthium spinosum'' (also known as ''Acanthoxanthium spinosum'') is a species of flowering plant in the aster family known by many common names, including spiny cocklebur, prickly burweed and Bathurst burr. This species is part of the genus '' ...

''). '' E. aequalis'' has been introduced to

Fiji Fiji, officially the Republic of Fiji, is an island country in Melanesia, part of Oceania in the South Pacific Ocean. It lies about north-northeast of New Zealand. Fiji consists of an archipelago of more than 330 islands—of which about ...

and Australia, to act as a

biological control Biological control or biocontrol is a method of controlling pests, whether pest animals such as insects and mites, weeds, or pathogens affecting animals or plants by using other organisms. It relies on predation, parasitism, herbivory, or o ...

agent of common cocklebur (''

Xanthium strumarium ''Xanthium strumarium'' (rough cocklebur, Noogoora burr, clotbur, common cocklebur, large cocklebur, woolgarie bur) is a species of annual plants of the family Asteraceae. Some sources claim it originates in southern Europe and Asia, but has been ...

''). '' E. bella'' was released in Europe to control ragweed (''

Ambrosia artemisiifolia ''Ambrosia artemisiifolia'', with the common names common ragweed, annual ragweed, and low ragweed, is a species of the genus ''Ambrosia'' native to regions of the Americas. Taxonomy The species name, ''artemisiifolia'', is given because the lea ...

''), but did not become established there.

Species

Fifteen species are recognised in the genus ''Euaresta'': ;North America *'' E. aequalis'' ( Loew, 1862) *'' E. bella'' ( Loew, 1862) *'' E. bellula''

Snow Snow consists of individual ice crystals that grow while suspended in the atmosphere—usually within clouds—and then fall, accumulating on the ground where they undergo further changes. It consists of frozen crystalline water througho ...

, 1894 *'' E. festiva'' ( Loew, 1862) *'' E. jonesi'' ( Curran, 1932) *'' E. stelligera'' ( Coquillett, 1894) *'' E. stigmatica'' Coquillett, 1902 *'' E. tapetis'' ( Coquillett, 1894) ;South America *'' E. bullans'' ( Wiedemann, 1830) *'' E. meridionalis'' Aczél, 1952 *'' E. philodema'' ( Hendel, 1914) *'' E. regularis'' Norrbom, 1993 *'' E. reticulata'' ( Hendel, 1914) *'' E. toba'' ( Lindner, 1928) *'' E. versicolor'' Norrbom, 1993

References

External links

Key to species of ''Euaresta''
{{Taxonbar, from=Q14409218 Tephritinae Diptera of North America Diptera of South America Tephritidae genera Taxa named by Hermann Loew