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1Darwyn Sumner
Recording Scheme - News
A fairly intensive few sessions on data-gathering throughout the UK
and Europe and even a brief foray into the Nearctic has led to both an
improvement in Open Data contributions and biogeographical
perspectives
.
NBN Atlas now has the Open Data, up from 5373 to 6409 as shown
opposite. Clearly I’m able to do the maps long before the data upload
gets processed (takes about a month), starting with a few selected
ones for this newsletter.
The website gets those maps too, check it and you’ll nd both old
and new ones.
The European Atlas gets an update too, this time with points
distributions rather than being country-based (as in my Researchgate
preprint at https://doi.org/DOI: 10.13140/RG.2.2.34834.99529 with
~250 reads) If you’ve any work scheduled in this group then the
website maps are the most current.
World Atlas. Again just the Calobatinae. The rest of the Palaearctic
was a little tricky; papers in Russian, Korean and Japanese languages
stretched the abilities of the OCR in my pdf reader and my use of
online translators but I think I got them all. In contrast the Nearctic
data was a breeze, half their museums seem to have uploaded to
GBIF and the missing stu I scanned from the maps in:
Merritt R.W. & Peterson B. V. 1976. A synopsis of the Micropezidae
(Diptera) of Canada and Alaska, with descriptions of four new species.
Can. J. Zool. 54: 1488–1506.
All these world atlas maps are to be found on the Scheme’s website
at https://micropezids.myspecies.info/node/385
One outcome is that we can portray an Holarctic species:
Cnodacophora stylifera which, according to Ozerov (1990) is synonymised with
the Nearctic Cnodacophora nasoni Making this a Boreal (teal line) or high
altitude Temperate species. The block to the right is Mongolia, the rest of the
eastern Palaearctic is even more inhospitable for entomologists
DIPTERA: Superfamilies NERIOIDEA (Micropezids) - Families Pseudopomyzidae & Micropezidae + DIOPSOIDEA
(Tanypezids) - Families Diopsidae, Tanypezidae, Strongylophthalmyiidae, Megamerinidae & Psilidae
European Micropezids & Tanypezids at http://micropezids.myspecies.info/
UK Recording Scheme Open Data 2022
Recent records to 2022. All are publicly accessible through NBN Atlas. Dark
green 10km squares are 2021/22 records, mainly through iRecord &
iNaturalist. Pale red squares are from the 2011-2020 decade. Recent hotspots
due to a Dipterists Forum eld week in Norfolk. Plenty more promising old and
new ground to explore. Thanks to everyone for their contributions so far.
Contact the Recording Scheme if you’ve any more or simply add them
to iRecord or if images then iNaturalist is preferred.
Micropezids & Tanypezids
Stilt & Stalk Fly Recording Scheme
Newsletter 5 Spring 2023
Online version of this newsletter (with hyperlinks) on the Newsletters page
Note that the Scratchpad website for this scheme has now been closed to further editing
Fingered Strider (Neria commutata) photo ©Darwyn Sumner)
European Micropezids & Tanypezids
2Newsletter 5 Spring 2023
Featured species
Whatever happened to the Atlantic Pierrot?
Psilosoma lefebvrei (Atlantic Pierrot)
Identication tips from Jessica Joachim on her 2018 blog https://jessica-
joachim.com/insectes/dipteres/psilidae/psilosoma-lefebvrei/
The map suggests a disturbing decline in Psilosoma lefebvrei, at one time
widespread its range has now shrunken considerably to only 6 sites in the last
decade and only a couple of records on iNaturalist.
Peter Chandler (1975) reported it as frequent in Scotland and
the north of England. Peter collected it on Foxgloves (Digitalis
purpurea). Check your nds carefully and don’t mix this up
with Psila spp. (1 notopleural bristle), it can be conrmed
using the keys of either Jocelyn Claude or Paul Beuk. Post
suspects on iNaturalist so that Jocelyn se
es them.
Tanypeza longimana (European Harlequin)
The fth occasion I’ve found this species, my rst from the
UK, at Whitwell Common SSSI in East Norfolk last year.
Alan Stubbs included this discovery in his regular British
Wildlife Diptera column and so my photograph was used as an
illustration.
In mid June 2023 it was additionally recorded in Jersey by
Jody Robert.
Stilt & Stalk Fly Recording Scheme
3Newsletter 5 Spring 2023
Rainieria calceata (Beech Échasseur)
Though commonly encountered in certain parts of Europe, this
remains a UK prize due to the scarcity of its habitat here. Just
two additional UK records this year (Paul Brock on Flickr &
Paul Davis on iNaturalist), both from its known stronghold in
the Windsor Forest region. The publicity we give to this
species was tracked down by Helen Read, an environmental
consultant on veteran trees at Burnham Beeches, one of its
known sites. Her team didn’t nd any there in 2022 though.
It was however refound on Corse in 2023, the rst record since
Séguy reported it in 1934.
Strongylophthalmyia ustulata (Western Juggler)
A good year for this species in Europe with 5 records, one in
France by Marie Lou Legrand (renko), another in the
Netherlands by Rob Westerduijn both on iNaturalist. On
Diptera.info a Spanish one (pictured) by picotverd in the
Pyrenees is at the southern end of its range and the Saxony one
is by Marion Friedrich. Thanks to Jere Kahanpää for help in
conrming them.
The UK record was by Ivan Perry (reported in the latest
Dipterists Digest) a career “one-o” by an experienced
dipterist so don’t expect to emulate them.
It’s an unremarkable beast, the only distinguishing feature
being the nominative “ball-shaped” eyes though I observe in
renko’s superb images that the mouthparts are distinctive and
the wing tips are infuscated. Keys in Krivosheina (1982),
specimens amongst your sweepings near Aspen or other
Populus spp..
European Micropezids & Tanypezids
4Newsletter 5 Spring 2023
Austria
Neria longiceps (Long-headed strider)
An exceedingly rare species, so much so that only nine papers
refer to it, and ve of those are country checklists. There are no
gures of the male genitalia to be found in any of them, however
the striking appearance of the head serves to identify it
.
Neria longiceps female [Gernot Kunz on iNaturalist]
Restricted to the Alpine-Carpathian corridor and the Caucasus
biodiversity hotspots:
An Austrian checklist?
Considerable interest was shown by several Austrian dipterists
in the above nd by Gernot Kunz on iNaturalist, so much so
that the discussion there (https://www.inaturalist.org/
observations/160211655) resulted in them all chipping in with
lists of species they knew from Austria. Validating them all
and collecting them together for a list on the Scratchpad site is
not feasible any longer but the potential exists for a most
valuable paper in the future.
PalaeobiogeographyPalaeobiogeography
The Schizophora are the most recently evolved group of
Diptera, recent DNA work can trace them back to 80-60mya.
The Micropezidae arose soon after South America and Africa
separated and probably before South America’s connection to
Antarctica (60-40mya) was lost (perhaps accounting for the
presence of Calycopteryx mosleyi on the Heard Is. & Badisis in
Western Australia.) Later, when Africa met Eurasia and various
mountain ranges arose, the Calobatinae diversied in hotspots
evidenced by the nding of an early Oligocene (25-23mya)
fossil: Calobata (Neria) rottensis Statz, 1940, in Chattian
lacustrine shale in Germany.
Intriguingly Neria longiceps seems to have stuck close to its
origins in the Alpine-Carpathian corridor + Caucasus
biodiversity hotspots whilst other Calobatinae have spread
much further, across the Palaearctic with one getting across to
the Nearctic and becoming Holarctic (Cnodacophora
stylifera) whilst others may have diversied in the New World
or their eastern Palaearctic progenitors are lost or
undiscovered. Perhaps there are yet others awaiting discovery
in the European hotspots.
My World Atlas of Calobatinae maps them all.
G. Statz. 1940. Neue Dipteren (Brachycera et Cyclorhapha) aus dem
Oberoligozän von Rott. Palaeontographica Abteilung A 91:120-174
Life-cycle investigationsLife-cycle investigations
For clues as to where the Micropezids & Tanypezids might be
breeding it’s dicult to do better than Peter Chandler’s 1975
account of plant associations in the Psilidae. Though a number
can be tracked down due to host-plant specicity (e.g. Chyliza,
Chamaepsila) or fungi/tree associations (Rainieria), many are
simply generalised feeders on decaying plant material in wet
situations (not aquatic) such as riparian wetlands. Innumerable
diptera species favour that life style so the chances of narrowing
down any of the Calobatinae (for example) to anything specic
are remote. By the time their larvae have dispersed in their
favourite “soup” the chances that any extraction method will
have of detecting them will be low, the same proportions as that
of the adults amongst most other diptera in that particular
habitat - and far less obviously identiable.
Outer wheel: red = sightings of adults (Neria sp. UK)
Inner wheel immature stages: Blue = diapausing instar 3 larvae,
green active instar 3 larvae, yellow = puparia. White = ova, pale
green are the instar 1 & 2 larvae. Estimated from Barnes, 2016.
The above diagram shows a typical life-cycle, based on
research by Barnes. Much of the larval (inner circle) cannot
easily be investigated but observations of adults may give
clues. Ovipositing is rarely observed, mating pairs scarcely
seen either. Early and mass emergences can be detected
though, Neria commutata for example was observed freshly
emerged in the UK this year (a hot June) on the 3rd, then in
considerable numbers (>50) a week later with numbers
declining only a little over the next few days. The opportunity
to further study dispersal and life-cycles is feasible given well-
timed observations of the adults in appropriate sites (https://
tinyurl.com/4y7eeprv) where metapopulations can be located.
Chandler P.J. 1975. Observations on plant associations of the Psilidae
(Diptera). Entomol. Rec. J. Var. 87: 13–17.
Rotheray G.E. 2016. Fieldcraft and closing the knowledge gap between
immature and adult stages of Diptera Cyclorrhapha. Dipterists Dig.
Second Ser. 23: 85–96.
Barnes J. 2016. Biology and Immature Stages of Compsobata univitta
(Walker, 1849) (Diptera: Micropezidae: Calobatinae). .
Stilt & Stalk Fly Recording Scheme
5Newsletter 5 Spring 2023
iNaturalist projects
This Scheme’s iNaturalist project, set up in May 2020 is
steadily growing. It now has 22 members, users signed up to
keep an eye specically on this group. By the end of June 2023
the number of observations across Europe had risen from last
year’s 1100 to 2620 and the list of species stood at 51.
The project is clearly encouraging more recording. More than
50% of UK (image) recording is now through this site. There
has also been a good deal of positive feedback occasioned by
my habit of providing a link to each taxon on my Scratchpad
site when conrming an identity. Hopefully contributors go
and read that before conrming my ID.
I’m indebted to Jocelyn Claude (France), Sam Rees (UK),
Erikas Lutovinovas (Lithuania), Nikola Szucsich (Austria) &
Jere Kahanpää (Finland) for showing an interest and helping
to raise many to Research grade, a good example of the
eectiveness of international collaboration. Thanks too to
others such as Katja Schulz (USA) and Gernot Kunz (Austria)
and several more for the many interesting and informative
exchanges there.
Do participate by joining the project as a member, there are
always many unconrmed (“needs ID”) records and plenty of
creatures out in the eld waiting for you to nd.
A second (UK) project was set up in 2021:
Many thanks to those conrming my personal records so that
I could process them through iRecord (and thus get them on to
NBN Atlas). Thanks too to Jocelyn who stepped in to do the
many trickier Chamaepsila
By the end of June there were 364 observations of 24 species
via 151 observers, 55% of them identied by 53 identiers.
Membership rose to 6, presumably those in the UK with a
particular interest in this group. Do feel free to join, every
project you join shows up alongside your posted image so that
you can see which Recording Scheme you’ve contributed to -
join as many Dipterists Forum RS projects as you wish.
https://www.inaturalist.org/projects/dipterists-forum
I check the iNaturalist project pretty much daily (a bit like
checking email but with the potential of exciting new
discoveries) and that team of 53 identiers do so somewhat
less frequently. The records all get fed into iRecord. but
images simply uploaded to iRecord alone are infrequently
checked by their sole verier. There’s no team in i(Record)
Previous Newsletters
1. Stilt & Stalk Fly Recording Scheme Newsletter 1
2. Stilt & Stalk Fly Recording Scheme Newsletter 2
3. Stilt & Stalk Fly Recording Scheme Newsletter 3
4. Stilt & Stalk Fly Recording Scheme Newsletter 4
Identicationcation
Online keys
There are a number of methods of constructing dynamic
online keys; some, such as Paul Beuk’s online keys to Psilidae
seem to be text and couplet based. Others are somewhat more
complex to build as they are based upon weighted matrices of
characters. One such was developed by the UK’s Field Studies
Council, the FSC Identikit
FSC’s Biolinks Projects funding has ended and the project
consequently discontinued. Thus some of the support
facilities are no longer available and some links broken
(e.g. the help forum) due to FSC’s revision of their website
and staff redeployment.
The GitHub pages at the above link still appear to be
functional however and presumably the downloadable kit still
operates. Developing such matrices results in a desktop
version which can be endlessly modied then recompiled to
produce a satisfactory key (see their Opiliones key). It can also
be shared between collaborators. To make that key then
available online requires that it then be hosted somewhere.
This scheme has developed two which FSC kindly hosted (and
still do) since the Scratchpads were not suitable vehicles for
such hosting.
They are as follows:
1. European Psilidae
An initial experiment so not as good as those of Beuk or Withers &
Claude
2. European Micropeza
Adequate but the Visual key below is an improvement
A third one has now been begun:
3. World Calobatinae
Collaborators are invited, workers across the Holarctic may be contacted when
any progress has been made. Many illustrations and images yet to be found
or drawn and I’ll need somewhere to host it to demonstrate a rst version.
Visual keys
The following were included in previous newsletters:
1. Micropeza (European) in Newsletter 3
2. Loxocerini, Chylizinae (European) in Newsletter 4
European Micropezids & Tanypezids
6Newsletter 5 Spring 2023
Scheme Publications
Preprints: Though I’ve had oers from journals to publish
items arising from this Recording Scheme, the decision to
publish them as preprints on ResearchGate seems to have
been prudent. Anything containing distribution maps or
phenology reects the state of knowledge at a particular point
in time and so such fast publishing has proved valuable. The
recent 20% increase in our UK records underlines this.
The following preprints are now accessible …
Sumner, D. P. (2018). Vernacular names: European Micropezids &
Tanypezids (Diptera, Nerioidea & Diopsoidea). Preprint, A 3(3 V2), 1–
14. https://doi.org/DOI: 10.13140/RG.2.2.10298.31688
Sumner, D. P. (2018). Observations on Phytomyza orobanchia Kaltenbach,
1864 (Diptera, Agromyzidae) and Chyliza extenuata Rossi, 1790
(Diptera, Psilidae), both new to Wales, on Ivy Broomrape (Orobanche
hederae). Preprint, 1(2:V1), 7. https://doi.org/DOI:10.13140/
RG.2.2.31761.35686
Sumner, D. P. (2018). Biogeography, population dynamics and status of
Micropeza lateralis Meigen, 1826 (Diptera, Micropezidae) in Europe.
Preprint, 1(3 V1). https://doi.org/DOI: 10.13140/RG.2.2.15823.00160
Sumner, D. P. (2018). European Atlas: Micropezids & Tanypezids (Diptera,
Nerioidea & Diopsoidea). Preprint, A 1(1 V5), 1–94. https://doi.org/DOI:
10.13140/RG.2.2.34834.99529
Sumner D.P.. (2021). Biogeography, Phenology & Status of Micropezids &
Tanypezids (Diptera, Nerioidea & Diopsoidea) in the UK. Dipterists
Forum Report: Stilt & Stalk Fly Recording Scheme, A(11 V1), 48 http://
dx.doi.org/10.13140/RG.2.2.35312.38407
The above ResearchGate preprints have been consulted widely by researchers
and cited a few times.
Online: Updates to Atlases both European & UK as maps with occurrences as
points, some extending to Palaearctic and Holarctic regions. Publishing online
is no longer as feasible due to Scratchpad closures though most maps are
available on this scheme’s site. A Researchgate update to atlases may be
possible in the longer term.
In prep. A number of keys and articles on the biology, ecology, biogeography,
palaeogeography and morphology of various taxa, notably the Calobatinae &
Tanypeza longimana.
Recent Publications
Claude J. & Beuk P. 2023. The Psilidae of the centennial Botanic garden
Jean Massart (Brussels-Capital Region , Belgium): ve new species of
Belgian Diptera with an updated Belgian checklist. Belgian J. Entomol.
134: 197–203.
Milkowski M. & Tatur-Dytkowski J. 2022. Rediscovery of the Rust Fly
Loxocera homannseggi Meigen, 1826 (Diptera: Psilidae) in Poland.
Dipteron. 38: 32–37.
In Polish. Some valuable habitat and occurrence observations, though
lacking lat/long geospatial coordinates. The authors observe that
Poland was omitted from Fauna Europaea (2013)*. Some Polish
records are on iNaturalist (and GBIF) and the species is referenced in
the European Atlas (Sumner 2018) and current work on this scheme’s
site:
The closure of the Scratchpad site did not allow any opportunities for the Polish
author’s records (not on GBIF) to be interpreted and included in the above
map. Their map adds three more locations in Poland, one from a Fauna Polski
paper (not Open Access.)
*Fauna Europaea is “outdated” (Martinez pers. comm., 2023) and does not cite published
sources of species occurrences which clearly extensively mismatch with published data
(Sumner, 2018)
Scratchpads scratched
In many ways the ideal format for Recording Scheme
websites the Scratchpads lost their support from the UK’s
Natural History Museum (London) much to the dismay of
hundreds of site owners across the world. The sites
themselves will remain functional to enquirers as usual but
they will be frozen for continued amendment by their
managers and operators.
Though alternative website templates (e.g forums, blogs,
galleries) have been investigated, none provide the
taxonomic backbone to such a complex content
management system. Indeed rebuilding such a template
may take years and a considerable amount of money. A
small international consortium is currently investigating
options amongst the biodiversity informatics community and
though it may well be that a less sophisticated model of low
cost may deliver around 80% of the capabilities of
Scratchpads it is likely that a full implementation may take
one or two big funders and some crowdfunding.
About the consortium
This “SOS” (Save our Scratchpads) group was initiated and led by John P.
Sullivan (USA) and joined by many others, including 3 UK Diptera Recording
Schemes, others studying sh, spiders, plants, beetles, myriapods and several
others throughout the world together with a couple of developers and
individuals involved in some pretty hefty international biodiversity informatics
projects. The group, all anxious to explore possible ways forward so as to
continue their research, has met several times and canvassed various
interested or involved parties. In the stories being told the picture emerged
that Scratchpads were one component of a multi-million euros enterprise that
achieved a great deal.
Sustainability was one budget element they overlooked though, one could
hardly apply the term “successful” to an enterprise that recruits free amateur
expertise then expects these unwaged naturalists to also shoulder the costs of
their continued endeavours.
GBIF Forum discussion at https://tinyurl.com/2p8xb3fz
In the meantime this Recording Scheme has no alternative
taxonomic content management website to transfer its focus
to. Nor, given the short notice of 6 months to 1st September,
is there any longer a place to store resources such as images,
atlases & other biogeography, phenologies, bibliographies,
newsletters, publications, keys and guides etc.
There remains one location though for any messages
regarding progress: the Project Journal on this Scheme’s
iNaturalist project at https://www.inaturalist.org/projects/
european-micropezids-tanypezids
News regarding sustainable solutions and free hosting costs
(unwaged volunteer!) will ultimately be placed there. It’s just
a simple blog but it’s an editable spot right now.
Countries and regions are thirsty for summarized data and insights for policy-making but we are
running short of tools for managing the data (Martinez pers. comm., 2023)