Revision of New records of Manota WILLISTON (Diptera: Mycetophilidae) in Europe and North America, including a redescription of Manota unifurcata LUNDSTRÖM and pointers towards the interrelationships among Palaearctic species from Fri, 2012-03-30 10:14

Knowledge of the morphology of Manota unifurcata LUNDSTRÖM, 1913 is deepened by a detailed description and illustration of the male genitalia. Based on a study of the characters of the male genitalia in specimens from various countries, it is reconfirmed that M. unifurcata is the only species of Manota WILLISTON in Europe. Its geographic distribution is reviewed, and is augmented by new records from Germany and the first records from Sweden. The relationships of M. unifurcata to other Manota species are discussed. It appears that the species is rather isolated from other Manota in terms of both morphology and geographic distribution. The presence of a male hind tibial organ, which is described here, is a synapomorphous character shown by at least 4 of the 5 East Palaearctic species of Manota. These species and several Oriental Manota, for which presence or absence of the tibial organ is unknown, have several male genitalia characters in common, a fact that indicates their close relationships. Manota ibanezi HIPPA & HUERTA, 2009 from Mexico is shown to occur also in the north-eastern United States (Maine and New York). These are the first records of a named Manota species from the Nearctic Region. Possible explanations for the rarity of Manota in both North America and Europe are discussed.