First record of Megaselia abdita (Schmitz, 1959) (Diptera: Phoridae) infestation in captive tarantulas (Araneae: Theraphosidae

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  First record of Megaselia abdita (Schmitz, 1959) (Diptera: Phoridae) infestation in captive tarantulas (Araneae: Theraphosidae Abstract Flies of the genus Megaselia Rondani, 1856 exhibit exceptional ecological flexibility, with certain species acting as facultative parasites. This study presents the first documented cases of Megaselia abdita (Schmitz, 1959) infesting captive tarantulas (Araneae: Theraphosidae, Ceratogyrus darlingi Pocock, 1897 and Psalmopoeus irminia Saager, 1994) in terrarium settings. Our observations demonstrate that M . abdita colonise artificial habitats and exploit spider hosts similarly to Megaselia scalaris . Citation: Szymański, D.M., Szymański, D., Kłonowski, P. (2026). First record of Megaselia abdita (Schmitz, 1959) (Diptera: Phoridae) infestation in captive tarantulas (Araneae: Theraphosidae). Dipteron, 42, 25-29. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.23137389

New records of Mesobuthus mesopotamicus (Penther, 1912) in Iraq and Mesobuthus faiki sp. nov. from Turkey (Scorpiones: Buthidae)

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New records of Mesobuthus mesopotamicus (Penther, 1912) in Iraq and Mesobuthus faiki sp. nov. from Turkey (Scorpiones: Buthidae)

Abstract


New locality records for Mesobuthus mesopotamicus (Penther, 1912) are given from Iraq. The populations from southeastern Turkey, earlier identified as M. mesopotamicus by Kovařík et al. (2022), are examined and compared with the specimens from the area close to the type locality of M. mesopotamicus. These populations are described as a new species, Mesobuthus faiki sp. nov. Detailed illustrations of both species and a map are given.

Yağmur, E. A., Kovařík, F., Fet, V., Kurt, R., S., F., Al-Khazali, A. M., Kachel, H. S., & Al-Fanharawi, A. A. 2024 . New records of Mesobuthus mesopotamicus (Penther, 1912) in Iraq and Mesobuthus faiki sp. nov. from Turkey (Scorpiones: Buthidae). Euscorpius, No. 388: 1-22. https://mds.marshall.edu/euscorpius/vol2024/iss388/1/