| Drosophila musaphilia | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Diptera |
| Family: | Drosophilidae |
| Genus: | Drosophila |
| Species: | D. musaphilia |
| Binomial name | |
| Drosophila musaphilia (Hardy, 1965) | |
Drosophila musaphilia is an endangered species of fly from Hawaii, in the species rich lineage of Hawaiian Drosophilidae. It is only found on the island of Kauai. [1] [2] The last reported sighting of this species was in 1988. [1]
Drosophila musaphilia was described in 1965 by D. Elmo Hardy. [3] The species name is in reference to the fact that this species, like many other picture-wing Drosophila, is strongly attracted to the smell of rotting banana. [3] This species is a member of the hawaiiensis subgroup in the picture-wing clade. [4]
D. musaphilia flies are mostly black, with gray hairs along the thorax. [3] The wing markings are similar to other closely related species in the subgroup, with a stripe of spots along the center and apex of the wing.
D. musaphilia females have the second longest ovipositor recorded from species of Hawaiian Drosophila, second to D. orphnopeza, with both species measuring at >1 millimeter. [5] Rearing records for this species indicate that it breeds in rotting sap, known as a slime flux, from the koa tree ( Acacia koa ). [1] [6]
Drosophila musaphilia was listed as federally endangered in 2006 along with ten other species of picture-wing Drosophila. [1] Threats to the conservation of D. musaphilia include loss-of-habitat, in part due to invasive pigs, goats, and invasive plant species, such as strawberry guava ( Psidium cattleyanum ). In addition, breeding habitat ( Acacia koa ) is threatened by browsing from non-native black-tailed deer.
Invasive plants such as Psidium cattleianum , Lantana camara , Melinis minutiflora , and Rubus argutus threaten the conservation of D. musaphilia and other members of the native Hawaiian ecosystem. [1] These plants can overwhelm native species and outcompete them for access to light. In addition, flammable grass species such as Melinis minutiflora contribute to rapidly spreading forest fires. These threats are especially relevant to the conservation of D. musaphilia, as the breeding substrate for this species is thought to be inherently rare.
The Drosophilidae are a diverse, cosmopolitan family of flies, which includes species called fruit flies, although they are more accurately referred to as vinegar or pomace flies. Another distantly related family of flies, Tephritidae, are true fruit flies because they are frugivorous, and include apple maggot flies and many pests. The best known species of the Drosophilidae is Drosophila melanogaster, within the genus Drosophila, also called the "fruit fly." Drosophila melanogaster is used extensively for studies concerning genetics, development, physiology, ecology and behaviour. Many fundamental biological mechanisms were discovered first in D. melanogaster. The fruit fly is mostly composed of post-mitotic cells, has a very short lifespan, and shows gradual aging. As in other species, temperature influences the life history of the animal. Several genes have been identified that can be manipulated to extend the lifespan of these insects. Additionally, Drosophila subobscura, also within the genus Drosophila, has been reputed as a model organism for evolutionary-biological studies, along with D. sechellia for the evolution of host specialization on the toxic noni fruit and Scaptomyza flava for the evolution of herbivory and specialist on toxic mustard leaves.
Elwood Curtin Zimmerman was an American entomologist best known for his two multivolume series: Insects of Hawaii published by the University of Hawaiʻi Press and Australian Weevils published by Australia's CSIRO.
Drosophila suzukii, commonly called the spotted wing drosophila or SWD, is a fruit fly. D. suzukii, originally from southeast Asia, is becoming a major pest species in America and Europe, because it infests fruit early during the ripening stage, in contrast with other Drosophila species that infest only rotting fruit.
Melinis minutiflora, commonly known as molasses grass, is a species of grass.
Exocarpos luteolus is a rare species of flowering plant in the sandalwood family known by the common names leafy ballart or heau. It is endemic to Hawaii, where it is known only from the island of Kauai. There are eight populations remaining, for a total global population of only 39 individuals. The plant was federally listed as an endangered species of the United States in 1994.
Scaptomyza flava is an herbivorous leaf mining fly species in the family Drosophilidae. In Latin, flava means golden or yellow. The fly is amber to dark brown in color and approximately 2.5 mm in length. In Europe and New Zealand the larvae are pests of plants in the order Brassicales, including arugula, brassicas, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, bok choy, cabbage, canola, cauliflower, horseradish, kale, kohlrabi, napa cabbage, nasturtium, radish, rapini, rutabaga, turnip, wasabi and watercress. In New Zealand, its range has expanded to include host species that are intercropped with salad brassicas, including gypsophila, otherwise known as baby's breath, which is in the pink family (Caryophyllaceae) and the pea in the Fabaceae. More typically, S. flava is oligophagous within the Brassicales. Scaptomyza are unusual within the Drospophilidae because the group includes species that are truly herbivorous. Other herbivorous drosophilids include D. suzukii, which attacks fruit very early during ripening and species within the genus Lordiphosa, from Africa and Asia, which also include leaf miners. Most drosophilids feed on microbes associated with decaying vegetation and sap fluxes.
Drosophila silvestris is a large species of fly in the family Drosophilidae that are primarily black with yellow spots. As a rare species of fruit fly endemic to Hawaii, the fly often experiences reproductive isolation. Despite barriers in nature, D. silvestris is able to breed with D. heteroneura to create hybrid flies in the laboratory.
The Hawaiian Drosophilidae are a lineage of flies within the genus Drosophila. This monophyletic clade includes all of the endemic Hawaiian Drosophila and all members of the genus Scaptomyza, which contains both Hawaiian and non-Hawaiian species. The Hawaiian Drosophilidae are descended from a common ancestor estimated to have lived 25 million years ago. Species of Hawaiian Drosophilidae flies have been studied as models of speciation and behavioral evolution. Along with other members of the native Hawaiian ecosystem, the conservations status of many species of Hawaiian Drosophilidae is threatened by habitat loss and introduced predators, among other factors.
Drosophila acanthostoma is a species of fly in the genus Drosophila. It is found in Hawaii.
Drosophila hemipeza is an endangered species of Hawaiian fly in the family Drosophilidae. This species is a member of the planitiba subgroup of the picture-wing clade of Hawaiian Drosophila.
Drosophila aglaia is an endangered species of fly from Hawaii. This species is a member of the aglaia subgroup of the picture-wing clade of Hawaiian Drosophilidae. It is only found on the island of Oahu, and has not been observed since 1997, when it was found in Palikea.
Drosophila heteroneura is an endangered species of Hawaiian fly in the family Drosophilidae. This rare fly is part of the Hawaiian Drosophila lineage, and is only found in mesic and wet forests on the island of Hawaii.
Drosophila montgomeryi is an endangered species of fly from the lineage of Hawaiian Drosophilidae. It is found on the island of Oahu.
Drosophila tarphytrichia is an endangered species of fly from Hawaii, in the species rich lineage of Hawaiian Drosophilidae. It is only found on the island of Oahu. While originally collected near Manoa Falls in 1949, this fly is thought to have been extirpated from the Koʻolau Range and now only found in the Waiʻanae Range. This species is a member of the lanaiensis subgroup in the picture-wing clade.
Drosophila neoclavisetae is an endangered species of fly from Hawaii, in the species rich lineage of Hawaiian Drosophilidae. It is only found in West Maui. It can be distinguished from its East Maui counterpart, D. clavisetae, by the shape of the long hairs on the abdomen, which are more rounded in D. neoclavisetae and more flattened in D. clavisetae.
Drosophila obatai is an endangered species of fly from Hawaii, in the species rich lineage of Hawaiian Drosophilidae. It is only found on the island of Oahu. D. obatai is part of the orphnopeza subgroup in the picture-wing clade, and is closely related to D. sodomae, a fly found on the islands of Maui and Molokai.
Drosophila ochrobasis is an endangered species of fly from Hawaii, in the species rich lineage of Hawaiian Drosophilidae. It is found on the Big island of Hawaii, and has historically been recorded from four of the five volcanoes, though it is now largely absent from most of those sites. This species is in the adiastola subgroup and is closely related to D. setosimentum, but male D. ochrobasis have strikingly different wing markings.
Drosophila substenoptera is an endangered species of fly in the species rich lineage of Hawaiian Drosophilidae. It is only found on the island of Oahu,. Historically it was collected throughout the Ko'olau and Wai'anae ranges, but now is only known to occur near the summit of Mt. Kaala. D. substenoptera is a member of the planitibia species group and neopicta subgroup within the picture-wing clade.
Drosophila differens is an endangered species of Hawaiian fly in the family Drosophilidae. This species is a member of the planitiba subgroup of the picture-wing clade of Hawaiian Drosophila. It is found on the island of Molokai.
Drosophila digressa is an endangered species of fly from Hawaii, in the species rich lineage of Hawaiian Drosophilidae. It is only found on the Big island of Hawaii. It was historically known from sites throughout the islands, but is now restricted to the Manuka and Ola'a reserves.
