A Rutilia bristle fly at Paddys River, ACT
Identification history
| Rutilia (Rutilia) confusa | 28 Feb 2019 | MichaelBedingfield | ||
| Rutilia (Rutilia) confusa | 27 Feb 2019 | jgl | ||
| Rutilia (Rutilia) sp. (genus & subgenus) | 26 Feb 2019 | RodDeb |
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User's notes
on a rock in the middle of the creek
3 comments
jgl
wrote:
28 Feb 2019
Firstly, subgenus Rutilia is absolutely right! I couldn't make out the row of strong setae on T3 using my phone, but now I can see it clearly. There's a species around the ACT (R. micropalpis) that hasn't been assigned to a subgenus (incertae sedis) - it can looks superficially like many other spp. in various subgenera, except that it has microscopic palps (and lacks a row of strong setae on T3). But, the coloration of the specimen in this photo matches that of specimens I've caught recently in Kosciuszko NP, and from the NSW South Coast which key out to R. (R.) confusa. There are many specimens of this species from the ACT in ANIC, but they often change colour slightly after spending 60+ year on a pin.
R. (R.) confusa look like a (more common) R. (R.) vivipara that's been lightly bleached blonde, with a much lighter and brighter orange brown abdomen. The faint metallic coloration over their dorsal thorax is green, rather than pinky-red (like in all other spp. in the subgenus Rutilia).
There's the slight complication that not all the ACT specimens in our collection conform to Crosskey's 1973 Rutilia key, based on a few microscopic setae on the suprasquamal ridge which shouldn't be there. However, I fairly certain that this is a problem with the key, rather than them being a separate species - such inconsistencies are very common in this genus, an often manifest themselves when one looks at hundreds of specimens, rather than just a few individuals (as was the case with many European taxonomists). I'm not ruling out cryptic speciation until I've completed my molecular work, but I'm happy assign this to R. (R.) confusa for the time being, as that is what it would most likely key out to according to the current taxonomy. I feel that the row of setae on T3, the colouration and the location are sufficient in this case.
R. (R.) confusa look like a (more common) R. (R.) vivipara that's been lightly bleached blonde, with a much lighter and brighter orange brown abdomen. The faint metallic coloration over their dorsal thorax is green, rather than pinky-red (like in all other spp. in the subgenus Rutilia).
There's the slight complication that not all the ACT specimens in our collection conform to Crosskey's 1973 Rutilia key, based on a few microscopic setae on the suprasquamal ridge which shouldn't be there. However, I fairly certain that this is a problem with the key, rather than them being a separate species - such inconsistencies are very common in this genus, an often manifest themselves when one looks at hundreds of specimens, rather than just a few individuals (as was the case with many European taxonomists). I'm not ruling out cryptic speciation until I've completed my molecular work, but I'm happy assign this to R. (R.) confusa for the time being, as that is what it would most likely key out to according to the current taxonomy. I feel that the row of setae on T3, the colouration and the location are sufficient in this case.
RodDeb
wrote:
28 Feb 2019
amazing the detailed information there is, thank goodness for people like you.
Thank you for your time and help.
Thank you for your time and help.
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Nearby sightings
Location information
- Coordinates 148.936731-35.481438
- Altitude 876.0m
- Maps Namadgi National Park
- Places Paddys River, ACT
Sighting information
- 1 Abundance
- 25 Feb 2019 01:04 PM Recorded on
- RodDeb Recorded by
Species information
- Rutilia (Rutilia) confusa Scientific name
- A Rutilia bristle fly Common name
- Not Sensitive
- Local native
- Non-Invasive
- 876m Recorded at altitude
- Machine learning
- External link More information
