Researchers have discovered a new species of fruit fly (Euphranta siruvani) in Siruvani, situated in the Coimbatore district of Tamil Nadu, an ecological hotspot in the Western Ghats. The fruit fly, belonging to Tephritidae family, was seen in a non-forest area near Siruvani, according to an article published in the Zootaxa journal. The Euphranta siruvani has a ‘V’ shaped black band on its wings. This is a rare species with a subapical band connected to the apical black patch. The eggs of this species are laid in fruits, the pulp of which feeds the larvae. The authors of this paper are K.J. David and K. Sachin from the National Bureau of Agricultural Insect Resources, Bengaluru, D. L. Hancock from the UK, Sudhir Singh from Forest Research Institute, Dehradun, and H Sankararaman from Annamalai University.
Euphranta genus includes many species that infect fruits and seeds. One is Euphranta cassiae that feeds on pods of cassia fistula trees. There are 104 recognised species of genus Euphranta that are scattered around the world. Out of these, 14 species are found in India. The Euphranta siruvani is the latest addition to the list of this species of fruit flies.
A species of a new fairy fly, called the Omyomar Hayati, has also been found at Siruvani. This species belongs to the Mymaridae family. The fairyfly feeds on eggs of hoppers and other plant feeders. This species has been named after Professor Mohammad Hayat of Aligarh Muslim University for his contributions to the taxonomy of Indian Chalcidoidea. This species has been named after Professor Mohammad Hayat of Aligarh Muslim University for his contributions to the taxonomy of Indian Chalcidoidea.
How a Species is Named
A species can be named after the place where it was found or collected. This place is known as type locality. The species can also be named after the collector or a taxonomist for his contribution. The new species has been spotted in a non-forest area near Siruvani and so it is named after it.
The study of fruit flies is important as they damage the reproductive capacity of plants like mango, gourd, melon, guava, cucurbits, and bamboo shoots. There are over 5,000 fruit fly species in the world; some 290 of them are found in India.
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