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A checklist of some recorded insects in Misurata, Libya
*Corresponding author walidfathy72@yahoo.com (Mohamed Walid Fathy)
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Received: ,
Accepted: ,
This article was originally published by Elsevier and was migrated to Scientific Scholar after the change of Publisher.
Abstract
Insect fauna of Libya is poorly studied. The insect fauna recorded from Misurata, northwestern Libya is represented by 16 orders, 59 families and 77 genera all are arranged alphabetically. The verification and corrections will be available in a detailed work revising different insect orders and families of Libya. This work is considered the first checklist of insects in Libya at all.
Keywords
Insects
Misurata
Libya
1 Introduction
Insects are invertebrate animals of the Class Insecta which comprises the largest known and widely distributed group of animals in the world. Insects can be found in almost anywhere, on plants, around buildings and under objects like rocks and logs. Aquatic insects can be found in ponds, lakes, streams, rivers, and bogs. Many insects are considered as pests by humans including those are parasitic, transmit diseases, damage houses or destroy agricultural goods. Insects also produce useful substances such as honey, wax and silk. On the other hand, they introduce a great job in pollination of the flowering plants. Insects are integral part in the food chain whether consumer, prey or predator (Grimaldi and Engel, 2005). Studies on insect fauna in Libya at all is poor. Ahmed (1978) gave a study on the insect pests of corn in genera in Libya at all. No such published works or studies were constructed to study or record insect fauna of Misurata Jamahiriya. El-Ghariani (1992) recorded many Lepidopteran species by using light traps in El-Beida region. Kaal et al. (2006) reported the flea infestations in farm animals especially ruminants in northern Libya. El-Maghrabi and Amin (2007) surveyed the ecological habitats of Lepidoptera insects in El-Beida area, western Libya with notes on their world distribution, host plants and taxonomy. This paper introduces the first comprehensive study of some recorded insect families and in northwestern Libya. Based on the collected samples from Misurata, this paper adds a biogeographical significant segment to the recent ongoing evaluation of the insect fauna in Libya.
2 Materials and methods
2.1 Study site
Misurata city (32° 23′ N and 15° 6′ E) is located at the northern corner of Sirt Gulf on the coast of the Mediterranean Sea 211 km east of Tripoli and 825 km west of Benghazi with a coast 125 km and 15 m above sea level (Fig. 1). The location of the city forms a mixture of a dualism of sea and sand for it is surrounded by the sea from the north and east and from the south it is surrounded by the golden sands combined with the long palm trees, the shady olives and the green plains which encircle the center of the town. Misurata is submitted under the Mediterranean climate, average temperature reaches to 27.3°, average of rain fall reaches to 200 cm/year and relative humidity reaches to 72.78% in average (after National Weather Service, 2002). Misurata is divided into eleven communes as follow: Kasr Ahmed, Al Zarrok, Ras El Toba, Zat El Remal, El Remela, 9 July, Zawiyet Al Mahjob, Al Dafniya, Al Gheran, Tomena and Tawargha.
Misurata city.
2.2 Collecting insects
Insects were collected throughout all seasons of the year especially summer and spring where most of all insect species are active. Collection was done by using forceps, jars, hand made collecting nets, digging and bottles for terrestrial and water insects during the period from 2003 to 2008 from all communes of Misurata. Specimens were taken twice a day to record the diurnal and nocturnal ones. Samples were collected by aid of Misurata dwellers and students in the Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, 7th October University in Misurata city. Collected specimens were categorized, photographed and kept in tight sealed boxes. Orders, families and scientific names were given to each after identification and verification by the authors according to Borror et al. (1981).
3 Results
Orders, families and genera of the insects collected during this study were arranged in a table (Table 1) followed by the scientific names for each insect. 1. Order: Coleoptera Linnaeus 1758 Family: Bruchidae Latreille 1802 Bruchus rufimanus Linnaeus 1767 Family: Carabidae Latreille 1802 Graphipterus serrator Latreille 1802 Family: Cerambycidae Latreille 1802 Cerambyx dux Latreille 1802 Family: Cicindellidae Linnaeus 1758 Cicindella aulica Linnaeus 1758 Family: Coccinellidae Latreille 1807 Coccinella septumpunctata Linnaeus 1758 Family: Curculionidae Latreille 1802 Sitophilus oryzae Schonherr 1825) Family: Dermestidae Linnaeus 1758 Attagenus trifasciatus Brahm 1791 Trogoderma granarium Linnaeus 1758 Family: Meloidae Gyllenhal 1810 Meloe sp. Linnaeus 1758 Family: Scarabeidae Latreille 1802 Scarabaeus saccer Linnaeus 1758 Tropinota squalida Latreille 1802 Family: Tenebrionidae Latreille 1802 Adesmia bicarinata Latreille 1802 Blaps polychresta Latreille 1802 Pimelia sericata Latreille 1802 Tribolium castaneum Winkler 1927 Tribolium confusum Geoffroy 1762 2. Order: Dermaptera De Geer 1773 Family: Labiduridae De Geer 1773 Labidura riparia De Geer 1773 Family: Labiidae De Geer 1773 Labidura minora De Geer 1773 3. Order: Dictyoptera Linnaeus 1758 Family: Blattidae Linnaeums 1758 Periplaneta americana Linnaeus 1758 Family: Mantidae Forskal 1775 Sphodromantis viridis Forskal 1775 4. Order: Diptera Linnaeus 1758 Family: Asilidae Loew 1848 Erax rufilabris Loew 1848 Family: Calliphoridae Robinaeu-Desvoidy 1830 Calliphora erythrocephala Robinaeu-Desvoidy 1830 Chrysomya albiceps Robinaeu-Desvoidy 1830 Lucilia sericata Meigen 1816 Family: Culicidae Linnaeus 1758 Culex pipiens Linnaeus 1758 Family: Faniidae Linnaeus 1761 Fannia canicularis Linnaeus 1761 Fannia scalaris Fabricius 1794 Family: Hippoboscidae Theobald 1830 Hippobosca camelina Theobald 1830 Family: Muscidae Latreille 1802 Musca domestica Linnaeus 1758 Stomoxys calcitrans Linnaeus 1758 Family: Psychodidae Loew 1845 Phlebotomus papatasi Loew 1845 Family: Sarcophagidae Linnaeus 1758 Sarcophaga carnaria Linnaeus 1758 Family: Tachinidae De Geer 1776 Mintho rufiventris De Geer 1776 Family: Tephretidae Wiedemann 1824 Ceratitis capitata Wiedemann 1824 Family: Tipulidae Latreille 1802 Trichiotinus piger Latreille 1802 5. Order: Hemiptera Linnaeus 1758 Family: Belostomatidae Lepeltier and Serville 1825 Lethocerus niloticus Lepeltier and Serville 1825 Family: Cimicidae Kirkaldy 1909 Cimex lectularius Kirkaldy 1909 Family: Pentatomidae Leach 1815 Nezara viridula Linnaeus 1758 Spilostethus pandurus Leach 1815 Family: Reduvidae Linnaeus 1758 Reduvius jakovlevii Linnaeus 1758 6. Order: Homoptera Linnaeus 1758 Family: Aphidiidae Linnaeus 1758 Myzus persicus Linnaeus 1758 Schizaphis graminum Linnaeus 1758 7. Order: Hymenoptera Linnaeus 1758 Family: Apidae Linnaeus 1758 Apis mellifera Linnaeus 1758 Polistes gallicus Latreille 1802 Xylocopa austeneus Latreille 1802 Family: Cephidae Linnaeus 1758 Cephus pygmaeus Linnaeus 1758 Family: Chrysididae Linnaeus 1758 Stilbum cyaneum Linnaeus 1758 Family: Evanidae Linnaeus 1758 Evania appendigaster Linnaeus 1758 Family: Formicidae Latreille 1809 Cataglyphis bicolor Fabricius 1793 Monomorium pharoensis Mayr 1855 Family: Mutillidae Ashmead 1899 Mutella barbara Ashmead 1899 Family: Vespidae Linnaeus 1771 Vespa orientalis Linnaeus 1771 8. Order: Lepidoptera Linnaeus 1758 Family: Danaidae Linnaeus 1758 Danus chrysippus Linnaeus 1758 Family: Gelichidae Stainton 1854 Phthorimaea operculella Zeller 1873 Sitotroga cerelella Stainton 1854 Family: Gracillaridae Bruand 1851 Phylloconistis citrella Bruand 1851 Family: Lycaenidae Leach 1815 Virachola livia Leach 1815 Family: Nymphalidae Rafinesque 1815 Cynthia cardui Linnaeus 1758 Family: Pieridae Duponchel 1835 Pieris rapae Linnaeus 1758 Family: Pyralidae Latreille 1802 Ephestia kuehniella Heinemann and Wocke 1876 Family: Sphingidae Linnaeus 1758 Acherontia atropos Linnaeus 1758 Hers convolvuli Bergh 1895 9. Order: Mallophaga Haekel 1896 Family: Menoponidae Haekel 1896 Menopon gallinae Haekel 1896 10. Order: Neuroptera Linnaeus 1758 Family: Chrysopidae Linnaeus 1758 Chrysoperia vulgaris Linnaeus 1758 Family: Myrmelionidae Linnaeus 1758 Cucta varigata Linnaeus 1758 11. Order: Odonata Fabricius 1793 Family: Aeschnidae Rambur 1842 Hemianax ephippiger Rambur 1842 Family: Coenagrionidae Fabricius 1793 Ischnura sengalensis Selys 1854 Family: Libellulidae Rambur 1842 Brachythemis leucostica Rambur 1842 12. Order: Orthoptera Latreille 1793 Family: Acrididae MacLeay 1819 Acrotylus insubricus Latreille 1793 Acridella nasuta Latreille 1793 Acrida bicolor Latreille 1793 Aiolopus thalasinus Latreille 1793 Family: Gryllidae Bolivar 1878 Gryllus bimaculatus Saussure 1870 Gryllus domesticus Saussure 1870 Family: Gryllotalpidae Saussure 1870 Gryllotalpa vulgaris Latreille 1802 13. Order: Siphonaptera Latreille 1825 Family: Pulicidae Linnaeus 1758 Echdinophaga gallinae Linnaeus 1758 Pulex irritans Linnaeus 1758 14. Order: Siphunculata PhthirapteraHaekel 1896 Family: Pediculidae Charles De Geer 1767 Pediculus humanus capitis Charles De Geer 1767 Pediculus humanus corporis Linnaeus 1758 15. Order: Thysanoptera Haliday 1836 Family: Phallopthripidae Uzel 1895 Haplothrips cottei Uzel 1895 Family: Thripidae Stevens 1829 Heliothrips haemorrhoudalis Stevens 1829 16. Order: Thysanura Linnaeus 1758 Family: Lepismatidae Linnaeus 1758 Lepisma saccharina Linnaeus 1758
Class: Insecta
Order: Coleoptera
10 (15)
Order: Mallophaga
1 (1)
Order: Dermaptera
2 (2)
Order: Neuroptera
2 (2)
Order: Dictyoptera
2 (2)
Order: Odonata
3 (3)
Order: Diptera
11 (14)
Order: Orthoptera
3 (6)
Order: Hemiptera
4 (5)
Order: Siphonaptera
1 (2)
Order: Homoptera
1 (2)
Order: Siphunculata
1 (1)
Order: Hymenoptera
7 (10)
Order: Thysanoptera
2 (2)
Order: Lepidoptera
8 (10)
Order: Thysanura
1 (1)
4 Discussion
Insects have a high value from the faunistic point of view due to their significance in the food web and environmental effect (Frantz and Cordone, 1966). Most of all published works revealed with one family of the insect families around Libya (Edwards, 1921; Abdel-Malek, 1960; Subba Rao, 1967; Hayat, 1999) even some entomologists done their medical manual without mentioning insects there (Furman and Catts, 1982). So there is no information about the insect fauna of about all regions of Libya. This work revealed with only collected specimens from Misurata city which considered the third big city in Libya after Tripoli and Benghazi. And also considered the first commercial city there. In total, 16 orders, 59 families and 77 genera were listed for some recorded insect fauna of Misurata city located in the northwestern Libya. This checklist is considered as a beginning for further studies on insect fauna of Libya at all.
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