Diptera & Strepsiptera

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There is a long, rich history of Diptera holdings at Cornell University, including notable contributions by C.O. Berg, O.A. Johannsen, L. L. Pechuman, and many others. The Diptera are housed in over 1000 drawers (= 6% of total pinned collection drawer‑count). They are worldwide in scope, and particularly strong for eastern North America. A recent inventory revealed over 700 primary types, and 1640 species represented by primary or secondary types.

The Cornell University holdings of Sciomyzidae are the finest of their kind among university collections in North America. Professor Clifford O. Berg and his students built a collection comprising 63 drawers of pinned/identified specimens, over 1950 microscope slide mounts of larval and pupal structures, and approximately 360 vials of determined larval stages (stored in 56 canning jars).
Professor L.L. Pechuman amassed a collection of Tabanidae that is global in scope, with particularly strong holdings for the following regions: Nearctic (107 drawers), Palearctic (27 dr.), Neotropical (33 dr.), and Oriental (45 dr.). Tabanid taxa in the collection are listed in the downloadable database.

Other families particularly well represented in the collection include Tipulidae (17 drawers), Culicidae (80 drawers + large collection of larvae on slides), Chironomidae (21 drawers), Mycetophilidae and Sciaridae (21 dr.), Bombyliidae (22 dr.), Asilidae (39 dr.), Dolichopodidae (24 dr.), Syrphidae (40 dr.), and Tachinidae (46 dr.).The taxa in the CUIC representing Asilidae, Apioceridae and Mydidae are listed in the downloadable databases developed by Dr. Torsten Dikow.

Professor O.A. Johannsen built up an extensive slide collection of imagines, larvae and pupae from rearings. Taxonomic information for this collection is available on a downloadable database. In addition, a second database covering other Nematocera can also be downloaded.

Strepsiptera

Wiegmann et al. have presented compelling evidence that Strepsiptera consistute the adelphotaxon to Coleoptera. We have limited holdings of strepsipteran adults, though stylopized andrenids and vespids are relatively common on campus and in Ithaca.

The Oskar Johannsen Diptera Slide Collection

The Diptera slide-collection compiled by Oskar Augustus Johannsen at Cornell University represents an important collection of imagines, many larvae and pupae from rearings, or parts there-of. There are some 1944 slides of mostly nematoceran taxa, especially Chironomidae and Sciaridae, but also preparations of Stratiomyiidae, Syrphidae, Ephydridae, and many other taxa. The collection contains mostly material from the Nearctic Region with an emphasis on the area around Ithaca, NY and New York state. Some specimens, however, were collected in South America, China, Europe, Kenya, or Sumatra. With the help of this database we want to make this important collection of Diptera more easily accessible to the Diptera community.

The database contains the Johannsen LOT-number, genus, species, author, family, locality, date of collection, collector, number of slides, and remarks. The easiest way to search for specific species is by species-name and author. The genera are listed according to Johannsen’s identification and genus-species combinations will not always represent the most recent knowledge. The Catalog of the Diptera of America North of Mexico (Stone, A. et al. 1965) and Systema Dipterorum were used to check spellings of names.

Blephariceridae, Ceratopogonidae, Chironomidae, Culicidae, Psychodidae, Scatopsidae, Simuliidae Slide Collection

The majority of the material in this portion of the slide-collection at Cornell University is in the family Culicidae. This collection consists of imagines, larvae and pupae from rearings, or parts there-of. The collection contains material from the Nearctic, Palearctic, Oriental, Ethiopian, and Neotropical Regions. With the help of this database we want to make this important collection of Diptera more easily accessible to the wider community of Dipterists.

The database contains family, genus, species, author, biogeographic region, number of slides, and remarks. The easiest way to search for specific species is by species-name and author. The genera of Culicidae are listed according to: A catalog of the mosquitoes of the world (Diptera: Culicidae) (Kenneth L. Knight and Alan Stone, 1977) and Supplement to a catalog of the mosquitoes of the world (Diptera: Culicidae) (Kenneth L. Knight, 1978).

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