Atylotus agrestis
Taxonomy
This page represents the following TreeOfLife-200M taxonomic path.[1]
- Kingdom: Animalia
- Phylum: Arthropoda
- Class: Insecta
- Order: Diptera
- Family: Tabanidae
- Genus: Atylotus
- Species: Atylotus agrestis
Visual Description
Atylotus agrestis is a species of horse fly within the family Tabanidae. Based on observations of museum specimens and field records, individuals exhibit the characteristic robust body form typical of the genus Atylotus. The body is generally covered in fine, dense hairs, giving it a somewhat matte or velvety appearance. The eyes are typically large and holoptic in males, while dichoptic in females, often displaying a uniform or subtly patterned coloration. The wings are clear, with a venation pattern characteristic of the family Tabanidae.[1]
Ecology and Transmission
Atylotus agrestis has been identified as a significant tabanid species in certain regions, such as the Nicoadala District of Mozambique, where it accounted for 23.2% of the total tabanid catch in a study.[2]
Research indicates that A. agrestis can harbor trypanosomes, with one study reporting an infection rate of 6.25% (30/480) among the specimens examined. The trypanosome DNA detected included Trypanosoma congolense and Trypanosoma theileri.
Molecular Identification
Molecular studies using the cytochrome c oxidase subunit 1 (cox1) gene have shown that A. agrestis is closely related to A. diurnus and A. nigromaculatus. In some analyses, these species form a collapsed node, indicating that they may not be easily distinguished using this specific genetic marker.
Gallery
References
- 1 2 Dataset view for Animalia / Arthropoda / Insecta / Diptera / Tabanidae / Atylotus / agrestis constructed from imageomics/TreeOfLife-200M records under this taxonomic path. Hugging Face Datasets. https://huggingface.co/datasets/imageomics/TreeOfLife-200M.
- ↑ Fernando C. Mulandane; Louwtjie P. Snyman; Denise R. A. Brito; Jérémy Bouyer; José Fafetine; Jan Van Den Abbeele; Marinda C. Oosthuizen; V. Delespaux; Luís Neves. Evaluation of the relative roles of the Tabanidae and Glossinidae in the transmission of trypanosomosis in drug resistance hotspots in Mozambique. Parasites & Vectors. 2020. https://doi.org/10.1186/s13071-020-04087-1.