Pechuman and Teskey (1981) provided generic keys to larvae, pupae, and adults of Nearctic tabanids. Females of genus Tabanus have scissor-like mouthparts that aim to cut the skin. Wing morphometrics as a tool in species identification of forensically important blow flies of Thailand. All these parasites invade the blood cells in the early stage. Most of the economically important tabanids are members of the two other subfamilies. The term deer fly also is applied to members of the genus Silvius, a few species of which can be quite pestiferous on humans and animals in the western United States. In Clinical Veterinary Advisor: The Horse, 2012. It gave us confidence in their possible use as a reference dataset for additional identifications, even of a single individual. Tabanids in the subfamily Chrysopsinae are called deer flies; nearly all are members of the genus Chrysops, which includes more than 80 Nearctic species. 1Department of Pre-Clinic and Applied Animal Science, Faculty of Veterinary Science, Mahidol University, Nakhon Pathom 73170, Thailand; ude.lodiham.tneduts@arp.ahcintun (N.P. It contains approximately 4,455 species and subspecies in 144 genera worldwide, with maximum diversity in the Neotropics (Baldacchino etal., 2014; Morita etal., 2016). Anecdotally, females appear less likely to die from infection than are males. Clinically, the bites are the most severe of the fly lesions, causing pruritic papules, wheals, ulceration and even hemorrhage from the bite site. Tsetse flies (Glossina spp.) The following are available online at https://www.mdpi.com/article/10.3390/insects12110974/s1, Table S1: Raw coordinates of wing landmarks of Tabanus megalops (No. In addition, the dark pattern on the abdominal dorsum of T. striatus is generally darker than that of T. megalops [5]. This study was approved by the Faculty of Veterinary Science, Mahidol University Animal Care and Use Committee (Ref. Individual lesions last for several days, and frequent attacks cause almost continuous irritation. 52) contain nearly 4400 species and are a familiar insect group to people who frequent rural outdoor areas. Discrimination of Neotropical Anopheles species based on molecular and wing geometric morphometric traits. In some cases there may be almost no superficial evidence of the bites but in most cases there is a surrounding area of edema and occasional animals show marked hypersensitivity reactions to the bites of flies, mosquitoes and midges. Specimens of T. megalops, T. rubidus, and T. striatus were collected from different geographical regions of Thailand using five Nzi Traps [34] between February 2020 and January 2021 (Table 1, Figure 3). https://www.britannica.com/animal/Tabanus. ), commonly known as horseflies and deerflies, serve as mechanical vectors of several livestock diseases, including Microsporum gypseum (see Chapter 50), equine infectious anemia (see Chapter 23), and Trypanosoma evansi (see Chapter 60; the causative agent of surra). Surra is a syndrome of South and Central America, Northern Africa, the Middle East, Asia, Indonesia, and Philippines. Morphological characteristics of basal callus used to distinguish species of Tabanus megalops (A), T. rubidus (B), and T. striatus (C). Tabanini of Thailand above the Isthmus of Kra (Diptera: Tabanidae). Adults are stout-bodied flies with a striking appearance, variously colored from black through brown to greens and yellows, bold stripes, and large brilliant colored eyes (Fig. Proceedings of the Michigan Morphometrics Workshop. They are also responsible for the development of a very common hypersensitivity disorder known as sweet itch and for a ventral midline dermatitis. These two species can occur sympatrically with Tabanus rubidus, which is morphologically similar to T. megalops and T. striatus. Gad fly, a nickname, may refer either. To check the precision of landmark digitization, a repeatability test was used for size and for shape, separately. (Tanasak Changbunjong) and J.-P.D. The larger dorsal ommatidia may be more sensitive to UV light, allowing the male to detect a fast-moving female against the sky, and the smaller ventral ommatidia may be used to resolve visual details. Its application can be made difficult by measurement error. Geometric and multivariate analyses were performed using XYOM (XY Online Morphometrics) version 2 software [24], freely accessible at https://xyom.io/, accessed on 16 October 2021. MUVS-2020-01-01). Topical application of antibiotic/steroid creams may help provide relief during severe episodes. Thus, in our study the estimation of allometry focused on the between species shape-based discrimination. Papules with edema occur wherever stings have occurred. The CS is defined as the square root of the sum of the squared distances between the centroid and each landmark [37]. Non-biting flies of the family may act as the intermediate host for Habronema and Draschia spp. are at their peak. It was computed as the ratio of the variance due to differences among individuals to the total variance [35]. All flies were euthanized in a freezer (10 C) and placed in individual 1.5 mL microcentrifuge tubes. Tabanus megalops and T. striatus are morphologically very close species, having similar size (Figure 5) and have occasionally been misidentified, especially due to the stained or rubbed off stripe on the second tergite of T. megalops [5]. Diagnosis of skin diseases related to fly damage relies heavily on observation, use of light-traps and careful assessment of the type of damage to the skin. Species recognition was performed on unambiguous specimens, i.e., those presenting clearly the specific traits or diagnostic characters, according to the descriptions and taxonomic keys of Burton (1978) [5]. (gnats, sandflies, biting midges, punkies, no-see-ums) occur throughout the world, and cause severe irritation and hypersensitivity and are important vectors for diseases such as African horse sickness and equine viral arteritis. This one by one identification process has been explained in Dujardin et al. The accuracy scores, after validated classification, were in the range of 94.3899.39% (Table 3). Dujardin J.P., Kaba D., Henry A.B. The eyes are commonly spotted in Chrysops spp., have zig-zag bands in Haematopota spp., and horizontal stripes and no patterning in Tabanus spp. Members of two genera, Chrysops and Tabanus, commonly known as deerflies and horseflies respectively serve as major transmitters of human pathogens. Skin biopsy shows variable degrees of superficial perivascular dermatitis with numerous eosinophils, indicative of a hypersensitivity reaction. Loaiasis, caused by the African eye worm Loa loa (see p. 323) is transmitted to humans by several diurnally feeding species of Chrysops, including C. dimidiata and C. silacea. Terrestrial species lay eggs on vegetation or in forest litter. The majority of horses in a group are affected when the populations of Culicoides spp. Of these, 335 species in 25 genera are found in the Nearctic Region (Burger, 1995). The phenetic structure of, Jirakanjanakit N., Leemingsawat S., Thongrungkiat S., Apiwathnasorn C., Singhaniyom S., Bellec C., Dujardin J.P. Both classifications (size, shape) were validated classifications. Certain breeds, including the Icelandic Pony and the Welsh Pony, appear to be more likely to develop the condition, and there are strong familial associations within breeds, supporting the contention that the sensitivity is of genetic origin. (55) Adult long-legged fly (Dolichopodidae). The visual comparisons of superposed configurations (Figure 6) revealed most visible landmark displacement in the anterior and middle part of the wing. The identification of Tabanus spp. Leukoderma occurs in longstanding cases. However, as shown by our allometric study (Figure 8), the discriminant space based on shape was still affected by size variation. The head and neck are most often attacked and show edema of the eyelids and muzzle. Geometric morphometric analysis can be performed using various methods, such as landmark, semi-landmark, and outline-based methods, depending on the characteristics and specifics of the specimens [15,23,24]. Horse flies lay their eggs on vegetation close to water and can live for several months. The males are easily differentiated from female flies because eyes show striking differences in the arrangement of eyes. EIA is a bloodborne, viral infection of horses first described in 1843 in France. As an additional problem, some groups of insects may be more difficult to digitize than others. Baldacchino F., Desquesnes M., Mihok S., Foil L.D., Duvallet G., Jittapalapong S. Tabanids: Neglected subjects of research, but important vectors of disease agents. Control is the best approach but may be extremely difficult. Two well-known genera are the common horse flies, genus Tabanus Linnaeus, 1758, and the deer flies, genus Chrysops Meigen, 1802 are also known as banded horse flies because of their coloring. Some species, such as Tabanus bovinus, prefer bovine animals and are less harmful to humans. ; validation, T.C. (Tanasak Changbunjong); writingreview and editing, T.C. Moreover, they can mechanically transmit other pathogens, such as the etiologic agents of infectious diseases like African horse sickness, anthrax, bovine anaplasmosis, bovine besnoitiosis, bovine leucosis, equine infectious anemia, lumpy skin disease, and tularemia [2,3,4]. Geometric morphometry of the head in sand flies (Diptera: Psychodidae: Phlebotominae), an alternative approach to taxonomy studies. From: Medical and Veterinary Entomology, 2002, In Knottenbelt and Pascoe's Color Atlas of Diseases and Disorders of the Horse (Second Edition), 2014. Human disease transmission by Tabanidae (i.e., tularemia, anthrax) is possible, but not significant in North America. The effectiveness of geometric morphometrics for species identification has been demonstrated in various models, including blow flies [20], flesh flies [25], mosquitoes [16,21,26,27,28,29], stomoxyine flies [18], sand flies [30,31,32], and tsetse flies [33]. PMC legacy view 30 January3 February 1996; pp. Changbunjong T., Bhusri B., Sedwisai P., Weluwanarak T., Nitiyamatawat E., Chareonviriyaphap T., Ruangsittichai J. It does not require any complicated equipment, but requires experienced taxonomists. 18.14) are large, stoutly built, and often brightly colored. Coordinates of 22 wing landmarks (Figure 4) were digitized for geometric morphometric analysis. Dujardin J.P., Le Pont F., Baylac M. Geographical versus interspecific differentiation of sand flies (Diptera: Psychodidae): A landmark data analysis. The 30 field specimens were collected from other geographic areas. The traps were randomly placed at the collection sites from 06:00 to 18:00 over a two-day period. ; investigation, T.C. The dermatitis that develops along the ventral midline is highly pruritic and can result in severe self-trauma. While the temperate fauna is well known, the tropical fauna has been less studied; this is particularly true for the immature stages. The bites of these flies usually involve some skin penetration and bleeding and in many cases this is an effective physical means for the transmission of viral, bacterial or protozoal (or other) disease. The exchangeability of shape. Figures 5255. Richard W. Merritt, Joe B. Keiper, in Encyclopedia of Insects (Second Edition), 2009. Climate associated size and shape changes in, Phanitchat T., Apiwathnasorn C., Sungvornyothin S., Samung Y., Dujardin S., Dujardin J.P., Sumruayphol S. Geometric morphometric analysis of the effect of temperature on wing size and shape in. 8. The life cycle generally takes about 1 year to complete, whereas some of the larger horse flies require up to 3 years. Individual animals may have greater or lesser sensitivities to the individual species of flies but some are sensitive to more than one. Diagnosis is usually based on classical clinical appearance. Backyard, spotted on the ceiling of the garage. They are not host specific, feeding on many animals and humans, although, interestingly, tabanids have been shown to preferentially feed on darker colored horses because of their attraction to the light polarizing properties of the darker coats.25 The breeding grounds for these pests are aquatic and semiaquatic habitats, including mud and wet vegetation near bodies of water. This study explored the effectiveness of landmark-based geometrics at distinguishing and identifying T. megalops, T. rubidus, and T. striatus in Thailand. The identification algorithm used the shortest Mahalanobis distance of each specimen to the mean shape of each species in the same way as performed for a cross-validated classification: each unknown specimen used the discriminant space of the reference data but did not contribute to its computation [41]. Banerjee D., Kumar V., Maity A., Ghosh B., Tyagi K., Singha D., Kundu S., Laskar B.A., Naskar A., Rath S. Identification through DNA barcoding of Tabanidae (Diptera) vectors of surra disease in India. (Tanasak Changbunjong); writingoriginal draft preparation, T.C. Figures into brackets refer to sites in Figure 3. The major trypanosomes infecting domestic animals are: Trypanosoma vivax and T. congolense (cattle and horses), T. brucei and T. evansi (horses), and T. suis (pigs). Tabanid flies are prominent among the arthropod vectors of such bacterial diseases of humans and/or animals as tularemia and anthrax. Some blood sucking insects such as Tabanus and Stomoxys flies, and also vampire bats may transmit trypanosomiasis in animals. They may be vectors of the virus that cause pinnal acanthosis. Culicoides spp. The Tabanidae are divided into three subfamilies (Mackerras, 1954; Fairchild, 1969) (Table16.1), although there is evidence the Chrysopsinae may need redefinition (Morita etal., 2016). Anthrax, a much dreaded disease of cattle caused by Bacillus anthracis, is also a serious disease among humans. This is why the subsequent analyses were performed excluding size, using shape variables only. Females are dichoptic where eyes are separated by frons while males are holoptic where eyes are contiguous. They were treated as unknown specimens to be compared to our study material, composed of T. megalops (n = 160), T. rubidus (n = 165), and T. striatus (n = 85). There is no sex or hair color predilection. Donkeys have chronic infection and are the likely reservoir. If the repeatability value (of shape) was less than 0.9, all wing pictures were re-digitized. The horsefly can then lap up the blood. (Tanawat Chaiphongpachara), and J.-P.D. This method was useful for the identification of many Tabanus spp. Public Health. Fly repellents, clothing, stabling and fans can all be used. Since DNA barcoding is unable to distinguish between T. striatus and T. megalops, alternative methods, such as geometric morphometrics, have become invaluable. We use cookies to help provide and enhance our service and tailor content and ads. The oldest blood-feeding Tabanomorpha, which include the Tabanidae and a few related families, probably evolved about 160 million years ago. In the present study, landmark-based geometric morphometrics was used to differentiate three Tabanus spp, namely, T. megalops, T. rubidus, and T. striatus, in Thailand. Clearly demarcated areas with punctate ulcers, thickened skin, alopecia and in severe cases, an eczematous appearance, develop along the ventral midline of the abdomen, following even limited numbers of bites. Andrei D. Mihalca, Jan Votpka, in Encyclopedia of Infection and Immunity, 2022. The genus contains hundreds of species and many species groups. Females are blood feeders and may inflict a painful bite. The visual comparison of shape changes across species was provided by the superposition of the average wing of each species. (Diptera: Tabanidae) are blood-sucking parasites of animals and humans. We would like to thank the authorities of the Monitoring and Surveillance Center for Zoonotic Diseases in Wildlife and Exotic Animals (MoZWE) for their kind cooperation and assistance in the study. Only adult females are blood feeders and have mouthparts adapted for cutting and piercing. The wing venation patterns to identify single tsetse flies. Omissions? Lorenz C., Marques T.C., Sallum M.A., Suesdek L. Morphometrical diagnosis of the malaria vectors, Sumruayphol S., Apiwathnasorn C., Ruangsittichai J., Sriwichai P., Attrapadung S., Samung Y., Dujardin J.P. DNA barcoding and wing morphometrics to distinguish three. Godoy R.E., Shimabukuro P.H.F., Dos Santos T.V., Pessoa F.A.C., Da Cunha A.E.F.L., Santos F.K.M., Vilela M.L., Rangel E.F., Galati E.A.B. employs morphological and molecular methods [5,10,11,12,13,14]. The identification method was indeed performed individually for each unknown specimen (see the one by one method [41], a process which is difficult to illustrate graphically (see [42]). Some Tabanus spp. official website and that any information you provide is encrypted Influence of larval density or food variation on the geometry of the wing of, Morales Vargas R.E., Ya-umphan P., Phumala-Morales N., Komalamisra N., Dujardin J.P. The condition is seasonal, related to increased activity of the insects. The new PMC design is here! Ten wings per species were randomly selected and digitized between two different users. Eosinophilic keratitis is an important sequelae of fly molestation. Mean anatomical landmark positions of Tabanus megalops (red), T. rubidus (green), and T. striatus (blue) after Procrustes superposition. Their chief significance however is in their ability to transmit trypanosome parasites. HHS Vulnerability Disclosure, Help The Morita S.I., Bayless K.M., Yeates D.K., Wiegmann B.M. Change of paddock to more open windy areas may also be beneficial. The shape-based discrimination between species was significantly (p < 0.001) influenced by size (r2 = 43%) (Figure 8). Molecular phylogeny of the horse flies: A framework for renewing tabanid taxonomy. Tabanus megalops and T. striatus are distinguished by the midline of the 2nd tergite cross by a stripe of pale tomentum and hairs in T. megalops (arrow). Rosanna Marsella, in Robinson's Current Therapy in Equine Medicine (Seventh Edition), 2015. To solve morphological problems, DNA barcoding has been widely used [10,11,12,13,14]. Statistical comparisons of the CS among the species were performed by one-way ANOVA and illustrated by quantile boxes. 8600 Rockville Pike Glossina spp. Bradley A. Mullens, in Medical and Veterinary Entomology (Third Edition), 2019. [1][2], "Tabanidae (Diptera) from the Dominican Republic", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Tabanus&oldid=1049397915, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, This page was last edited on 11 October 2021, at 16:26. (A) Chrysops. The actual trypanosome and syndrome are geographically related. Although most species inhabit stagnant habitats, some are found at the margins of streams. The mane and tail areas are most commonly affected. (2010) [41] and applied in Kitthawee and Dujardin (2016) [42]. The largest wings were found in T. rubidus (13.01 0.77 mm), followed by T. megalops (10.01 0.67 mm) and T. striatus (10.29 0.47 mm). Immatures of Nearctic tabanids are more difficult to identify than adults. They are very aggressive biters and can induce painful bites that are preferentially directed toward the ventral abdomen. By continuing you agree to the use of cookies. Dujardin J.P. Morphometrics applied to medical entomology. Dujardin J.P., Kaba D., Solano P., Dupraz M., McCoy K.D., Jaramillo-O N. Outline-based morphometrics, an overlooked method in arthropod studies? Members of the Tabaninae are the most evolutionarily derived. Usually the presence of a small central scab or focus of inflammation is related to physical bite injury. These robust and sturdy flies are strong fliers and exhibit body size ranging from 5 to 33mm: horse flies (Tabanus and Hybomitra, just to cite key examples) are relatively large (1033mm) whereas deer flies (Chrysops) and clegs (Haematopota) are significantly smaller (513mm). The attack on livestock can be so severe as to reduce milk yields in dairy cattle. Many North American species remain undescribed, and the immature stages are less likely to be encountered by the casual collector. Due to the necessity to recompute shape variables before each individual assignment, the repeatedly built discriminant functions are never exactly the same. Haematobia spp. Female flies feed on pets, livestock, wildlife, and occasionally, humans. Repeated bites lead to the development of a hypersensitivity reaction. Tabanus striatus, which has been incriminated as a vector of trypanosomosis, known locally as surra, an important disease of horses and cattle in oriental regions, showed that 3 species have been confused under that name: the true Tabanus striatus from Pakistan through India and Sri Lanka to China; Tabanus partitus Walker, 1856, in Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, the Philippines and Micronesia; and Tabanus triceps Thunberg, from Sri Lanka, India and Pakistan. IDd before as Tabanus striatus Fabricius, 1787. Tabanus is a genus of biting horseflies of the family Tabanidae. Treatment is based on removal of the cause and relies heavily on management.