Abstract
The nocturnal periodicity of six species of black flies (Diptera : Simuliidae) of Darjeeling was found out from the data of light trapping made in three equal shifts for each of the five nights selected in 1969. The incidence of these flies was marked by hourly variation. Each ofpraelargum, gracilis, himalayense, grisescens andtenuistylum showed its peak abundance in the middle of night, whilerufibasis was at its peak at the end of night. The percentage composition ofgracilis andgrisescens in the last shift was higher than that in the first shift, and this was the general trend of the species of these flies taken together. The incidence ofpraelargum andtenuistylum in the first shift was higher than that in the last shift. Inhimalayense the distribution was similar in any of the two shifts, while inrufibasis it was found to rise gradually, thereby attaining itself to its peak at the end of night. The incidence shown by the two sexes of a species did not always obey the general trend and this is discussed in detail in this communication.
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Communicated by Professor Beni Charan Mahendra,d.sc., f.a.sc., f.a.z.
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Datta, M., Dasgupta, B. Studies on the nocturnal periodicity of six species of black flies (Diptera: Simuliidae) at Darjeeling, West Bengal. Proc. Indian Acad. Sci. 79, 147–153 (1974). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03045724
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03045724