Dulichius inflatus
Encyclopedia
Dulichius inflatus is an ant mimic
bug
in the family Alydidae
that is found mainly in southern India
and Sri Lanka
. It is said to live in the nests of ants Polyrhachis lacteipennis which it morphologically resembles.
This bug is dull black and has fine hairs on the surface. The tegmina of the wing is short and does not extend beyond the base of the abdomen. The pronotum has spines arising at the base of the wings and another at the tip of the scutellum. The tarsi are paler and the last joint on the mid and hind legs is darker. The abdomen has a velvet-like surface appearance. It was described by William Forsell Kirby
under the genus Formicoris in the Journal of the Linnean Society, Zoology
in 1891. Kirby believed that the species belonged in the family Reduviidae
. R. C. Wroughton noted that they were frequently found under stones along with colonies of "Polyrhachis spiniger" (a synonym of P. lacteipennis) and that the spine structure varied widely across individuals. A second description under the name of Dulichius wroughtoni was published by Ernst Evald Bergroth
but he subsequently discovered that it had already been described by Kirby under a different genus. Bergroth then pointed out that Kirby had incorrectly placed it in the wrong family and noted that it was clearly a member of the already described genus Dulichius in what was then the subfamily Alydinae within the Coreidae.
Ant mimicry
Ant mimicry is mimicry of ants by other organisms. Ants are abundant all over the world, and insect predators that rely on vision to identify their prey such as birds and wasps normally avoid them, either because they are unpalatable, or aggressive. Thus some other arthropods mimic ants to escape...
bug
Hemiptera
Hemiptera is an order of insects most often known as the true bugs , comprising around 50,000–80,000 species of cicadas, aphids, planthoppers, leafhoppers, shield bugs, and others...
in the family Alydidae
Alydidae
Alydidae, commonly known as broad-headed bugs, is a family of true bugs very similar to the closely related Coreidae . There are about 40 genera with 250 species altogether...
that is found mainly in southern India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
and Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka is a country off the southern coast of the Indian subcontinent. Known until 1972 as Ceylon , Sri Lanka is an island surrounded by the Indian Ocean, the Gulf of Mannar and the Palk Strait, and lies in the vicinity of India and the...
. It is said to live in the nests of ants Polyrhachis lacteipennis which it morphologically resembles.
This bug is dull black and has fine hairs on the surface. The tegmina of the wing is short and does not extend beyond the base of the abdomen. The pronotum has spines arising at the base of the wings and another at the tip of the scutellum. The tarsi are paler and the last joint on the mid and hind legs is darker. The abdomen has a velvet-like surface appearance. It was described by William Forsell Kirby
William Forsell Kirby
William Forsell Kirby was an English entomologist and folklorist.He was born in Leicester. He was the eldest son of Samuel Kirby, who was a banker. He was educated privately, and became interested in butterflies and moths at an early age. The family moved to Brighton, where he became acquainted...
under the genus Formicoris in the Journal of the Linnean Society, Zoology
Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society
Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society is the scientific journal of the Linnean Society published by Wiley-Blackwell.According to EBSCOhost, it "[p]resents original papers on zoology with an emphasis on the diversity, systematics, interrelationships, and habits of animals both living and...
in 1891. Kirby believed that the species belonged in the family Reduviidae
Reduviidae
Reduviidae is a large, cosmopolitan family of predatory insects in the suborder Heteroptera...
. R. C. Wroughton noted that they were frequently found under stones along with colonies of "Polyrhachis spiniger" (a synonym of P. lacteipennis) and that the spine structure varied widely across individuals. A second description under the name of Dulichius wroughtoni was published by Ernst Evald Bergroth
Ernst Evald Bergroth
Ernst Evald Bergroth was a Finnish physician and amateur entomologist.-Life and medical career:Bergroth was born on April 1, 1857 in Jakobstad, Finland and studied at the University in Helsinki. He then went to Stockholm to study medicine and science, graduating in 1886, and took up a job as a...
but he subsequently discovered that it had already been described by Kirby under a different genus. Bergroth then pointed out that Kirby had incorrectly placed it in the wrong family and noted that it was clearly a member of the already described genus Dulichius in what was then the subfamily Alydinae within the Coreidae.