The larvae of Gymnocnemia variegata (Schneider, 1845) and Megistopus flavicornis (Rossi, 1790) (Neuroptera: Myrmeleontidae): a comparative description

Abstract

Gymnocnemia variegata (Schneider, 1845) (Myrmeleontidae Myrmeleontinae), the only species belonging to the genus Gymnocnemia, is a Turanian-Mediterranean antlion. As this species is found rarely, available information on its biology is very occasional and insufficient. The larva does not construct pitfall traps, and acts as a sit-and-wait predator beneath the surface of sandy soils. Only an incomplete description of the larval morphology of G. variegata is available in the literature. In the present work, morphological studies of third instar larva were made using both optical and scanning electron microscopy. Larvae were obtained and reared from eggs laid in the laboratory by a female caught in Sardinia. A comparative description of third instar larva of the related antlion Megistopus flavicornis (Rossi, 1790), a Turanian- European-Mediterranean species, is also provided. The larva of M. flavicornis and its lifestyle are rather similar to those of the former, sympatric species.