The immatures of the Neotropical species Culicoides venezuelensis Ortiz and Mirsa (Diptera: Ceratopogonidae)

Abstract

Egg and larva of Culicoides venezuelensis Ortiz & Mirsa are described and the pupa is redescribed and illustrated by using phase-contrast microscope and Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM). Larvae and pupae were collected from a muddy area in a stream margin at Sierra de la Ventana, province of Buenos Aires, Argentina, and reared in laboratory. Eggs were extracted from the abdomen of a gravid female from Encarnación, Paraguay. Larvae show characters states typical of carnivorous ceratopogonids that breed in mud. Sierra de la Ventana is the southernmost locality of the species.