What better way to bring in the New Year than to recognize the discovery of a new species for science, and this one by our own Ph.D. student Gil Wizen (Gwynne Lab). Gil just published his findings in a collaborative paper entitled “A new PhyllolIabis from Israel with reduced wings and halteres (Diptera: Limondiidae)” in Israel Journal of Entomology. He discovered this species while assisting in a study of aquatic invertebrate populations in the windy Dalton Plateau in the Upper Galilee region of Israel. The new species is very unique for having reduced wings (most likely an adaptation for the strong winds in this habitat). It shares a strong resemblance to snow flies, however in the new species the wings are present and the halteres are reduced, unlike in snow flies which lack wings and have relatively large halters.
Gil and Darryl are presently traveling in the wilds of New Zealand looking for Wetas, while trying to avoid being captured by the orcs of Middle Earth.
Congratulations Gil!
Read this paper
