Artrópodes cavernícolas com ênfase em flebotomíneos (diptera: psychodidae) do município de Presidente Figueiredo, Amazonas, Brasil.

Abstract

The cave fauna of the Brazilian State of Amazonas is poorly documented, publications being mainly restricted to summaries in congress reports. In this study three cavities in paleozoic sandstones formations in the municipality of Presidente Figueiredo, approximately 110 km north of the lower Rio Negro at Manaus, were sampled for arthropods. The techniques used include diurnal and nocturnal sampling with CDC miniature light traps, direct manual capture, pitfall traps, and extraction from bat guano by floatation. The light traps yielded representatives of 12 families of Diptera, five of Hymenoptera, two of Coleoptera and one each of Lepidoptera and Homoptera. Manual samples included Amblypygi (Phrynidae), Acari (Gamasida), Opiliones (Sclerosomatidae and Cosmetidae), Heteroptera (Reduviidae, Cydnidae and Veliidae), Aranae (Theridiosomatidae), Ensifera (Gryllidae), decapod crustaceans (Pseudothelphusidae and Paleomonidae), Hymenoptera (Formicidae), Chilopoda (Geophilomorpha), Lepidoptera (Tineidae) and Coleopera (Dytiscidae and Histeridae). Most of these groups have previously been reported from other cave systems in Brazil; however, the peiratine reduviid Eidmannia guyanensis and crickets of the genus Amphiacusta do not appear to have been previously reported from Brazilian caves. Among the Diptera, 14 out of 15 species of Lutzomyia sand flies registered in this study were previously know from the surrounding forest, but L. pacae, normally rare in collections from this area, was the dominant species in one of the cavities. Another species of Lutzomyia, as yet not formally described, was concentrated in the deepest recesses of the main cave, where larvae were extracted and reared to adult from guano. This species proved to be autogenous and parthenogenetic, and apparently allfemale. Adults and larvae are very distinct from most New World Phlebotominae, but share characteristics with same African species, suggesting that this may be a relict population, and reinforcing the scientific and conservation importance of the sites studied.