Distribution

AFROTROPICAL, AUSTRALASIAN/OCEANIAN � (New South Wales, Queensland, South Australia, Western Australia), NEARCTIC, NEOTROPICAL, ORIENTAL, PALAEARCTIC.

Biology

Sarcophaga africa is almost cosmopolitan, and is likely to have been introduced into Australia by humans (Pape, 1991). It is known to larviposit on faeces (even in the presence of carrion) (B�nziger and Pape, 2004). It has also been collected from baits consisting of either pieces of raw fish, cut segments of ripe fruit (Carica papaya and Citrus sinensis), decomposing matter and faeces (Aspoas, 1991; P�rez-Moreno et al., 2006) and at decayed-carrion baits by KAM.

Taxonomy

This species is the only Australian representative of the subgenus Bercaea. DNA barcode sequences of S. africa have been deposited in GenBank and BOLD.

References

Aspoas, B.R. (1991) Comparative micromorphology of third instar larave and the breeding biology of some Afrotropical Sarcophaga (Diptera: Sarcophagidae). Medical and Veterinary Entomology 5, 437-445.

B�nziger, H., and Pape, T. (2004) Flowers, faeces and cadavers: natural feeding and laying habits of flesh flies in Thailand (Diptera: Sarcophagidae, Sarcophaga spp.). Journal of Natural History 38, 1677-1694.

Park, S.-H. (1977) Studies on Flies in Korea II - Taxonomic Studies on Sarcophagid Flies (Diptera). The Bulletin of Tokyo Medical and Dental University 24, 249-284.

P�rez-Moreno, S., Marcos-Garc�a, M.A., and Rojo, S. (2006) Comparative morphology of early stages of two Mediterranean Sarcophaga Meigen, 1826 (Diptera; Sarcophagidae) and a review of the feeding habits of Palaearctic species. Micron 37(2), 169-179.

Wiedemann, C.R.W. (1824) 'Munus rectoris in Academia Christiana Albertina aditurus analecta entomologica ex Museo Regio Havniensi maxime congesta profert iconibusque illustrat. (Kilae [=Kiel]).