Hovsgol Nuur is a lake of tectonic origin in the Baikal Rift zone and has been thought to be at least several million years old. Crane flies (Diptera: Tipulidoidea) are one of the most species rich superfamilies of true flies with over 15,000 described species worldwide, show high ecological diversity, high endemicity and have much utility in understanding area relationships as well as censusing habitat complexity. In this paper we discuss the entire crane fly fauna of the Hovsgol Lake watershed as sampled over three seasons of fieldwork 1995-1997 and by limited samples in 1994 and 1999. Collections yielding crane flies were made at 50 sites classified into dominant aquatic habitat types: lotic, lentic, bog, barrier pond, and terrestrial.
A total of 84 species of two families of crane flies were found, Tipulidae and Limoniidae s.l.; the family Cylindrotomidae was not represented. For Tipulidae, or long-palped crane flies, the study found 38 discernable species in 12 genera/subgenera represented by 1174 specimens. For Limoniidae, or short-palped crane flies, the study found 46 species in 25 genera/subgenera represented by 683 specimens with none of these groups diverse in species. There are 79 species of Tipulidae previously recorded from Mongolia. This study adds 15 additional species, with three of these undescribed at the time of the study. There are 51 species of Limoniidae recorded from Mongolia. This study adds 25 additional species to the country list with 5 of these clearly undescribed at the time of the study.
This research has been supported by a U.S. National Science Foundation International Programs grant # INT-9504867 "U.S.-Mongolia cooperative research: systematic and ecological research in northern Mongolia."
Species 1: Diptera Tipulidae (crane fly)
Species 2: Diptera Limoniidae (crane fly)
Keywords: Mongolia, faunistics
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