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Location: Hungary
Date: 2006-06-02
Habitat: Bushy area

Another poor quality picture but maybe shows some characters.

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This is a Tachinid for Theo.

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Thanks

Quite typical: Phyllomyia volvula


Theo

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Thank you Theo!!

I hope I will meet to this fly again in the future and can able to take a better pic from it.

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Hi Theo,

Shouldn't it be Phyllomyia volvulus? (www.nederlandsesoorten)

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Well, good question.

First of all, -myia is female (grammatically)
Secondly, the Code prescribes that adjectives should be inclined correctly. So, when Tabanus bimaculatus is transferred to the genus Hybomitra (as example), the correct new name becomes Hybimitra bimaculaTA, despite the fact that the original name was bimaculaTUS.

So, the final question is: what is volvulus ?
I myself have never succeeded in mastering the etymology of 'volvulus' completely. It might be a case of 'potjeslatijn' (= bad modern latin). But in my mind the best way to treat volvulus is as a adjective.

If so, then the above leads to 'Phyllomyia volvula'

But if anyone has a better idea on the etymology of volvulus, please enlighten me


Theo

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Phyllomya or Phyllomyia ? I've seen both forms used.

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Phyllomyia according to my information.

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I'm no dipterist, but I know my Greek :)
Paul is right, "myia" is the correct postfix.
It's the greek word for "fly".

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Hi Markop

You are right, and yet
Was live that simple. Some older authors, like Rondani in particular, had a very bad spelling of greek and latin. Actually, Rondani spelled Italian, writing 'e' instead of 'ae' and 'mya' instead of 'myia' and so on.
According to the current rules of nomenclature, these obvious mistakes may not be corrected.
It is my personal view that
a) the matter of spelling is a completely unscientific issue
b) that rules of nomenclature so make working in science as easy as possible
c) and that therefore obvious mistakes in spelling should be corrected.

I'm afraid this view is in the minority.

So, I (and you) write Phyllomyia, whereas this still might be incorrect to the lawyers of nomenclature. I leave the answer of the question according to their rules up to them.

Theo Zeegers

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Hi Theo, this is really interesting. I didn't know there was so much controversy over using grammar in taxonomy... For what it's worth, I agree with your views, they make perfect sense to me :)

Best regards,
Stavros Markopoulos

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Hello,

the main context the word "Volvulus" crossed my way is as a disease (some rotation of the intestine, Volvulus intestini, e.g.). It seems to say "something distorted" or "a distorted condition of sth.". And this is a noun. There is an indication in the genus "Onchocerca" (a parasitic worm), where "Onchocerca volvulus" is obviously the accepted correct name. So I tend to go for "Phyllomyia volvulus", whatever the idea behind this might be.

cheers - martin adler

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Rondani's errors were constantly corrected by Haliday http://en.wikiped...ry_Haliday who trained as a classical scholar. Not only did Rondani ignore this but changed names Haliday sent to him.Also, Rondani issued changed multiple issues of the Prodromus causing many nomenclature problems. Even so he was a great dipterist. Theo is right spelling errors should be corrected.

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Thanks for pointing out the volvulus
It is clear that volvulus is somehow associated with volvare = to rotate.
In this case, the fly rotates with its wings (like many Tephritidae).
In which case volvulus would mean 'rotated'. But my dictionary doesn't give this form.

And yes, being a bad latinist doesn't make you a bad dipterologist.
I agree that Rondani was state of the art in his time, as far as dipterology is concerned.


Theo

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In the Classical latin, volvulus is a derivative with a diminutive suffix ("ul") of the volvus (bulbus) means "bulb".
In the word volvula we can also find the diminutive suffix "ul" therefore volvula derived from volva (vulva, bulba) means caul, tegument, womb, uterus etc. Whereas it is a noun it cannot be a specific attributive because it must put either in genitive case or form an adjective from it. As far as I know it is a valid homonym even if incorrect gramatically because this is the first naming of the species.

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Hi eguzki


What you say makes a lot of the sense from the grammatical point of view.
However, what is the connection between 'bulb' and Phyllomyia ?

My personal guess is that volvulus is supposed to be derived from volvare = to rotate. This does make sense, since this fly can be seen moving its wings in a way quite like many Tephritidae, so with a rotation.
If my view is correct (which, I think, is grammatical not possible, neverthless it could be true, see Rondani above), it would be an adjective and therefore it could and must be declined.

So, to me the matter is still open, however, I personally favour 'volvula' at the moment.


Theo

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Hi Theo

What eguzki probably wanted to say is that "volvulus" has the shape and appearance of a diminutive of "volvus", which looks like a noun, like "bulbus" (and "bulbulus" would be a small "bulbus", e.g.). This view might be supported by the fact that "volvulus" seems not to be any known form of "volvare" , as you mentioned before.

So I tend to assume that "volvulus" is a noun.

I do not share eguzkis view that, if it was an adjective, the name "Phyllomyia volvulus" would be valid if it was the form of the original description. Grammer is subject to correction resp. must be correct in binomes.

cheers - martin

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volva, volvula, volvus, volvulus,
all these words are nouns with different meanings.

Fauna Europaea gives original combination:
Musca volvulus Fabricius 1794
and the genus name Phyllomya (sic!)

Changeable adjectives would be volvulatus, volvulaceus, volvuliformis etc.

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Hi Igor

That would be interesting. What is the meaning of 'volvus' ?
And what is your source ?

Thanks

Theo

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Hi Theo,
Google is the main source if you havw enough time. Volvus has probably different meaning in Medicine, Botany and Zoology (roll or loop, basically). Vulva (volva) means probably bulb.
Best wishes

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Hi Igor,


OK, what I ment was an original, classical source.
Because 'volva' is in my classical dictionary, but 'volvus' isn't.
As I said before, I sincerely suspect that 'volvus' in no classical Latin at all, which makes it quite difficult, if not impossible, to decide whether it is a noun or an adjective.

Theo

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Theo said: "quite difficult, if not impossible, to decide whether it is a noun or an adjective."

Well, if
- we agree that -ul is a diminitive suffix, and
- this suffix only applies to nouns (probably Latin has diminutive nouns only)
- a de-nominative adjective requires some overt morphological marking (a suffix),
then vulvulus must be a noun.

Based on the European lges I know, this seems likely to me, but i hardly know any Latin.

Then the question is: is it grammatical in Latin to juxtapose two nouns in nominative case, with the same referent? If yes, it shoulnd't be a problem that the two nouns have different grammatical gender.

Such 'adposition' constructions exist, though somewhat marginally, in e.g. English:
Her majesty the queen or German Bundeskanzler Merkel

Latin examples would be: Tirannosaurus rex, Victoria regina. True, here we have gender agreement, but rex and regina are nouns. For inanimate objects, and most animals too, separate female and male nouns are not available. This probably holds for volvulus - whatever it means, and musca or -mya.
So Phyllomya volvulus "leaf fly little bulb".


Diptera examples would be combinations with -pes "foot" masculine or manus "hand" feminine. E.g. Platycheirus (masc) albimanus (fem.) and Cordilura (f.) albipes (m.).