Chironomidae of Fosheim Peninsula, Ellesmere Island: first female description of Chaetocladius (Chaetocladius) glacialis (Lundström, 1915) (Diptera: Chironomidae: Orthocladiinae) and new faunistic records from the Nunavut (Canada) and the Nearctic Region

Abstract

The 1990–1991 Geological Survey of Canada from the Hot Weather Creek in Fosheim Peninsula, Ellesmere Island produced a large and comprehensive collection of Chironomidae. In this first attempt of description of the Chironomidae fauna of this region based on this collection, we describe the female of Chaetocladius (Chaetocladius) glacialis (Lundström, 1915) and report the species for the first time from the Nearctic. Additionally, Orthocladius (Pogonocladius) consobrinus (Holmgren, 1869), Rheosmittia spinicornis (Brundin, 1956) and Vivacricotopus piloculus (Cranston and Oliver, 1988) are reported for the first time from the territory of Nunavut.

Keywords:

• Diptera
• Chironomidae
• Chaetocladius
• female description
• new record
• Fosheim Peninsula
• Nunavut

Acknowledgements

We are very grateful to Fenja Brodo of Museum of Nature Ottawa who provided the specimens for this study, helped to initiate this project and made informative contributions to this article. Our sincere thanks to staff and researchers at the Diptera section of the Canadian National Collection of Insects, Arachnids and Nematodes, Ottawa, especially Dr Jeff Cummings, Dr Scott Brooks and Dr Bradley Sinclair for providing facilities and equipment for this project. Many thanks to Royal Ontario Museum researchers and staff especially Dr Dough Currie and Mr Brad Hubley for providing facilities for further sorting and identification. Many thanks to Dr Bent Lauge Madsen for translation of German manuscripts. Our sincere thanks to Mr Alireza Mortezaei for the graphics.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.