The Muscidae (Diptera) of Wrangel Island (Russia): species richness of the fauna in the context of environmental diversity and Arctic climate warming

SummaryAn annotated checklist of the species of Muscidae (Diptera) of Wrangel Island is given, based on new material (approximately 4320 specimens collected in 2014–2020) and previously published data. The list includes 61 species, among which 10 are newly recorded for the island: Drymeia taymirensis Sorokina & Pont, Citation2015, Helina fulvisquama (Zetterstedt, 1849), H. luteisquama (Zetterstedt, 1845), Lophosceles frenatus (Holmgren, 1872), L. minimus Malloch, 1919, Phaonia bidentata Ringdahl, 1933, Spilogona aestuarium (Huckett, Citation1965), S. hurdiana Huckett, Citation1965, S. megastoma (Boheman, 1866), S. melanosoma Huckett, 1932. Phaonia bidentata is newly recorded for the Palaearctic region. At present, Wrangel Island’s Muscidae species richness markedly exceeds that of other regions in the High Arctic. The fauna comprises both widespread species and taxa with distributions largely limited to the Siberian and North American Arctic sectors, as well as narrow-range elements (Beringian and endemic). The largest number of species (49) was collected in the southern part of the island, which has the greatest landscape diversity compared to other areas of the island, including the warmest central part. In the twenty-first century, during Arctic climate warming, 19 species new to Wrangel Island were collected, increasing the total species richness by nearly 1.5 times. Some of these species were found in the warmest inland areas, previously poorly studied. Single specimens of several other species were found near the coast, suggesting relatively recent appearance on the island, possibly facilitated by wind dispersal.