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Heteroptera Poloniae – Acta Faunistica
vol. 17: 61–62. Opole, 17 VII 2023
ISSN 2083-201X
http://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.8145198
Heteroptera Poloniae – Acta Faunistica, vol. 17: 61–62. Opole, 17 VII 2023 ISSN 2083-201X
Short communication
First record of Zelus renardii Kolenati, 1857 (Hemiptera: Heteroptera: Reduviidae)
for Austria
TORSTEN VAN DER HEYDEN1, VALERIAN A. E. STAUDINGER2
1 Immenweide 83, D-22523 Hamburg, Germany; e-mail: tmvdh@web.de; 2 Stanglmühlstraße 7/Tür 33, A-8041 Graz,
Austria; e-mail: valerian.staud@gmail.com
Abstract. The first record of Zelus renardii Kolenati, 1857 (Hemiptera: Heteroptera: Reduviidae: Harpactorinae) for Austria is re-
ported. Additional information on the finding is given. The European distribution of the species is summarised.
Key words: Heteroptera, Zelus renardii, distribution, new record, invasive species, Graz, Austria.
The leafhopper assassin bug Zelus renardii Kolenati,
1857 (Hemiptera: Heteroptera: Reduviidae: Harpacto-
rinae) is an invasive Nearctic species which has colo-
nised various European countries and is mainly distri-
buted in the Mediterranean Region. Recently, Kment &
van der Heyden (2022) provided a list and a map of the
known distribution of the species on the European con-
tinent and adjacent islands. Furthermore, Lukashuk
et al. (2022) reported the first registration of Z. renardii
in Belarus, most likely an accidental introduction, van
der Heyden (2022) published a paper on the first record
of the species in Bulgaria, and John & Kolokotronis
(2023) reported the first record of the species for Cy-
prus.
Herein, the first record of Z. renardii from Austria
is reported.
Material examined: AUSTRIA: Graz, Lat.: 47.126269,
Long.: 15.4366, 27.IV.2023, 1 ex., phot. V. Staudinger.
On 27.IV.2023, the second author found and photo-
graphed an adult specimen of Z. renardii in the Austrian
city of Graz (Fig. 1). The specimen was found when it
crawled out of a broccoli which had been added to the
compost in the garden of the second author’s family.
The nearest records of Z. renardii reported are from
Southwest Germany (van der Heyden 2021a), Croatia,
the Czech Republic and Northern Italy (see Kment & van
der Heyden 2022).
In some other cases of findings of Z. renardii in Eu-
ropean regions north of the Mediterranean Region, the
specimens were introduced accidentally – imported
with fruits, e.g. from Italy and Greece (van der Heyden
2021b).
Very likely, the specimen of Z. renardii reported
in this note was not introduced accidentally from the
Mediterranean Region: the broccoli had been bought
from an organic farm in St Nikolai im Sausal, located
south of Graz, and had been stored in a plastic bag in
a refrigerator before it was added to the compost. No
organic waste of imported fruits or vegetables was
added to the compost within several weeks.
As Z. renardii has not been reported from Austria in
scientific publications yet, this is the country's first spe-
cies record.
Fig. 1. Specimen of Zelus renardii Kolenati, 1857, Graz, Austria
(photo: Valerian Staudinger).
Heteroptera Poloniae – Acta Faunistica, vol. 17: 61–62. Opole, 17 VII 2023 ISSN 2083-201X
62
References
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renardii Kolenati, 1857 (Heteroptera: Reduviidae:
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This work is licensed under a Creative Commons
Attribution 4.0 International License
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
Received: 28 April 2023
Accepted: 12 July 2023
