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Black flies, sandflies, te namu

Known in New Zealand as “sandflies” or “Te Namu” and elsewhere in the world mainly as “black flies”, Simuliidae are iconic New Zealand insects. Virtually every New Zealander has been bitten by female simuliids at some time or other, as have the many overseas tourists who have visited Fiordland.

Simuliids of New Zealand belong to the genus Austrosimulium known only from New Zealand, Tasmania, and mainland Australia. The nearest relative is the genus Paraustrosimulium in South America. This relationship has been confirmed by both morphological and molecular examination. Therefore these simuliids would appear to be of Gondwanan provenance, when South America, Australia, New Zealand, Tasmania, Africa, India, and Antarctica were co-joined in the super continent Gondwana that broke up between 120–80 million years ago. In Australia there is a small segregate of species in the subgenus Novaustrosimulium, with all their remaining Austrosimulium species in the subgenus Austrosimulium. Questions still remain, however, as to exactly when New Zealand simuliids arrived here, but this study indicates they are not much older than 5 million years.

Simuliid larvae require running water and in New Zealand are more or less ubiquitous, occurring in almost all running water habitats. Although there are 19 species of Austrosimulium in the country, the females of only 3 species are serious biters of humans. Males never bite. The females bite to obtain nutrients to produce eggs: females that do not take a blood meal can still lay a smaller number of eggs. Markedly few males have ever been collected in the field despite the equal abundance of males and females in their immature stages.

In the North Island the main biter is the New Zealand black fly, Austrosimulium australense, found the length and breadth of that island, but less so in the South Island and Stewart Island. Another species in the North Island that bites to some extent is A. tillyardianum, but it is not found in large numbers, and then only south of Auckland. In the South Island the two main biters are A. tillyardianum, mainly in the north and then south through Canterbury, while in Westland and Fiordland the simuliid of notoriety is the West Coast black fly, A. ungulatum. The females of A. ungulatum will fly long distances to obtain a blood meal and their ferocity has generated many horror stories from early settlers in New Zealand, and more recently, the annual million or so overseas tourists. Few of the latter leave New Zealand unscathed if they visit Fiordland, and many tend to react badly to bites since they have not previously been exposed to the biting of this species. It has been noted that, similar to the quote regarding weather, attributed to Mark Twain (Samuel L. Clemens), that in New Zealand “Everybody talks about sandflies, but nobody does anything about them”.

New Zealand Austrosimulium can be placed into two main species-groups, based on the presence (ungulatum species-group) or absence (australense species-group) of a basal tooth on the tarsal claws of the female. Elsewhere in the world those possessing the tooth are normally known as bird feeders, whereas those lacking the tooth are normally more mammophilic. New Zealand simuliids are opportunistic and females will generally take blood meals from whatever is available. It is well established, however, that whereas Fiordland crested penguins are heavily attacked by A. dumbletoni, a toothed-clawed member of the ungulatum species-group, its females studiously avoid biting humans. The simuliids that attack penguins are known to be a vector for a bird “malaria”, Leucocytozoon, but are not known to be a vector for any disease to people.

Molecular analysis indicates that most New Zealand simuliid species are of relatively recent origin, probably evolving during the 5 glaciations over the last 500 000 years, and this is in agreement with some other such investigations of the New Zealand fauna. There are, however, lineages in the ungulatum species-group which are high altitude, cold water species; and this specialised habitat in the Southern Alps is a little more than 5 million years old. That age is in general agreement with molecular evidence from this study.

A common question is “What did New Zealand simuliids feed on before humans arrived?” Of little doubt it would be on the vast number of birds that now are greatly depleted—gone are the days of the “dawn chorus”—and probably also the large numbers of seals present then. Indeed, searching along beaches for a blood meal from either birds or seals still appears inherent behaviour of New Zealand adult female simuliids—and probably the reason for their name “sandflies”.

Worldwide, simuliids are notorious for their disease transmission, in particular onchocerciasis, or river blindness, in Africa and South America, but more widely for the nuisance value of their bites, especially in the northern North Hemisphere. In Canada, simuliids are celebrated in the “The Black Fly Song” written by Wade Hemworth in 1949. New Zealand has two sculptures featuring simuliids —probably unique in the world—that are remarkably accurate and most appropriate for the region. One is a set of brass adults in the visitor centre at Milford Sound, Fiordland, crafted by Elizabeth Thomson in 1991; the other is a giant 2 m long fly suspended on the outside of the Bushman’s Cafe, Pukekura, Westland.

 

Māori

     

Māori summary — He Whakarāpopototanga

Te Namu

Koia tenei ko te namu, ko tona ingoa Pakeha i Aotearoa nei, ko te “ngaro onepu”, i tawahi, ko te “ngaro pango”. He ngarara ingoa araara te namu i Aotearoa—ko wai o tatou kaore ano i ngaua e te namu uwha? Tae atu ano ki te hunga haramai i tawahi ki Te Whakataka-karehu-a-Tamatea—ko ratou ano e rongo kino ana i te ngau a te namu.

No te puninga Austrosimulium nga simuliid o Aotearoa, waihoki ko Aotearoa, ko Tahimania me te tuawhenua o Ahitereiria anake ona kainga e mohiotia ana. Ko ona uri tino tata, ko te puninga Paraustrosimulium, i Amerika ki te Tonga. Kua whakaungia tona hononga a-whakapapa ki tera i runga i te hanga o nga tinana me nga mataitanga rapoi ngota. No reira, ko Te Uri Maroa pea te kainga tuauri o enei puninga e rua, i te wa e whenua kotahi ana a Amerika ki te Tonga, a Ahitereiria, a Aotearoa, a Tahimania, a Awherika, a Inia, me Te Kopakatanga ki te Tonga. No te 120–80 miriona tau ki muri i wehewehe ai a Te Uri Maroa. Tera tetahi wehenga iti i Ahitereiria o etahi momo no te puninga whaiti Novaustrosimulium, engari ko era atu o ona momo o te puninga Austrosimulium, no te puninga whaiti Austrosimulium. Kaore ano i kitea nonahea rawa i tau mai ai nga namu o Aotearoa ki konei. Engari ko ta tenei rangahautanga nei e tohu ana, no te takiwa o te 5 miriona tau ki muri, paku neke atu ranei.

Me wai rere e ora ai nga punua a te namu. Me ki, kei nga wahi katoa o Aotearoa, me he wai e rere ana i reira. Tekau ma iwa nga momo Austrosimulium kei Aotearoa, engari ko nga uwha o etahi momo e toru noa iho e kaha mohiotia ana mo ta ratou ngau i te tangata. Kaore rawa nga toa e ngau. He ngau ta te uwha, kia kaha ai tana whanau hua. Ara etahi uwha kaore e kai toto, engari ka whakaputa hua tonu; heoi ano, he iti ake nga hua ka whanau mai i a ratou. He ruarua noa ake nga toa kua kohia, tena i nga uwha, ahakoa e ahua rite ana te maha o nga punua toa me nga punua uwha.

I Te Ika-a-Maui, ko te Austrosimulium australense te namu kaha te ngau, kitea ai i te wharoatanga atu o tenei motu. Kei Te Waka-a-Maui, kei Rakiura ano, engari kaore e pera te kaha o te kitea. Ko tetahi atu namu ngau kei Te Ika-a-Maui, ko te A. tillyardianum, heoi ano, kaore e tini ngerongero, ka mutu kei te tonga anahe o Tamakimakaurau. E rua nga momo namu matua o Te Waipounamu e rongonui ana mo te ngau. Ko tetahi ko A. tillyardianum, kei nga whenua mai i Te Tauihu o te Waka ahu atu ki Waitaha. Ko tera atu, a A. ungulatum, e rongonui ana i Te Tai Poutini me Te Whakataka-karehu-a-Tamatea. Ko nga uwha o A. ungulatum, ka rere ki tawhiti ki te kimi toto hei kai ma ratou, ka mutu he ngarara niwha tonu. No kona tana uru ki nga korero paki a nga Pakeha tuatahi i whakanohonoho i Aotearoa, tae atu ki a te hunga tapoi o nga tau tata ake—ko tona kotahi miriona nei e taetae mai ana i tawahi i ia tau. O nga wae tapoi ka haere ki Te Whakataka-karehu-a-Tamatea, he tokoiti ka hoki ki o ratou kainga i rawahi me te kore e mamae o te tinana e te ngau a namu. Ka mutu, ka ahua kino te ngau ki a ratou, he kore no o ratou tinana i waia ki te ngau a tera momo namu. Kua puta te korero ahua pera i ta Mark Twain (Samuel L. Clemens), tana korero mo te huarere, e mea ana, i Aotearoa nei “ko te namu kei nga ngutu o te katoa, engari kaore tetahi tangata kotahi nei i te kori ake ki te rongoa i te raruraru”.

Ka noho mai nga Austrosimulium o Aotearoa ki etahi huinga momo e rua—ko era e whai niho ana i te putake o nga matihao o te uwha (te huinga ungulatum) me era karekau he niho pera (te huinga australense). I etahi atu wahi o te ao, ko te nuinga o nga mea he niho penei o ratou, he kai i te toto o te manu, ko nga mea kaore he niho penei, he kai i te toto o te whangote. Engari ko te nuinga o nga simulid o Aotearoa, he whai i te ara mama e ngata ai te hiahia, no reira ka whaia e nga uwha te toto o te mea e tata ana. Heoi ano, kua ata kitea i etahi atu rangahau, ahakoa e muia ana nga tawaki e te A. dumbletoni, he huanga matihao whai niho no te ropu ungulatum, kaore nga uwha e ngau i te tangata. Ko nga namu e urutomo ana i nga tawaki, ko ratou nga kaikawe i tetahi momo malaria kei te iwi manu, ko te Leucocytozoon te ingoa. Heoi, e ai ki nga matauranga o naianei, kaore e whakawhitia mai ana tetahi mate e tera momo namu ki te tangata.

E mea ana nga tataritanga rapoi ngota, ehara i te mea no tuauriuri whaioio te nuinga o nga namu o Aotearoa. No roto ke mai i nga kapinga e 5 o te ao i te tio i te 500,000 tau kua mahue ake nei. A, e tautoko ana tenei i nga rangahautanga i etahi atu o nga mea oreore a Tane. Heoi ano, ara etahi kawai o te huinga ungulatum he noho ki nga wahi teitei, ki te wai makariri. Ko te wahi o Ka Puke Maeroero koira to ratou kainga whaiti, kua paku neke atu i te 5 miriona tau e tu ana. E tautoko ana tenei i nga kitenga rapoi ngota o tenei mahi rangahau.

Ko tetahi patai ka kaha te uia ake, “He aha te kai a nga namu o Aotearoa i mua i te taenga mai o te tangata?” Kaore e kore ko te huhuatanga o te manu i te mata o te whenua i era wa. Kua tino kore tera ahua iaiana, kua ngaro te puorooro o te ngahere i nga manu korihi o te ata. A, he kekeno ano pea te kai i nga ra o nehe, ina te tini o te kekeno i era wa. Heoi ano, te ahua nei kei te mau tonu te whanonga a nga uwha katua o ngai simuliid ma, kei te kimi tonu pea i nga toto o te manu tai, o te kekeno i tatahi. A, koia ano pea i tapaina ai ki te reo Pakeha i Aotearoa nei ko te “ngaro onepu”.

Puta noa i te ao, e mohiotia ana te namu mo tana kawe i nga tini mate. Ko tetahi ko te onchocerciasis, i Awherika me Amerika ki te Tonga, ko te ‘kapo awa’ tona ingoa karangaranga. E whakakinongia ana ano hoki te namu mo tana ngau, a, ko te taha raki o te Tuakoi Raki tetahi tino wahi i pera ai. I titoa ano he waiata mona i Kanata i te tau 1949, e Wade Hemworth, ko “Te Waiata Ngaro Pango” te ingoa. E rua nga whakapakoko o te namu i Aotearoa, he mahi ahurei tonu pea huri i te ao. Me korero te tika o te hanga o nga mea nei, me te hangai ki te rohe kei reira nei ratou. Ko tetahi, he huinga katua, he mea hanga ki te kuratea. Kei te whare manuhiri i Piopiotahi tera, he mea waihanga e Elizabeth Thomson i te tau 1991. Ko te tuarua, he namu kaita, e rua mita rawa te rahi, e iri mai ana i waho o te Wharekai Bushman i Pukekura, i Te Tai Poutini.

Translated by: Hēni Jacob, Ōtaki