First record of picture winged fly Physiphora sericea (Ulididae: Diptera) on oyster mushroom from Kashmir, India

Biological and morphological studies of Physiphora fly, Physiphora sericea (Ulididae: Diptera) was undertaken in the Division of Entomology, Faculty of Horticulture, Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology, Shalimar on oyster mushroom under temperate conditions of Kashmir. During the study it was observed that maggots of flies were found feeding on the substrate and fruiting bodies of oyster mushroom. The adult flies after emergence from reared maggots were identified as Physiphora sericae. The flies belonging to the family Ulidiidae have also been reported from other parts of the world. These are small, mainly dark coloured insects whose immature stages (maggots) usually develop on rotting plant remains permeated by fungal hyphae. This species causes significant damage to mushroom fruiting bodies. The life cycle of P. sericea passed through four active stages viz., egg, larva, pupae and adult. The larvae passed through three instars. The observations revealed that the females laid their eggs on the compost. The average incubation period of egg was observed to be of 3.5 ±1.45 days while as other developmental periods i.e., 1^st, 2^nd and 3^rd larval instar, and pupae were of 8.4 ±0.68, 9.45 ±0.80, 10.2 ±0.79and 12.4±0.76 days at 25± 5°C respectively. The longevity of adult male and female were 5.6±0.61and 6.4±0.76 days respectively.