Drosophila is a genus of flies, belonging to the family Drosophilidae, whose members are often called "small fruit flies" or pomace flies, vinegar flies, or wine flies, a reference to the characteristic of many species to linger around overripe or rotting fruit. They should not be confused with the Tephritidae, a related family, which are also called fruit flies ; tephritids feed primarily on unripe or ripe fruit, with many species being regarded as destructive agricultural pests, especially the Mediterranean fruit fly.
The Drosophilidae are a diverse, cosmopolitan family of flies, which includes species called fruit flies, although they are more accurately referred to as vinegar or pomace flies. Another distantly related family of flies, Tephritidae, are true fruit flies because they are frugivorous, and include apple maggot flies and many pests. The best known species of the Drosophilidae is Drosophila melanogaster, within the genus Drosophila, also called the "fruit fly." Drosophila melanogaster is used extensively for studies concerning genetics, development, physiology, ecology and behaviour. Many fundamental biological mechanisms were discovered first in D. melanogaster. The fruit fly is mostly composed of post-mitotic cells, has a very short lifespan, and shows gradual aging. As in other species, temperature influences the life history of the animal. Several genes have been identified that can be manipulated to extend the lifespan of these insects. Additionally, Drosophila subobscura, also within the genus Drosophila, has been reputed as a model organism for evolutionary-biological studies, along with D. sechellia for the evolution of host specialization on the toxic noni fruit and Scaptomyza flava for the evolution of herbivory and specialist on toxic mustard leaves.
The Alakaʻi Wilderness Preserve, popularly known as Alakaʻi Swamp, is a montane wet forest on the Hawaiian island of Kauaʻi. Although the preserve is home to alpine bogs, it is not a true swamp. It is located on a plateau near Mount Waiʻaleʻale, one of the wettest spots on Earth. Due to its unique combination of high elevation and climate, the Alakaʻi Swamp harbors a large number of endangered endemic species that are only found in this area and whose population has been dramatically declining over the last decades. It is designated as a IUCN protected area.
Elwood Curtin Zimmerman was an American entomologist best known for his two multivolume series: Insects of Hawaii published by the University of Hawaiʻi Press and Australian Weevils published by Australia's CSIRO.
Drosophila sharpi is a rare species of fly, one of several species known as the Hawaiian picture-wing flies. It is endemic to Hawaii, where it is known only from the island of Kauai. It was federally listed as an endangered species of the United States in 2010.
Scaptomyza flava is an herbivorous leaf mining fly species in the family Drosophilidae. In Latin, flava means golden or yellow. The fly is amber to dark brown in color and approximately 2.5 mm in length. In Europe and New Zealand the larvae are pests of plants in the order Brassicales, including arugula, brassicas, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, bok choy, cabbage, canola, cauliflower, horseradish, kale, kohlrabi, napa cabbage, nasturtium, radish, rapini, rutabaga, turnip, wasabi and watercress. In New Zealand, its range has expanded to include host species that are intercropped with salad brassicas, including gypsophila, otherwise known as baby's breath, which is in the pink family (Caryophyllaceae) and the pea in the Fabaceae. More typically, S. flava is oligophagous within the Brassicales. Scaptomyza are unusual within the Drospophilidae because the group includes species that are truly herbivorous. Other herbivorous drosophilids include D. suzukii, which attacks fruit very early during ripening and species within the genus Lordiphosa, from Africa and Asia, which also include leaf miners. Most drosophilids feed on microbes associated with decaying vegetation and sap fluxes.
Scaptomyza is a genus of vinegar flies, insects in the family Drosophilidae. As of 2022, there are 273 described species of Scaptomyza. Of those, 148 are endemic to the Hawaiian archipelago. This genus is part of the species-rich lineage of Hawaiian Drosophilidae, and is the sister lineage to the endemic Hawaiian Drosophila. The genus Scaptomyza is one of several nested within the paraphyletic genus Drosophila.
Drosophila silvestris is a large species of fly in the family Drosophilidae that are primarily black with yellow spots. As a rare species of fruit fly endemic to Hawaii, the fly often experiences reproductive isolation. Despite barriers in nature, D. silvestris is able to breed with D. heteroneura to create hybrid flies in the laboratory.
The Hawaiian Drosophilidae are a lineage of flies within the genus Drosophila. This monophyletic clade includes all of the endemic Hawaiian Drosophila and all members of the genus Scaptomyza, which contains both Hawaiian and non-Hawaiian species. The Hawaiian Drosophilidae are descended from a common ancestor estimated to have lived 25 million years ago. Species of Hawaiian Drosophilidae flies have been studied as models of speciation and behavioral evolution. Along with other members of the native Hawaiian ecosystem, the conservations status of many species of Hawaiian Drosophilidae is threatened by habitat loss and introduced predators, among other factors.
Drosophila hemipeza is an endangered species of Hawaiian fly in the family Drosophilidae. This species is a member of the planitiba subgroup of the picture-wing clade of Hawaiian Drosophila.
Drosophila aglaia is an endangered species of fly from Hawaii. This species is a member of the aglaia subgroup of the picture-wing clade of Hawaiian Drosophilidae. It is only found on the island of Oahu, and has not been observed since 1997, when it was found in Palikea.
Drosophila heteroneura is an endangered species of Hawaiian fly in the family Drosophilidae. This rare fly is part of the Hawaiian Drosophila lineage, and is only found in mesic and wet forests on the island of Hawaii.
Drosophila montgomeryi is an endangered species of fly from the lineage of Hawaiian Drosophilidae. It is found on the island of Oahu.
Drosophila tarphytrichia is an endangered species of fly from Hawaii, in the species rich lineage of Hawaiian Drosophilidae. It is only found on the island of Oahu. While originally collected near Manoa Falls in 1949, this fly is thought to have been extirpated from the Koʻolau Range and now only found in the Waiʻanae Range. This species is a member of the lanaiensis subgroup in the picture-wing clade.
Drosophila musaphilia is an endangered species of fly from Hawaii, in the species rich lineage of Hawaiian Drosophilidae. It is only found on the island of Kauai. The last reported sighting of this species was in 1988.
Drosophila neoclavisetae is an endangered species of fly from Hawaii, in the species rich lineage of Hawaiian Drosophilidae. It is only found in West Maui. It can be distinguished from its East Maui counterpart, D. clavisetae, by the shape of the long hairs on the abdomen, which are more rounded in D. neoclavisetae and more flattened in D. clavisetae.
Drosophila obatai is an endangered species of fly from Hawaii, in the species rich lineage of Hawaiian Drosophilidae. It is only found on the island of Oahu. D. obatai is part of the orphnopeza subgroup in the picture-wing clade, and is closely related to D. sodomae, a fly found on the islands of Maui and Molokai.
Drosophila ochrobasis is an endangered species of fly from Hawaii, in the species rich lineage of Hawaiian Drosophilidae. It is found on the Big island of Hawaii, and has historically been recorded from four of the five volcanoes, though it is now largely absent from most of those sites. This species is in the adiastola subgroup and is closely related to D. setosimentum, but male D. ochrobasis have strikingly different wing markings.
Drosophila differens is an endangered species of Hawaiian fly in the family Drosophilidae. This species is a member of the planitiba subgroup of the picture-wing clade of Hawaiian Drosophila. It is found on the island of Molokai.
Drosophila digressa is an endangered species of fly from Hawaii, in the species rich lineage of Hawaiian Drosophilidae. It is only found on the Big island of Hawaii. It was historically known from sites throughout the islands, but is now restricted to the Manuka and Ola'a reserves.
