Micropezidae

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Stilt-legged flies
Fly March 2010-1.jpg
Neria sp. from Portugal
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Diptera
Section: Schizophora
Subsection: Acalyptratae
Superfamily: Nerioidea
Family: Micropezidae
Loew, 1861
Type genus
Micropeza
Meigen, 1803
Subfamilies
Diversity
54 genera, 5 subfamilies
Mating pair Micropezidae at Kadavoor.jpg
Mating pair

The Micropezidae are a moderate-sized family of acalyptrate muscoid flies in the insect order Diptera, comprising about 500 species in about 50 genera and five subfamilies worldwide, (except New Zealand and Macquarie Island). [1] They are most diverse in tropical and subtropical habitats, especially in the Neotropical Region.

Contents

Insects in this family are commonly called stilt-legged flies, after their characteristically long legs. The fore legs are markedly smaller than the other pairs. Mostly, they are long-bodied, often black flies, usually with infuscated (darkened) wings. Wings are reduced in the genera Calycopteryx and entirely absent in the ant-like Badisis ambulans . [1]

Description

For terms see Morphology of Diptera
Very slender, small to large (3–16 mm) flies, they have long, thin legs and narrow wings. The head is small and elongated or rounded. The antennae are small and the arista is bare or pubescent. Ocelli are present, but ocellar bristles are absent. Vibrissae are absent and the postvertical bristles are divergent or absent. Up to three pairs of frontal bristles curve forward or backward. Interfrontal bristles are absent. The wings are clear or have a smoky pattern. The costa is without interruptions. The subcosta is complete, its ending in the costa close to vein R1. The posterior basal wing cell and discoidal wing cell are sometimes fused. Crossvein BM-Cu present or (Micropezinae) absent. The abdomen is long and narrow. The tibiae lack a dorsal preapical bristle.

Biology

Micropeza corrigiolata
Neria cibaria

Some species, much the same as in the strongylophthalmyiid genus, Strongylophthalmyia , mimic ants; others mimic wasps and are especially similar in appearance to some ichneumonid wasps. Species of the genus Anaeropsis have stalked eyes.

Little is known of the larval habits, but they are probably phytophagous or saprophagous in decayed vegetation, old manure, or fungi. Larvae of certain Mimegralla species have been found to live in the roots of ginger and other plants, under the bark of dead trees, or in other decaying material. Species of Micropeza have phytophagous larvae feeding in the root nodules of leguminous plants in open habitats. Species of Rainieria develop in rotting wood and are found in old forests. Adults are either predatory on small insects (for example Calobata in Britain [1] ) or are attracted to excrement or decaying fruit. Adults are found on low herbage, flowers, leaves, rotting fruit, and excrement.

Many species (for example those of genus Mimegralla ) are known for their habit of standing motionless while waving their prominently marked front legs in front of their heads, a behavior which contributes to their mimicry of wasps. At least one species of Metopochetus (M. curvus) was observed to wave its hind legs instead, though these are not conspicuously colored. [1]

Identification

Conservation

Calycopteryx mosleyi , found on the Kerguelen Islands and Heard Island, is associated with the Kerguélen cabbage ( Pringlea antiscorbutica , Brassicaceae). As this plant is being destroyed by introduced rabbits, the fly is considered vulnerable. [1]

The larvae of Badisis ambulans live in the pitchers of the endangered Albany pitcher plant ( Cephalotus follicularis , Cephalotaceae). [1]

Fossil record

Several fossil species have been found in Baltic amber, probably from the Late Eocene (about 36 million years old). However, most were washed onto beaches after wearing from Tertiary strata, making their age uncertain. Two fossil genera are presently recognized, Cypselosomatites Hennig, 1965 and the advanced Electrobata Hennig, 1965 which may be more than one genus however.

Genera

This list is compiled from the BioSystematic Database of World Diptera and probably complete as of January 2007.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sciomyzidae</span> Family of flies

The family Sciomyzidae belongs to the typical flies (Brachycera) of the order Diptera. They are commonly called marsh flies, and in some cases snail-killing flies due to the food of their larvae.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Leander Czerny</span> Austrian entomologist (1859–1944)

Leander (Franz) Czerny was an Austrian entomologist and priest. He was mainly interested in Diptera.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lonchaeidae</span> Family of flies

The Lonchaeidae are a family of acalyptrate flies commonly known as lance flies. About 500 described species are placed into 9 genera. These are generally small but robustly built flies with blue-black or metallic bodies. They are found, mainly in wooded areas, throughout the world with the exception of polar regions and New Zealand.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Opomyzidae</span> Family of flies

Opomyzidae is a family of acalyptrate Diptera. They are generally small, slender, yellow, brown or black coloured flies. The larval food plants are grasses, including cereal crops, the adults are mainly found in open habitats. Some species being agricultural pests.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dryomyzidae</span> Family of flies

The Dryomyzidae are a small family of flies ranging from 4–18 mm long, with prominent bristles, and yellow to brown or rust-yellow coloring. The wings are very large. The subcosta is complete and well separated from vein 1. Larvae feed on decaying organic matter - carrion, dung, and fungi. The prelambrum protrudes from the oral cavity. Vibrissae are absent and the postvertical bristles are divergent.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pallopteridae</span> Family of flies

Pallopteridae is a family of flies. The various species are collectively called flutter-wing flies, trembling-wing, or waving-wing flies, because of the striking vibration of the wings in many species. Over 70 species in about 15 genera are found in the temperate regions of the Northern and Southern Hemispheres.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Neriidae</span> Family of flies

The Neriidae are a family of true flies (Diptera) closely related to the Micropezidae. Some species are known as cactus flies, while others have been called banana stalk flies and the family was earlier treated as subfamily of the Micropezidae which are often called stilt-legged flies. Neriids differ from micropezids in having no significant reduction of the fore legs. Neriids breed in rotting vegetation, such as decaying tree bark or rotting fruit. About 100 species are placed in 19 genera. Neriidae are found mainly in tropical regions, but two North American genera occur, each with one species, and one species of Telostylinus occurs in temperate regions of eastern Australia.

<i>Terellia</i> Genus of flies

Terellia is a genus of tephritid or fruit flies in the family Tephritidae.

<i>Urophora</i> Genus of flies

Urophora is a genus of tephritid or fruit flies in the family Tephritidae.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Otitinae</span> Subfamily of flies

Otitinae is the name of a subfamily of flies in the family Ulidiidae. It was formerly the Otitidae. Like the Ulidiinae, most species are herbivorous or saprophagous. Most species share with the Tephritidae an unusual elongated projection of the anal cell in the wing, but can be differentiated by the smoothly curving subcostal vein. Most are dull gray to shiny brown or black flies with vein R1 setulose or, in a few cases, bare.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tetanocerini</span> Tribe of flies

Tetanocerini is a tribe of flies in the family Sciomyzidae. There are more than 400 described species in the tribe.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Taeniapterinae</span> Subfamily of flies

Taeniapterinae is a subfamily of flies in the family Micropezidae. There are at least 9 described species in Taeniapterinae.

<i>Calobatina geometra</i> Species of fly

Calobatina geometra is a species of stilt-legged flies in the family Micropezidae.

<i>Grallipeza</i> Genus of flies

Grallipeza is a genus of stilt-legged flies in the family Micropezidae. There are at least 40 described species in Grallipeza.

Glyphidops is a genus of cactus flies in the family Neriidae.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sciomyzinae</span> Subfamily of flies

Sciomyzinae is a subfamily of flies in the family Sciomyzidae.

Chaetonerius is a genus of flies in the family Neriidae.

Gymnonerius is a genus of flies in the family Neriidae.

Telostylus is a genus of flies in the family Neriidae.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 McAlpine, D.K. (1998). Review of the Australian stilt flies (Diptera: Micropezidae) with a phylogenetic analysis of the family. Invertebrate Taxonomy 12:55–134. doi : 10.1071/IT96018 (with key to Australian species)
  2. ↑ Bigot, J.M.F. (1866). "Nouveau genre et nouvelle espèce de diptères (Anaeropsis lorquini)". Annales de la Société Entomologique de France. 6 (4): 201–202. Retrieved 30 January 2021.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 Enderlein, Günther (1922). "Klassifikation der Micropeziden". Archiv für Naturgeschichte. Abteilung A. 88 (4): 140–229. Retrieved 29 January 2021.
  4. ↑ Robineau-Desvoidy, André Jean Baptiste (1830). "Essai sur les myodaires". Mémoires presentés à l'Institut des Sciences, Lettres et Arts, par divers savants et lus dans ses assemblées: Sciences, Mathématiques et Physique. 2 (2): 1–813. Retrieved 15 July 2018.

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