The Acroceridae are a small family of odd-looking flies. They have a hump-backed appearance with a strikingly small head, generally with a long proboscis for accessing nectar. They are rare and not widely known. The most frequently applied common names are small-headed flies or hunch-back flies. Many are bee or wasp mimics. Because they are parasitoids of spiders, they also are sometimes known as spider flies.
Acrocerinae is a subfamily of Acroceridae. They are small distinctive flies whose larvae are endoparasites of spiders. Adults hunchback-flies visit flowers to feed on nectar. Traditionally the subfamily included the genera now placed in Cyrtinae and Ogcodinae, but the subfamily in this sense was found to be polyphyletic and was split up in 2019.
Philopotinae is a subfamily of small-headed flies. Their larvae are endoparasites of araneomorph spiders in the subfamily Entelegynae.
Neophilopota is a genus of small-headed flies. It contains only a single species, Neophilopota brevirostris, described by Schlinger in 2013. It is endemic to Mexico.
Panopinae is a subfamily of small-headed flies (Acroceridae). Their larvae are endoparasites of spiders in the infraorder Mygalomorphae.
Coquena is a genus of small-headed fly. It contains only one species, Coquena stangei, described by Schlinger in 2013. It is found in Argentina.
Ocnaea is a genus of small-headed flies. There are at least 20 described species in Ocnaea.
Archocyrtus is an extinct genus of small-headed flies in the family Acroceridae. The genus is known from compression fossils from the Late Jurassic Karabastau Formation of Kazakhstan. The genus is the only member of the subfamily Archocyrtinae.
Cyrtinella is an extinct genus of small-headed flies in the family Acroceridae. The genus is known from Baltic amber from the Eocene of Poland and Russia. It contains only one species, Cyrtinella flavinigra.
Schlingeromyia is an extinct genus of small-headed flies in the family Acroceridae. The genus is known from Upper Cretaceous fossils in Burmese amber from Myanmar. It contains only one species, Schlingeromyia minuta.
Burmacyrtus is an extinct genus of small-headed flies of uncertain placement. The genus is known from Upper Cretaceous fossils in amber from Myanmar. It contains only one species, Burmacyrtus rusmithi.
Carvalhoa is a genus of small-headed flies in the family Acroceridae. The genus is endemic to Chile. It was originally known as Sphaerops, named by Rodolfo Amando Philippi in 1865. This name was found to be preoccupied by the reptile genus Sphaerops Gray, 1845, so it was renamed to Carvalhoa by Ahmet Ömer Koçak and Muhabbet Kemal in 2013. The genus is named after the Brazilian dipterist Claudio José Barros de Carvalho.
Archaeterphis is an extinct genus of small-headed flies in the family Acroceridae. It is known from Baltic amber from the Eocene, though the locality is unknown. It contains only one species, Archaeterphis hennigi.
Hoffeinsomyia is an extinct genus of small-headed flies in the family Acroceridae. It is known from Baltic amber from the Eocene of Russia. It contains only one species, Hoffeinsomyia leptogaster.
Quasi is a genus of small-headed flies in the family Acroceridae. It contains only one species, Quasi fisheri, known only from Veracruz, Mexico.
Panops is a genus of small-headed flies. It is endemic to Australia and the Papua region of Indonesia. Males and females measure 8.0–12.5 mm and 9.5–14.5 mm, respectively.
Apsona is a genus of small-headed flies. It contains only one species, Apsona muscaria, which is endemic to New Zealand.
Leucopsina is a genus of small-headed flies endemic to Australia. Flies in the genus are colored black and yellow, mimicking the appearance of a wasp. Males and females measure 9.0 mm and 12.0 mm, respectively.
Sabroskya is a genus of small-headed flies in the family Acroceridae. It is known from South Africa and Malawi. It is named after the American entomologist Curtis Williams Sabrosky.
Cyrtinae is a subfamily of the Acroceridae. Their larvae are endoparasites of araneomorph spiders in the subfamily Entelegynae.
