British Insects: the Families of Diptera
British Insects: the Families of Diptera |
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Adult insects. Very small to small; winged. Antennae 3 segmented (third segment sometimes much dilated or enlarged); ‘modified’. Antennae aristate; the bristle dorsal (sometimes pubescent). The second antennal segment not grooved. Ptilinal suture clearly defined. Post-vertical orbital bristles present; convergent, or parallel. Mouthparts functional. The maxillary palps 1 segmented; porrect. Vibrissae present, or absent (at least, often indistinct). Thorax without a continuous dorsal suture; without well defined posterior calli. Wings with a discal cell; without a sub-apical cell; with a closed anal cell. The anal cell short (very small). The costa with two breaks (once near the humeral cross vein, and more emphatically near the end of vein 1). Sub-costa apparent; joining vein 1 more or less where it joins the costa, or terminating blind, or joining vein 1 well short of the costa. Vein 6 present (but only as a shadowy fold); falling short of the wing margin. Wings with the lower calypter much reduced or absent. Tibiae without a dorsal pre-apical bristle. Hind tibiae without strong bristles in the basal 4/5. Predatory, or neither parasitic nor predatory.
Larvae and pupae. Larvae acephalic. Pupa enclosed within a puparium.
Comments. Small to very small greyish- or shining-black flies, with complete wing venation.
Classification. Suborder Brachycera; Division Muscomorpha Schizophora Acalyptratae; Superfamily Carnoidea.
British representation: Genera 6; 18 species.
Illustrations: • Leptometopa and Phyllomyza.
To view the illustrations with detailed captions, go to the interactive key. This also offers full and partial descriptions, diagnostic descriptions, differences and similarities between taxa, lists of taxa exhibiting or lacking specified attributes, and distributions of character states within any set of taxa.
Cite this publication as: ‘Watson, L., and Dallwitz, M.J. 2003 onwards. British insects: the families of Diptera. Version: 9th June 2008. http://delta-intkey.com’.
