The Celyphidae, commonly known as beetle flies or beetle-backed flies, are a family of

flies Flies are insects of the Order (biology), order Diptera, the name being derived from the Ancient Greek, Greek δι- ''di-'' "two", and πτερόν ''pteron'' "wing". Insects of this order use only a single pair of wings to fly, the hindwin ...

(order Diptera). About 115

species A species () is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate sexes or mating types can produce fertile offspring, typically by sexual reproduction. It is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), ...

in about 9 genera are known chiefly from the

Oriental The Orient is a term referring to the East in relation to Europe, traditionally comprising anything belonging to the Eastern world. It is the antonym of the term ''Occident'', which refers to the Western world. In English, it is largely a meto ...

and

Afrotropic The Afrotropical realm is one of the Earth's eight biogeographic realms. It includes Sub-Saharan Africa, the southern Arabian Peninsula, the island of Madagascar, and the islands of the western Indian Ocean. It was formerly known as the Ethiopi ...

biogeographic regions with one lineage in the New World.

Description

Celyphidae are small to medium-sized and easily recognised. The scutellum is enlarged, and forming a protective shell over the abdomen, giving them a beetle-like appearance. Also, like many beetles, Celyphidae are often shiny or metallic in color. The head has few bristles. The wings, when at rest, are folded beneath the scutellar "shell". The arista of the antenna is often flattened and leaf-like at the base. The family name is derived from the Greek word κέλυφος for pod or shell. Male celyphids lack an aedeagus and instead have paired gonapophyses that are used in copulation and are of key taxonomic value. Celyphidae Beetle fly

Biology

The biology of the family is poorly known. Adults are found along streams and rivers, and in wet, grassy areas. Larvae are

saprophagous Saprotrophic nutrition or lysotrophic nutrition is a process of chemoheterotrophic extracellular digestion involved in the processing of decayed (dead or waste) organic matter. It occurs in saprotrophs, and is most often associated with fungi ...

Relatives

The family Celyphidae is considered by most authors to be the

sister taxon In phylogenetics, a sister group or sister taxon, also called an adelphotaxon, comprises the closest relative(s) of another given unit in an evolutionary tree. Definition The expression is most easily illustrated by a cladogram: Taxon A and ...

of the

Lauxaniidae The Lauxaniidae are a family of Acalyptratae, acalyptrate fly, flies. They generally are small flies (length 7 mm or less) with large compound eyes that often are brightly coloured in life, sometimes with characteristic horizontal stripes, s ...

(e.g., Griffiths 1972), and this has been supported by some molecular studies which suggest the (Chamaemyiidae + (Lauxaniidae + Celyphidae)) within the Lauxanoiodea. In the past they have occasionally been considered a specialized lineage within the Lauxaniidae.

Classification

*Genus '' Acelyphus'' Malloch, 1929 - Asia *Genus '' Atopocelyphus,'' Gaimari, 2017 - French Guiana *Genus '' Celyphus'' Dalman, 1818 - Africa and Asia **Subgenus '' Celyphus'' Dalman, 1818 - Asia **Subgenus '' Hemiglobus'' Frey, 1941 - Africa **Subgenus '' Paracelyphus'' Bigot, 1859 - Asia *Genus '' Chamaecelyphus'' Frey, 1941 - Africa *Genus '' Idiocelyphus'' Malloch, 1929 - Asia *Genus '' Oocelyphus'' Chen, 1949 - southern China *Genus '' Spaniocelyphus'' Hendel, 1914 - Africa and Asia

References

External links