''Ceratophya'' is a

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial n ...

hoverflies Hover flies, also called flower flies or syrphid flies, make up the insect family Syrphidae. As their common name suggests, they are often seen hovering or nectaring at flowers; the adults of many species feed mainly on nectar and pollen, whi ...

, with five known species. They are distinct from ''

Microdon Hover flies (family Syrphidae) of the genus ''Microdon'' are unusual among the Diptera. Like other members of the subfamily, they are myrmecophiles, meaning they inhabit the nests of ants. There are 249 species known worldwide, with the great ...

'' by the presence of an appendix on vein R4+5. Many species have erroneously been placed in this genus. Some authors place ''Ceratophya'' as a subgenus of ''Microdon''.

Biology

Larva A larva (; plural larvae ) is a distinct juvenile form many animals undergo before metamorphosis into adults. Animals with indirect development such as insects, amphibians, or cnidarians typically have a larval phase of their life cycle. Th ...

e are found in

ant Ants are eusocial insects of the family Formicidae and, along with the related wasps and bees, belong to the order Hymenoptera. Ants evolved from vespoid wasp ancestors in the Cretaceous period. More than 13,800 of an estimated total of 22,0 ...

nests.

Distribution

Distribution is

Neotropical The Neotropical realm is one of the eight biogeographic realms constituting Earth's land surface. Physically, it includes the tropical terrestrial ecoregions of the Americas and the entire South American temperate zone. Definition In bi ...

Species

There are five known species as of 2013: *'' C. argentinensis'' Reemer, 2013 *'' C. carinifacies'' (

Curran Curran may refer to: People * Curran (surname) * Curran Oi (born 1990), an American figure skater Material * Curran (material) Places *Curran, community in Alfred and Plantagenet, Ontario, Canada ;Northern Ireland * Curran, County Londonderry ...

, 1934) *'' C. notata''

Wiedemann Wiedemann is a German surname. Notable people with the surname include: *Barbara Wiedemann (born 1945), American poet * Christian Rudolph Wilhelm Wiedemann (1770–1840), German physician, historian, naturalist *Elisabeth Wiedemann (1926-2015), Ger ...

, 1824 *'' C. panamensis'' (Curran, 1930) *'' C. scolopus'' (Shannon, 1927)

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q5063797 Hoverfly genera Diptera of North America Microdontinae Taxa named by Christian Rudolph Wilhelm Wiedemann