Scatopsoidea is a
superfamily of
true flies
Flies are insects of the order Diptera, the name being derived from the Greek δι- ''di-'' "two", and πτερόν ''pteron'' "wing". Insects of this order use only a single pair of wings to fly, the hindwings having evolved into advanced ...
that comprises the
families
Family (from ) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictability, structure, and safety as ...
Canthyloscelidae,
Scatopsidae
__NOTOC__
The minute black scavenger flies or "dung midges", are a family, Scatopsidae, of nematoceran fly, flies. Despite being distributed throughout the world, they form a small family with only around 250 described species in 27 genera, altho ...
, and
Valeseguyidae
Valeseguyidae is a family of flies, belonging to Scatopsoidea. It contains only one known extant species, ''Valeseguya rieki'', known from a single male specimen found in Victoria, Australia, described in 1990. It was initially classified as a m ...
.
There are about 400 known species worldwide but more may yet to be discovered, especially in the tropics.
Identification
In Scatopsoidea, the posterior margin of the katepisternum is displaced to a more posterior disposition, causing the pleural suture to be folded. The superfamily also has a well-developed sperm pump and associated apodemes.
Phylogeny
Based on morphological features, Scatopsidae and Canthyloscelidae are
sister group
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 ...
s to each other, and Valeseguyidae is the sister group to them.
An analysis of
nuclear
Nuclear may refer to:
Physics
Relating to the nucleus of the atom:
*Nuclear engineering
*Nuclear physics
*Nuclear power
*Nuclear reactor
*Nuclear weapon
*Nuclear medicine
*Radiation therapy
*Nuclear warfare
Mathematics
* Nuclear space
*Nuclear ...
and
mitochondrial
A mitochondrion () is an organelle found in the cells of most eukaryotes, such as animals, plants and fungi. Mitochondria have a double membrane structure and use aerobic respiration to generate adenosine triphosphate (ATP), which is used ...
gene markers supported the
monophyly
In biological cladistics for the classification of organisms, monophyly is the condition of a taxonomic grouping being a clade – that is, a grouping of organisms which meets these criteria:
# the grouping contains its own most recent comm ...
of Scatopsoidea. It also found that this superfamily is the sister group to
Bibionomorpha.
References
Psychodomorpha
Diptera superfamilies
{{Psychodomorpha-stub