''Bolitophila'' is the sole living genus in the Bolitophilidae, a family of

Diptera 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 ...

in the superfamily Sciaroidea, with around 40 Palaearctic and about 20 Nearctic species, and three species from the Oriental region (Taiwan). They are small (6–9 mm).

Morphology

Biology

The larvae of ''Bolitophila'' are

mycetophagous Fungivory or mycophagy is the process of organisms consuming fungi. Many different organisms have been recorded to gain their energy from consuming fungi, including birds, mammals, insects, plants, amoebas, gastropods, nematodes, bacteria and othe ...

and live in decaying wood or other organic debris overgrown by fungal plant substrates. Pupation takes place inside the fungal mycelium in soil or litter. Adults prefer shady and humid environments and can be found in the undergrowth of mixed forests, often near watercourses.

Evolutionary history

The oldest fossils belonging to ''Bolitophila'' are known from the Eocene, with ''Bolitophila warreni'' known from the Lutetian aged Kishenehn Formation in Montana and ''Bolitophila rohdendorfi'' known from Baltic amber. The closest known relative to ''Bolitophila'' and only other known member of the family is the extinct genus '' Mangas,'' known from the Lower Cretaceous (

Aptian The Aptian is an age in the geologic timescale or a stage in the stratigraphic column. It is a subdivision of the Early or Lower Cretaceous Epoch or Series and encompasses the time from 121.4 ± 1.0 Ma to 113.0 ± 1.0 Ma (million years ago), a ...

) aged Gurvan-Eren Formation of Mongolia and the Khasurty locality of

Buryatia Buryatia, officially the Republic of Buryatia (russian: Республика Бурятия, r=Respublika Buryatiya, p=rʲɪsˈpublʲɪkə bʊˈrʲætʲɪjə; bua, Буряад Улас, Buryaad Ulas, , mn, Буриад Улс, Buriad Uls), is ...

, Russia.

Species

*'' B. acuta'' Garrett, 1925 *'' B. affinis'' Ostroverkhova, 1971 *'' B. alberta'' Fisher, 1937 *'' B. antennata'' Ševčik & Papp, 2004 *'' B. aperta'' Lundström, 1914 *'' B. atlantica'' Fisher, 1934 *'' B. austriaca'' (Mayer, 1950) *'' B. basicornis'' (Mayer, 1951) *'' B. bilobata'' Garrett, 1925 *'' B. bimaculata''

Zetterstedt Johan Wilhelm Zetterstedt (20 May 1785 – 23 December 1874) was a Sweden, Swedish Naturalism (philosophy) , naturalist who worked mainly on Diptera and Hymenoptera. Biography Zetterstedt studied at the Lund University, University of Lund, where ...

, 1838 *'' B. bispinosa'' Mayer, 1951 *'' B. bucera'' Shaw, 1940 *'' B. caspersi'' Plassmann, 1987 *'' B. cinerea'' Meigen, 1818 *'' B. clavata'' Garrett, 1925 *'' B. collarti'' (Tollet, 1943) *'' B. connectans'' Garrett, 1925 *'' B. cooremani'' (Tollet, 1955) *'' B. coronata'' Mayer, 1951 *'' B. curviseta'' Ostroverkhova, 1979 *'' B. disjuncta'' Loew, 1869 *'' B. distus'' Fisher, 1937 *'' B. doerrsteini'' Plassmann, 1988 *'' B. dubia'' Siebke, 1863 *'' B. dubiosa'' Van Duzee, 1928 *'' B. duplus'' Garrett, 1925 *'' B. edwardsiana''

Stackelberg __NOTOC__ Stackelberg is a surname, mainly known as the surname of a noble family of Baltic German descent (see Stackelberg family). Notable people with the surname include: A * Adolphe Stackelberg (1822–1871), Swedish count and Christian reviv ...

, 1969 *''

B. exilis B is the second letter of the Latin alphabet. B may also refer to: Science, technology, and mathematics Astronomy * Astronomical objects in the Barnard list of dark nebulae (abbreviation B) * Latitude (''b'') in the galactic coordinate syst ...

'' (Kovalev, 1986) *'' B. fumida''

Edwards Edwards may refer to: People * Edwards (surname) * Edwards family, a prominent family from Chile * Edwards Barham (1937-2014), a former member of the Louisiana State Senate * Edwards Pierrepont (1817–1892), an American attorney, jurist, and ora ...

, 1941 *'' B. fusca'' Meigen, 1818 *'' B. glabrata'' Loew, 1869 *'' B. glabratella'' Mayer, 1951 *'' B. hybrida'' ( Meigen, 1804) *'' B. incisa'' Ostroverkhova & Grishina, 1974 *'' B. ingrica''

, 1969 *'' B. japonica'' (Okada, 1934) *'' B. latipes'' Tollet, 1943 *'' B. lengersdorfi'' (Tollet, 1955) *'' B. leruthi'' (Tollet, 1955) *'' B. limitis'' Polevoi, 1996 *'' B. luteola'' Plotnikova, 1962 *'' B. maculipennis'' Mayer, 1951 *'' B. maculipennis'' Walker, 1835 *'' B. mayeri'' Plassmann, 1987 *'' B. melanoleuci'' Polevoi, 1996 *'' B. miki'' (Mayer, 1950) *'' B. modesta'' Lackschewitz, 1937 *'' B. montana''

Coquillett Daniel William Coquillett (23 January 1856, Pleasant Valley, Ill. – 7 July 1911 Atlantic City, New Jersey) was an American entomologist who specialised in Diptera. He wrote a revision of the dipterous family Therevidae and many other scientifi ...

, 1901 *'' B. nana'' ( Macquart, 1826) *'' B. nigrolineata'' Landrock, 1912 *'' B. obscurior''

, 1969 *'' B. occlusa''

, 1913 *'' B. palustris'' Ostroverkhova, 1979 *'' B. patulosa'' Garrett, 1925 *'' B. perlata'' Garrett, 1925 *'' B. plumicornis'' (Mayer, 1951) *'' B. pseudohybrida'' Landrock, 1912 *'' B. raca'' Garrett, 1925 *'' B. rectangulata'' Lundström, 1913 *'' B. recurva'' Garrett, 1925 *'' B. rossica'' Landrock, 1912 *'' B. saundersii'' ( Curtis, 1836) *'' B. scherfi'' Plassmann, 1970 *'' B. sibirica'' (Ostroverkhova, 1979) *'' B. simplex'' Garrett, 1925 *'' B. spelaeicola'' Tollet, 1955 *'' B. spinigera''

, 1925 *'' B. subbimaculata'' Zaitzev, 1994 *'' B. subteresa'' (Garrett, 1925) *'' B. taihybrida'' Ševčik & Papp, 2004 *'' B. tarsata'' Mayer, 1951 *'' B. tarsatiformis'' Ostroverkhova, 1979 *'' B. tenella'' Winnertz, 1863 *'' B. triangulata''

, 1941 *'' B. trullata'' Lundström, 1916 *'' B. tungusica'' Ostroverkhova, 1979

References

External links