The Celyphidae, commonly known as beetle flies or beetle-backed flies, are a family of
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 m ...
(order Diptera). About 115
species
In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...
in about 9 genera are known chiefly from the
Oriental and
Afrotropic
The Afrotropical realm is one of Earth's eight biogeographic realms. It includes Africa south of the Sahara Desert, the majority of the Arabian Peninsula, the island of Madagascar, southern Iran and extreme southwestern Pakistan, and the island ...
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.
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 (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
Discrimination is the act of making unjustified distinctions between people based on the groups, classes, or other categories to which they belong or are perceived to belong. People may be discriminated on the basis of race, gender, age, rel ...
, 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
Further reading
* Keys genera, species.
* Keys genera, species.
*
*Paap, L. Celyphidae in Soós, Á, Paap, L. (Eds.) 1984 - 1992. ''Catalogue of Palaearctic Diptera'' 9 . Akadémiai Kiadó, Budapest - Elsevier, Amsterdam: 63-66..
External links
Research project on CelyphidaeImages from Diptera.infoFamily Celyphidae at EOLImages from EOL
*
World list
{{Taxonbar, from=Q4583736
Brachycera families