''Ostenia'' is a genus of flies in the family Dolichopodidae. It contains only one species, ''Ostenia robusta'', which is endemic to

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

. The species was first described by Frederick Hutton in 1901, and the genus was named after Carl Robert Osten-Sacken. Not much is known about the biology or ecology of the species. In 2012 and 2013, ''O. robusta'' larvae were found feeding on pupae of ''

Costelytra zealandica ''Costelytra zealandica'' (commonly known as the grass grub) is a species of scarab beetle found in forested areas of greater Wellington Greater Wellington, also known as the Wellington Region (Māori: ''Te Upoko o te Ika''), is a non-unita ...

'' (grass grub), suggesting that ''O. robusta'' are parasitic on ''C. zealandia'' pupae. However, later observations in 2014 and 2015 contradicted these findings.

References

Diaphorinae Dolichopodidae genera Diptera of New Zealand Monotypic Diptera genera Endemic insects of New Zealand Taxa named by Frederick Hutton (scientist) {{Dolichopodidae-stub