Biology:Nerioidea

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Short description: Superfamily of flies

Nerioidea
TerritorialNeriidae.jpg
Telostylinus lineolatus from India
Scientific classification e
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Diptera
Section: Schizophora
Subsection: Acalyptratae
Superfamily: Nerioidea
Families

Cypselosomatidae
Fergusoninidae
Micropezidae - stilt-legged flies
Neriidae - cactus flies
Pseudopomyzidae
Strongylophthalmyiidae
Tanypezidae

Telostylinus lineolatus male aggressively posturing to another
Telostylinus lineolatus

Nerioidea is a superfamily of Acalyptratae flies.[1]

Description

As flies, Nerioidea undergo complete metamorphosis with the four life stages of egg, larva, pupa and adult. The adult stage has three body segments (head, thorax and abdomen), three pairs of legs and one pair of wings.[2]

Some features that distinguish adult Nerioidea from other flies are: a face that's usually weakly sclerotised (except in Fergusoninidae), antenna usually porrect or slightly deflexed (elbowed in Tanypezidae), wing veins R2+3 and R4+5 usually convergent, and the wing anal cell usually much smaller than the subcostal cell.[3]

Ecology

Most Nerioidea are associated with dead and decaying organic matter such as dead wood, rotting fruit and bat dung. On the other hand, Fergusoninidae form galls in plants of family Myrtaceae, and some Micropezidae have larvae that are predatory or agricultural pests.[3]

Notable species

References

Wikidata ☰ Q2327830 entry