Celyphidae

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A beetle-backed fly.

Celyphidae or beetle flies, beetle-backed flies is a family of insects of the order Diptera. About 90 species are known from the Oriental and Afrotropic biogeographic regions.

1 Family Characters
2 Identification (Literature)
3 Biology
4 Other
5 External links
6 References

[edit] Family Characters

Celyphidae are small to medium-sized and easily recognised. The scutellum is enlarged, forming a protective shell over the abdomen, giving them a beetlelike appearance. Also, like many beetles, Celyphidae are often shiny or metallic in color. The wings, when at rest, are folded beneath the scutellar “shell”.

[edit] Identification (Literature)

In order of date:

Frey, R. 1941. Die Gattungen und Arten der Dipterenfamilie Celyphidae. Notul. Entomol. 21: 3-16. Keys genera, species.
Vanschuytbroeck, P. 1959. Celyphidae (Diptera Acalyptratae). Explor. Parc Natl. Garamba Mission H. de Saeger 13: 27-44. Keys genera, species.
Tenorio, J.M. 1972. A revision of the Celyphidae (Diptera) of the Oriental Region. Trans. R. Entomol. Soc. Lond. 123: 359-453.
Paap, L. Celyphidae in Soós, Á, Paap, L. (Eds.) 1984 - 1992. Catalogue of Palaearctic Diptera 9 . Akadémiai Kiadó, Budapest - Elsevier, Amsterdam: 63-66..

[edit] Biology

The biology of the family is poorly known. Adults are found in along streams and rivers, and in wet grassy areas. Larvae are saprophagous.

[edit] Other

Celyphidae is considered by some authors to be the sister taxon of Lauxaniidae (e.g., Griffiths 1972), and has occasionally been considered a specialized lineage arising from within the Lauxaniids. The most recent classifications place this as the sister taxon to Eurychoromyiidae^[1].