British Insects: the Families of Diptera
| British Insects: the Families of Diptera | |
Bee-flies.
Life style parasitic (on other insects).
Adult insects. Medium-sized; very robustly-built; stilt-legged, or not stilt-legged. Antennae 3 segmented; ‘modified’; the terminal segment not annulated. Antennae aristate to not aristate; the bristle apical. Ptilinal suture absent or weakly defined. Ocelli present; 3. Eyes meeting above the antennae (in some males), or not meeting. Mouthparts non-piercing (proboscis sometimes very long, sometimes short). The maxillary palps 1 segmented, or 2 segmented; porrect. Wings with a discal cell; without a sub-apical cell; with a closed anal cell. The anal cell relatively long. Wings with 7 cells between vein 3 and the anal cell. The costa extending around the entire wing. Sub-costa apparent; joining vein 1 more or less where it joins the costa. The leading edge veins not noticeably stronger than the rest. Vein 3 distally forked. Vein 6 present; reaching the wing margin. Wings with the lower calypter much reduced or absent; patterned, or unpatterned. Feet without a triple pad.
Larvae and pupae. Larvae terrestrial; parasitic; endoparasitic, or ectoparasitic (in or on eggs, larvae or pupae of other insects); hemicephalic. Pupa without a puparium.
Comments. Small to fairly large, bristly and furry, bee-like flies, usually with long thin legs. Wings held open when at rest. The popular name is appropriate both with regard to the general appearance, and the fact that many species parasitise bees.
Classification. Suborder Brachycera; Division Asilomorpha; Superfamily Asiloidea.
British representation: Genera 4; 9 species.
Illustrations: • Bombylius, Lomatia, Phthiria, Villa (from Walker). • Thyridanthrax fenestratus (Beautiful Bee-fly: B. Ent. 009). • Thyridanthrax fenestratus (details: B. Ent. 009). • Thyridanthrax fenestratus (B. Ent. 009, legend+text). • Phthiria pulicaria (Sea-shore Bee-fly: B. Ent. 521).
To view the illustrations with detailed captions, go to the interactive key. This also offers full and partial descriptions, diagnostic descriptions, differences and similarities between taxa, lists of taxa exhibiting or lacking specified attributes, and distributions of character states within any set of taxa.
Cite this publication as: ‘Watson, L., and Dallwitz, M.J. 2003 onwards. British insects: the families of Diptera. Version: 9th April 2007. http://delta-intkey.com’.
