Australian Biological Resources Study

Australian Faunal Directory

Museums

Regional Maps

Family LACHESILLIDAE


Compiler and date details

C.N. Smithers Australian Museum, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

Introduction

Of this essentially Northern Hemisphere family of ten genera and more than 200 species, only two species in Lachesilla Westwood have been found in Australia. Both are known from Europe and have probably been introduced into Australia. Members of this family are mainly inhabitants of dried leaves, leaf litter and bark, with some species occurring in stored products and in houses.

Lachesillids have 13-segmented antennae and 2-segmented tarsi, the claws of which have a tooth. The pulvillus is narrow. The wing venation is very similar to that of the Caeciliidae but the wings are glabrous. The female gonapophyses are reduced, usually to a single, setose external valve. The phallosome is usually simply a Y-shaped structure but the ninth tergite, epiproct and hypandrium frequently have well developed processes of various shapes and sizes. The eggs are laid singly, are ridged, are neither encrusted with debris nor covered by silken threads.

 

History of changes

Note that this list may be incomplete for dates prior to September 2013.
Published As part of group Action Date Action Type Compiler(s)
12-Feb-2010 (import)