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Family NERIIDAE Westwood, 1840


Compiler and date details

December 2010 - Scott Ginn, Australian Museum, Sydney, Australia

2007 - R. Johnson, data taken from Evenhuis, N.L. Catalog of the Diptera of the Australasian and Oceanian Regions (accessed 2007)

Introduction

Neriidae are a family of long-legged flies, mostly found in the tropics. The family was previously treated as a subfamily of Micropezidae, to which they are closely related. Approximately 100 species in 20 genera are described worldwide, however the family is poorly represented in Australia by only two species. Although Australian species are currently placed in two genera, it may be that the only genus truly represented in Australia is Telostylinus (D.K. McAlpine pers. comm).

Biology
There has been little research into the life histories of species in this family. The larvae of the widely distributed species Telostylinus lineolatus have been associated with papaya trees (Carica papaya) in Asia and elephant bush (Portulacaria afra) in Hawaii. The larvae of Derocephalus angusticollis (the banana-stalk fly) have been found in the rotting ends of cut banana bunches, as well as rotting vegetable matter.

 

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)
04-Jan-2011 04-Jan-2011 MODIFIED
04-Jan-2011 MODIFIED