Teratomyzidae are a family of small flies found mainly in the southern continents and are absent from Europe, North America, and Africa. They are specialist feeders on fern fronds. There are about thirty five species. They appear somewhat like anthomyzids, the body is elongated and appear dusty coated. The antenna are somewhat as in Aulacigastridae and Neminidae. The wing is distinctive in its venation, the costa is weake after the humeral crossvein and broken before vein 1 with an elongate dorsal bristle before the break. Vein 1 short and joins costa within quarter length of the wing. Vein 6 terminates beyond discal crossvein.[1]

Teratomyzidae
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Diptera
Infraorder: Muscomorpha
(unranked): Eremoneura
(unranked): Cyclorrhapha
Section: Schizophora
Subsection: Acalyptratae
Superfamily: Opomyzoidea
Family: Teratomyzidae
Colless & McAlpine, 1970

The genera in the family include:[2]

  • Teratomyza
  • Camur
  • Stepta
  • Teratoptera
  • Lips
  • Pous
  • Auster

References

edit
  1. ^ McAlpine, David K.; Keyzer, Roger G. De (1994). "Generic classification of the fern flies (Diptera: Teratomyzidae) with a larval description". Systematic Entomology. 19 (4): 305–326. doi:10.1111/j.1365-3113.1994.tb00593.x. S2CID 86688422.
  2. ^ Rodrigues, J.P.V.; Pereira-Colavite, A.; Mello, R.L. (2016). "Catalogue of the Teratomyzidae (Diptera, Opomyzoidea) of the World". Zootaxa. 4205 (3): 275. doi:10.11646/zootaxa.4205.3.7. PMID 27988579.