Pantophthalmidae
Pantophthalmus bellardi
Zoological Museum St. Petersburg.
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Diptera
Superfamily: Stratiomyoidea
Family: Pantophthalmidae
Bigot, 1886
Genera

Pantophthalmidae (sometimes spelled as Panthophthalmidae) is a small family of very large, robust flies, sometimes referred to as timber flies. There are 21 known species in two genera in the family, all of Neotropical distribution. Superficially they resemble horse flies, but are only distantly related; they are most closely related to the soldier flies (Stratiomyidae). The larvae feed by boring into living wood, an unusual habit for Diptera, and can sometimes be pests. The adult stage is brief and does not feed at all, and most active at dusk.[3]

References

  1. ^ Enderlein, G. (1921). "Dipterologische Studien XVII". Zoologischer Anzeiger. 52: 219–232. Retrieved 1 September 2022.
  2. ^ Thunberg, C.P. (1819). "Beskrifning pa en ny insect, Pantophthalmus tabaninus". Gotheborg K. Vetensk. Akad. Nya Handl. 3: 7–8.
  3. ^ Val, F. C. (1976). "Systematics and Evolution of the Pantophthalmidae (Diptera, Brachycera)". Arquivos de Zoologia de São Paulo. 27: 51–164. Retrieved 1 September 2022.

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Extant Diptera families
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