Austrosimulium
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| Austrosimulium | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Austrosimulium australense | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Diptera |
| Family: | Simuliidae |
| Subfamily: | Simuliinae |
| Tribe: | Simuliini |
| Genus: | Austrosimulium Tonnoir, 1925 |
| Type species | |
| Austrosimulium australense (Schiner, 1868)[1] | |
Austrosimulium is a genus of about 30 species of black flies that are distributed in Australia and New Zealand. There are 2 subgenera: Austrosimulium whose species are principally from New Zealand, and Novaustrosimulium which are exclusively Australian.[2] Austrosimulium is a sister genus to the monospecific Paraustrosimulium of South America.[3]
Some species are known to spread the protozoan blood parasite Leucocytozoon tawaki in penguins.[4][5][6]
In New Zealand, where they are known as sandflies or namu (in Māori from Proto-Austronesian *ñamuk "mosquito", compare with Malay: nyamuk),[7][8] three species – A. australense, A. tillyardianum and A. ungulatum – bite humans.[9][7][10]
