Sphegina

Genus of flies From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Sphegina is a genus of small, slender hoverflies.[8][9][10][11] They are widespread throughout Eurasia and North America.[12] In flight they seem to have long hind legs which they often carry hanging down, making them resemble sphecid or ichneumonid wasps. Adult Sphegina are usually found in damp and shady habitats close to water in forested areas, and several species can often be found together. They often feed on white and yellow flowers of Apiaceae, Ranunculaceae, Asteraceae, and Rosaceae like Crataegus, Sorbus, and Sorbaria. Larvae nest in the sap of living and dead trees or in decaying cambium under tree bark lying in water or other damp conditions. The larvae of some species have been discovered in the tunnels of other xylophagous insects.[13]

Phylum:Arthropoda
Class:Insecta
Order:Diptera
Family:Syrphidae
Quick facts Scientific classification, Type species ...
Sphegina
Sphegina montana
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Diptera
Family: Syrphidae
Subfamily: Eristalinae
Tribe: Brachyopini
Subtribe: Spheginina
Genus: Sphegina
Meigen, 1822[1]
Type species
Milesia clunipes
Subgenera
Synonyms
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Sphegina generally have a face strongly concave and bare in both sexes, antennal basoflagellomere oval with a long dorsal and pilose arista; eyes bare and dichoptic in both sexes; postpronotum pilose; metasternum and katepisternum non-pilose; ventral scutellar fringe absent; alula narrow or absent; postmetacoxal bridge complete and broad; metaleg much longer than pro- and mesoleg and with incrassate femur; abdomen petiolate. Sphegina are similar to the species of their sister group Neoascia but are distinguished by the following characters: face oblique, nearly straight, laterally pilose; katepisternum usually pilose; basoflagellomere usually elongate, longer than wide; arista bare and about as long as basoflagellomere. The small-sized species of Sphegina can be very similar to Neoascia in habitus and they may be especially difficult to distinguish in the wild.[13]

Sphegina has two subgenera Asiosphegina and Sphegina.

Species

Subgenus: Sphegina Meigen, 1822[1]

Subgenus: Asiosphegina Stackelberg, 1974[3]

References

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