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Tephritidae

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Description

Taken at night in Singapore forest.

Quote from en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tephriti…
Tephritidae is one of two fly families referred to as "fruit flies", the other family being Drosophilidae. Tephritidae does not include the biological model organisms of the genus Drosophila (in the family Drosophilidae), which is often called the "common fruit fly". There are nearly 5,000 described species of tephritid fruit fly, categorized in almost 500 genera Tephritidae. Description, recategorization, and genetic analysis are constantly changing the taxonomy of this family. To distinguish them from the Drosophilidae, the Tephritidae are sometimes called peacock flies, in reference to their elaborate and colorful markings. The name comes from the Greek τεφρος, "tephros", meaning 'ash grey'. They are found in all the Ecozones.

Tephritids are small to medium sized (2.5–10 mm) flies that are often colourful, and usually with pictured wings, the subcostal vein curving forward at a right angle.The head is hemispherical and usually short.The face is vertical or retreating and the frons is broad, Ocelli and cellar bristles are present. The postvertical bristles are parallel to divergent. There are two to eight pairs of frontal bristles (at least one but usually several lower pairs curving inwards and at least one of the upper pairs curving backwards). In some species the frontal bristles are inserted on a raised tubercle. Interfrontal setulae are usually absent or represented by one or two tiny setulae near the lunula. True vibrissae are absent but several genera have strong bristles near the vibrissal angle.The wings usually have yellow, brown or black markings or are dark coloured with lighter markings. In a few species the wings are clear. The costa has both a humeral and a subcostal break. The apical part of the subcostal is usually indistinct or even transparent and at about a right angle with respect to the basal part.crossvein BM-Cu is present the cell cup (posterior cubital cell or anal cell) is closed and nearly always narrowing to an acute angle. It is closed by a geniculate vein (CuA2). The CuA2 vein is rarely straight or convex. The tibiae lack a dorsal preapical bristle. The female has an oviscape.

The larva is amphipneustic (having only the anterior and posterior pairs of spiracle). The body varies from white, to yellowish, or brown. The posterior end of pale coloured species is sometimes black.The body tapers at the anterior. There are two mandibles sometimes with teeth along the ventral margin.The antennomaxillary lobes at each side of the mandibles have several transverse oral ridges or short laminae directed posteriorly. The anterior spiracles (prothoracic spiracles) end bluntly and are not elongated. Each has at least three openings or up to more than 50 arranged transversely in one to three groups or irregularly. Each posterior spiracle (anal spiracle) lacks a clearly defined peritreme and each has three spiracular openings (in mature larvae). These are usually more or less horizontal, parallel and usually bear branched spiracular hairs in four tufts.
Image size
960x640px 383.86 KB
Make
Canon
Model
Canon EOS 5D Mark II
Shutter Speed
1/160 second
Aperture
F/16.0
Focal Length
100 mm
ISO Speed
250
Date Taken
May 3, 2014, 10:20:08 PM
Sensor Size
6mm
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Comments4
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EmmetEarwax's avatar
I have once endeavored to make classification tables of phyla, classes, orders, families ... and intermediate groups. BUT the constant changes and shufflings of groups (Acoela, no longer an order of Turbellarian flatworms. strange phyla that may have dominated earth before the Cambrian)and inadequate descriptions of such have led me to abandon this hobby, even tho I eschew trying to understand the extinct groups. I do have charts I added to various families of insects in a comprehensive book, to the subfamilies as I see them, but how long they'll stay valid ....?

You give technical terms that are so common in Diptera classification. I do know that Drosophilidae is not a myodarian. THAT group only "recently" evolved (50,000 years or so) and so still has many transistional forms that make family classification a muddle. Tachinids, Muscids, etc., are defined by very technical characteristics, not at all obvious to the naked eye. They are the vilest insects in the larval behaivor and parasitic potential. True servants of Beezlebub.

I can go on, but ...