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Culicomorpha

(Infraorder)

Overview

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Culicomorpha is a of Nematocera. It includes mosquitoes, black flies, and several extant and extinct families of insect.

Classification

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Extant families

Extinct families

Photos

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Taxonomy

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The Infraorder Culicomorpha is a member of the Suborder Nematocera. Here is the complete "parentage" of Culicomorpha:

The Infraorder Culicomorpha is further organized into finer groupings including:

Families

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Ceratopogonidae

Ceratopogonidae, or biting (including what are called, in the United States, no-see-ums, midgies, sand flies, punkies, and others), are a family of small flies (1–4 mm long) in the order Diptera. They are closely related to the Chironomidae, Simuliidae (or black flies), and Thaumaleidae. [more]

Chaoboridae

Chaoboridae, commonly known as phantom midges, are a family of fairly common midges with a cosmopolitan distribution. They are closely related to and Chironomidae; the adults are differentiated through peculiarities in wing venation. If they eat at all, the adults feed on nectar. The larvae are aquatic. They are unique due to their feeding method. The antennae of phantom midge larvae are modified into a grasping organ, which captures food, such as small insect larvae and crustaceans like Daphnia and mosquito larvae. The antennae impale or crush the prey and then bring it to the larval mouth, or stylet. The larvae sometimes move about their lacustrine habitats in large swarms. [more]

Chironomidae

Chironomidae (informally known as chironomids or non-biting ) are a family of nematoceran flies with a global distribution. They are closely related to the Ceratopogonidae, Simuliidae, and Thaumaleidae. Many species superficially resemble mosquitoes but they lack the wing scales and elongate mouthparts of the Culicidae. This is a large group of insects with over 5000 described species and 700 species in North America alone.[citation needed] Males are easily recognized by their plumose antennae. Adults are sometimes known as "lake flies" in parts of Canada, as "sand flies", "muckleheads", or "muffleheads" in various regions of the USA Great Lakes area, and as "blind mosquitoes" in Florida, USA. [more]

Corethrellidae

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Culicidae

Mosquito (from the meaning little fly) is a common insect in the family Culicidae (from the Latin culex meaning midge or gnat). [more]

Dixidae

The Dixidae (meniscus ) are a family of aquatic nematoceran Diptera. The larvae live in unpolluted, standing fresh waters, just beneath the surface film, usually amongst marginal aquatic vegetation . [more]

Simuliidae

A black fly (sometimes called a buffalo , turkey gnat, or white socks) is any member of the family Simuliidae of the Culicomorpha infraorder. They are related to the Ceratopogonidae, Chironomidae, and Thaumaleidae. There are over 1,800 known species of black flies (of which 11 are extinct). Most species belong to the immense genus Simulium. Most black flies gain nourishment by feeding on the blood of other animals, although the males feed mainly on nectar. They are usually small, black or gray, with short legs, and antennae. They are a common nuisance for humans, and many U.S. states have programs to suppress the black fly population. They spread several diseases, including river blindness in Africa (Simulium damnosum and S. neavei) and the Americas (Simulium callidum and S. metallicum in Central America, S. ochraceum in Central and South America). [more]

Thaumaleidae

Thaumaleidae, the solitary midges or trickle midges, are a group of flies related to the Ceratopogonidae, Chironomidae, and the Simuliidae. They are small, stocky, yellow to brown flies (3-4 mm) and there are very few species known for this family (about 120 species in five genera). Larvae are found in films on rocks and non- feeding adults are usually found on foliage along the same streams in which the larvae are found. A few solitary midges are found in the southern hemisphere, but Thaumaleidae are generally an Holarctic family. [more]

At least 177 species and subspecies belong to the Family Thaumaleidae.

More info about the Family Thaumaleidae may be found here.

Sources

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Last Revised: September 22, 2009
2009/09/22 09:58:18