Tachinidae

Compsilura concinnata, photographed by Rui Andrade.

Belongs within: Oestroidea.

The Tachinidae are a group of flies with larvae that are endoparasitic on other arthropods. Members of the Tachinidae can generally be recognised by the presence of an enlarged subscutellum at the back of the thorax. The majority of species parasitise Coleoptera or Lepidoptera, but a wide range of hosts are known including Heteroptera, Hymenoptera, earwigs or even centipedes. Female tachinids do not have a piercing ovipositor; instead, larvae are usually laid on the host or amongst host habitat, and the larva burrows through the host cuticle or hatches from the egg after the host swallows it (Askew 1971).

Characters (from Wood & Zumbado 2010): Small to large flies (body length 3-25 mm), extremely varied in shape and proportions. Frons of male either narrower than that of female and usually lacking proclinate orbital bristles, or about as wide as that of female and usually also with proclinate orbital bristles; first flagellomere of latter type usually much longer in male than in female, in some species bifurcate, trifurcate or multibranched. Arista usually bare, or short to long plumose. Eye usually with ommatrichia; ommatrichia usually longer in male than in female and often longer dorsally than ventrally. Ocelli and ocellar bristles usually present, the latter sometimes directed laterally (lateroclinate) or posteriorly (reclinate). Upper orbital bristles usually present, anterior one(s) reclinate, posteriormost sometimes lateroclinate. Occipital setae usually long and fine, delineated laterally by evenly spaced vertical row of stouter postoccipital bristles, either extending ventrally to meet lower cranial margin or curving forward on genal dilation, that may also have one or more large bristles. Vibrissa usually well developed, usually accompanied by one or more smaller bristles both below and above it. Face concave or convex, often protruding between and/or below vibrissae. Facial ridge, especially in species with long antennae, usually with row of erect bristles. Proboscis usually short and straight, with padlike labella, but may be long and curved, with small labella. Postpronotum with two or usually three major bristles in transverse row, sometimes preceded by fourth smaller bristle or with middle bristle displaced anteriorly. Postsutural supra-alar bristles typically three. Scutellum with one to four paires of bristles, lateral bristles sometimes duplicated. Subscutellum well developed, evenly rounded in profile. Posterior thoracic spiracle small, confined to region behind uppermost meral bristles, and well behind katepisternum, separated from latter by regular katepimeron. Meral bristles present. Vein M with distinct bend.

Tachinidae [Larvaevoridae]
    |--+--Phasiinae A71
    |  |    |--Gymnosoma nudifrons A71, WT11
    |  |    `--Alophora A71
    |  `--Tachininae A71
    |       |--Blondelia A71
    |       |--Actia A71
    |       |--Siphona flavifrons A71, WT11
    |       |--Tachina grossa WT11
    |       `--Compsilura concinnata A71, SS96
    `--+--+--Phania funesta WT11
       |  `--Axinia [Axiniidae] WT11
       |       `--A. zentae WT11
       `--Exoristinae [Goniinae] A71
            |  i. s.: Exorista WT11
            |           |--E. larvarum WT11
            |           `--E. nigripalpis Macquart 1849 E12
            |         Nemorilla A71
            |         Carcelia A71
            |         Zenillia nemea [=Phryxe nemea] A71
            |         Paraphorocera A71
            `--Goniini KN03
                 |--Gonia A71
                 `--Elodia flavipalpis KN03

Tachinidae incertae sedis:
  Protohystricia PPE03
  Pales F05
    |--P. abdita Cerretti 2005 F05
    `--P. usitata M83
  Plagiomyia longicornis M83
  Eucarcelia rutilla A71
  Trichopareia A71
  Rondanioestrus apivorus A71
  Chaetophleps setosa [incl. Neocelatoria ferox] A71
  Thrixion A71
  Centeter A71
    |--C. cinerea A71
    `--C. unicolor A71
  Cyzenis albicans C81 [=Monochaeta albicans A71]
  Lydella grisescens A71
  Eupeleteria magnicornis A71
  Thereseia A71
  Diplostichus janitrix A71
  Ptychomyia remota A71
  Bigonicheta setipennis A71
  Trigonospila brevifacies WFS04
  Lespesia archippivora SS96
  Bessa Robineau-Desvoidy 1863 HP-W05
    |--B. harveyi Townsend 1892 HP-W05
    |--B. remota H91
    `--B. selecta (Meigen 1824) HP-W05
  Trichopoda H91
    |--T. pennipes C81
    `--T. pilipes H91
  Drino gilva (Hartig 1838) HP-W05
  Myxexoristops Townsend 1911 HP-W05
    `--M. stolida (Stein 1924) HP-W05
  Hyalurgus Brauer & Bergenstamm 1893 HP-W05
    |--H. crucigera Zetterstedt 1838 HP-W05
    `--H. lucidus Meigen 1824 HP-W05
  Diatraeophaga striatalis B88
  Koralliomyia portentosa B88
  Myiothiria fergusoni B88
  Rossimyiopsis whiteheadi Mesnil 1953 R00
  Perumyia embiaphaga Arnaud 1963 R00
  Dexiinae A71
    |--Trixa A71
    `--Dexia A71
         |--D. lata Macquart 1849 E12
         `--D. rustica A71
  Macquartiinae A71
    |--Macquartia A71
    |--Wagneria A71
    |--Loewia foeda [=Fortisia foeda] A71
    |--Nemoraea vicina Macquart 1849 A71, E12
    |--Ernestia A71
    |--Gymnochaeta A71
    `--Echinomyia A71
         |--E. algira Macquart 1849 E12
         `--E. fera A71
  Bezzimyia M90
  Rutilia ZS10
  Senostoma ZS10
  Blepharipa ZS10
  Prosena ZS10
  Prodiaphania ZS10

*Type species of generic name indicated

REFERENCES

[A71] Askew, R. R. 1971. Parasitic Insects. Heinemann Educational Books: London.

[B88] Bouček, Z. 1988. Australasian Chalcidoidea (Hymenoptera): A biosystematic revision of genera of fourteen families, with a reclassification of species. CAB International: Wallingford (UK).

[C81] Caltagirone, L. E. 1981. Landmark examples in classical biological control. Annual Review of Entomology 26: 213-232.

[E12] Evenhuis, N. L. 2012. Publication and dating of the Exploration Scientifique de l'Algérie: Histoire Naturelle des Animaux Articulés (1846–1849) by Pierre Hippolyte Lucas. Zootaxa 3448: 1–61.

[F05] Fernández, J. 2005. Noticia de nuevos táxones para la ciencia en el ámbito Íbero-Balear y Macaronésico. Nuevos táxones animales descritos en la península Ibérica y Macaronesia desde 1994 (IX). Graellsia 61 (2): 261-282.

[HP-W05] Heitland, W., & H. Pschorn-Walcher. 2005. Biology and parasitoids of the peculiar alder sawfly, Platycampus luridiventris (Fallen) (Insecta, Hymenoptera, Tenthredinidae). Senckenbergiana Biologica 85 (2): 215-231.

[H91] Howarth, F. G. 1991. Environmental impacts of classical biological control. Annual Review of Entomology 36: 485-509.

[KN03] Komai, F., & Y. Nasu. 2003. Four species of Olethreutinae (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae) associated with viviparous seedlings of the mangrove Rhizophoraceae in the Ryukyu Islands, Japan. Invertebrate Systematics 17: 75-87.

[M83] Martin, N. A. 1983. Miscellaneous observations on a pasture fauna: An annotated species list. DSIR Entomology Division Report 3: 1-98.

[M90] McAlpine, J. F. 1990. Insecta: Diptera adults. In: Dindal, D. L. (ed.) Soil Biology Guide pp. 1211-1252. John Wiley & Sones: New York.

[PPE03] Patrick, B., H. Patrick & E. Edwards. 2003. Tiger moths and pheromones. Weta 25: 14-17.

[R00] Ross, E. S. 2000. Embia: Contributions to the biosystematics of the insect order Embiidina. Occasional Papers of the California Academy of Sciences 149: 1-53, 1-36.

[SS96] Simberloff, D., & P. Stilling. 1996. How risky is biological control? Ecology 77 (7): 1965-1974.

[WT11] Wiegmann, B. M., M. D. Trautwein, I. S. Winkler, N. B. Barr, J.-W. Kim, C. Lambkin, M. A. Bertone, B. K. Cassel, K. M. Bayless, A. M. Heimberg, B. M. Wheeler, K. J. Peterson, T. Pape, B. J. Sinclair, J. H. Skevington, V. Blagoderov, J. Caravas, S. N. Kutty, U. Schmidt-Ott, G. E. Kampmeier, F. C. Thompson, D. A. Grimaldi, A. T. Beckenbach, G. W. Courtney, M. Friedrich, R. Meier & D. K. Yeates. 2011. Episodic radiations in the fly tree of life. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the USA 108 (14): 5690-5695.

[WFS04] Winks, C. J., S. V. Fowler & L. A. Smith. 2004. Invertebrate fauna of boneseed, Chrysanthemoides monilifera ssp. monilifera (L.) T. Norl. (Asteraceae: Calenduleae), an invasive weed in New Zealand. New Zealand Entomologist 27: 61-72.

Wood, D. M., & M. A. Zumbado. 2010. Tachinidae (tachinid flies, parasitic flies). In: Brown, B. V., A. Borkent, J. M. Cumming, D. M. Wood, N. E. Woodley & M. A. Zumbado (eds) Manual of Central American Diptera vol. 2, pp. 1343-1417. NRC Research Press: Ottawa.

[ZS10] Zborowski, P. & R. Storey. 2010. A Field Guide to Insects in Australia. Reed New Holland: Sydney.