Empididae

Clinocera cf. stagnalis, copyright Rui Andrade.

Belongs within: Empidoidea.
Contains: Empidinae.

The Empididae, dance flies, are a group of long-legged flies that get their vernacular name in reference to the courtship displays performed by males of some species. Members are characterised by unrotated and symmetrical terminalia, and wings with vein Rs originating at a distance from the humeral crossvein h equal to or longer than length of h and the costa ends at, or just beyond, R₄₊₅ or continuing along the wing margin. The male cerci are developed but simple in structure in members of the subfamilies Clinocerinae and Brachystomatinae (Wahlberg & Johanson 2018).

<==Empididae [Empides, Empidinea, Empidoinea] CS09
    |  i. s.: Ecommocydromia difficilis GE05
    |         Dryodromia WJ18
    |--Clinocerinae WJ18
    |    |  i. s.: Oreothalia SK81
    |    |         Proclinopyga CS09
    |    |         Trichoclinocera hamifera CS09
    |    |         Asymphyloptera CS09
    |    |         Fushunempites Hong 2002 H02
    |    |           `--*F. furvis Hong 2002 H02
    |    |         Roederiodes CS09
    |    |           |--R. recurvatus CS09
    |    |           |--R. wigginsi CS09
    |    |           `--R. wirthi CS09
    |    |         Afroclinocera WJ18
    |    |         Bergenstammia WJ18
    |    |         Clinocerella WJ18
    |    |         Hypenella WJ18
    |    |         Phaeobalia WJ18
    |    |         Proagomyia WJ18
    |    |         Rhyacodromia WJ18
    |    |--+--Dolichocephala WJ18
    |    |  |    |--D. argus CS09
    |    |  |    |--D. guttata WJ18
    |    |  |    `--D. ocellata WJ18
    |    |  `--+--Kowarzia tibiella WJ18
    |    |     `--Wiedemannia WJ18
    |    |          |--W. (Wiedemannia) bistigma WJ18
    |    |          `--W. (Pseudowiedemannia) lamellata WJ18
    |    `--Clinocera WJ18
    |         |  i. s.: C. caerulea WT11
    |         |         C. lineata CS09
    |         |         C. rubriventris CS09
    |         |         C. stagnalis SK81
    |         |--C. wesmaeli WJ18
    |         `--+--C. fontinalis WJ18
    |            `--+--C. maculata WJ18
    |               `--C. nivalis WJ18
    `--+--Empidinae WJ18
       `--Brachystomatinae [Brachystomatidae] WJ18
            |--Brachystomatini WJ18
            |    |--Brachystoma occidentale SK81
            |    |--Anomalempis WJ18
            |    `--Xanthodromia WJ18
            |--Ceratomerini [Ceratomerinae] WJ18
            |    |--Ceratomerus CM91
            |    |--Glyphidopeza WJ18
            |    `--Zealandicesa WJ18
            `--Trichopezini [Trichopezinae] WJ18
                 |  i. s.: Afropeza WJ18
                 |         Adipsomyia WJ18
                 |         Apalocnemis Philippi 1865 GC99
                 |           |--*A. obscura Philippi 1865 GC99
                 |           `--A. canadambris Grimaldi & Cumming 1999 GC99
                 |         Boreodromia bicolor WJ18, SK81
                 |         Ceratempis longicornis WJ18, SK81
                 |         Ephydrempis WJ18
                 |         Heterophlebus WJ18
                 |         Hyperperacera WJ18
                 |         Niphogenia eucera WJ18, SK81
                 |         Pseudheleodromia WJ18
                 |         Rubistella WJ18
                 |         Sabroskyella WJ18
                 |         Sematopoda WJ18
                 |         Sinotrichopeza WJ18
                 |--Gloma WJ18
                 |    |--G. fuscipennis WJ18
                 |    `--G. luctuosa SK81
                 `--+--Trichopeza longicornis WJ18
                    `--Heleodromia WJ18
                         |--H. boreoalpina WJ18
                         |--H. immaculata WJ18
                         `--H. pullata SK81

*Type species of generic name indicated

REFERENCES

[CM91] Colless, D. H., & D. K. McAlpine. 1991. Diptera (flies). In: CSIRO. The Insects of Australia: A textbook for students and research workers 2^nd ed. vol. 2 pp. 717–786. Melbourne University Press: Carlton (Victoria).

[CS09] Cumming, J. M., & B. J. Sinclair. 2009. Empididae (dance flies, balloon flies, predaceous 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. 1 pp. 653–670. NRC Research Press: Ottawa.

[GC99] Grimaldi, D., & J. Cumming. 1999. Brachyceran Diptera in Cretaceous ambers and Mesozoic diversification of the Eremoneura. Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 239: 1–124.

[GE05] Grimaldi, D., & M. S. Engel. 2005. Evolution of the Insects. Cambridge University Press: New York.

[H02] Hong Y. 2002. Amber Insect of China. Beijing Scientific and Technological Publishing House.

[SK81] Steyskal, G. C., & L. V. Knutson. 1981. Empididae. In: McAlpine, J. F., B. V. Peterson, G. E. Shewell, H. J. Teskey, J. R. Vockeroth & D. S. Wood (eds) Manual of Nearctic Diptera vol. 1 pp. 607–624. Research Branch, Agriculture Canada.

[WJ18] Wahlberg, E., & K. A. Johanson. 2018. Molecular phylogenetics reveals novel relationships within Empidoidea (Diptera). Systematic Entomology 43: 619–636.

[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.

Last updated: 31 January 2021.