Culicoidini

Culicoides obsoletus, from here.

Belongs within: Ceratopogonidae.

The Culicoidini are a group of biting midges whose females commonly feed on the blood of vertebrates, with some Culicoides species being vectors of parasites or viruses. Some species can be significant pests in the latter regard, with attacks from Culicoides furens in coastal regions in Central America being bad enough to preclude human habitation in some locations (Borkent et al. 2009). Members of the genus Paradasyhelea have the palps and mouthparts reduced relative to Culicoides, and females lack the teeth on the mandible of the latter genus (Downes & Wirth 1981).

Characters (from Downes & Wirth 1981): Female antenna with 13 flagellomeres. Prescutal pits prominent. Wing with macrotrichia usually abundant; cell r₁ and cell r₂₊₃ both usually well-developed, similar in size; M forking beyond crossvein r-m, medial fork petiolate. Empodia small; claws of both sexes small, equal, and simple.

<==Culicoidini BSG09
    |--Paradasyhelea DW81
    |    |--P. minuta DW81
    |    `--P. olympiae DW81
    `--Culicoides BSG09
         |  i. s.: C. angularis CM91
         |         C. anophelis CM91
         |         C. antennalis CM91
         |         C. arubae BSG09
         |         C. austeni A71
         |         C. barbosai BSG09
         |         C. brevitarsis CM91
         |         C. castillae WB56
         |         C. equatoriensis WB56
         |         C. filarifer BSG09
         |         C. foxi BSG09
         |         C. furens BSG09
         |         C. gabaldoni WB56
         |         C. grahami A71
         |         C. impunctatus A71
         |         C. inornatipennis A71
         |         C. insignis BSG09
         |         C. insinuatus Ortiz & Leon 1955 WB56
         |         C. marmoratus CM74
         |         C. ornatus L91
         |         C. paraensis BSG09
         |         C. phlebotomus BSG09
         |         C. pseudodiabolicus BSG09
         |         C. pulicaris A71
         |         C. pusillus BSG09
         |         C. yoosti GE05
         |         C. debilipalpis group WB56
         |           |--C. dasyophrus Macfie 1940 WB56
         |           |--C. debilipalpis [incl. C. debilipalpis var. glabrior Macfie 1940] WB56
         |           |--C. germanus Macfie 1940 WB56
         |           |--C. hoffmani Fox 1946 WB56
         |           `--C. trilineatus Fox 1946 WB56
         |--C. (Culicoides) yukonensis M90
         |--C. (Avaritia) obsoletus DW81
         |--C. (Beltranmyia) crepuscularis DW81
         |--C. (Diphaomyia) haematopotus DW81
         |--C. (Drymodesmyia) copiosus DW81
         |--C. (Monoculicoides) variipennis M90
         `--C. (Selfia) hieroglyphicus DW81

*Type species of generic name indicated

REFERENCES

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

[BSG09] Borkent, A., G. R. Spinelli & W. L. Grogan Jr. 2009. Ceratopogonidae (biting midges, purrujas). 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. 407–435. NRC Research Press: Ottawa.

[CM74] Colless, D. H., & D. K. McAlpine. 1974. Diptera (flies). In: CSIRO. The Insects of Australia: A textbook for students and research workers. Supplement 1974 pp. 91–96. Melbourne University Press.

[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).

[DW81] Downes, J. A., & W. W. Wirth. 1981. Ceratopogonidae. 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. 393–421. Research Branch, Agriculture Canada.

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

[L91] Liehne, P. F. S. 1991. An Atlas of the Mosquitoes of Western Australia. Health Department of Western Australia.

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

[WB56] Wirth, W. W., & F. S. Blanton. 1956. Redescriptions of four species of Neotropical Culicoides of the debilipalpis group (Diptera: Heleidae). Journal of the Washington Academy of Sciences 46 (6): 186–190.

Last updated: 28 December 2020.