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Sepsidae

 
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Sepsidae
 
 
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Sepsidae are a family
Family (biology)

In biological classification, family is a taxonomic rank. Exact details of formal nomenclature depend on the Nomenclature Codes which applies....
 of flies, commonly called the black scavenger flies or ensign flies. There are approximately 250 species
Species

In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring....
 worldwide. They are usually found around dung or decaying plant and animal material.They resemble ants
Ant mimicry

Ant mimicry is mimicry of ants by other organisms. Ants are abundant all over the world, and insect predators that rely on vision to identify their prey such as birds and wasps normally avoid them, either because they are unpalatable, or aggressive....
 having a "waist" and glossy black body .






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Encyclopedia


Sepsidae are a family
Family (biology)

In biological classification, family is a taxonomic rank. Exact details of formal nomenclature depend on the Nomenclature Codes which applies....
 of flies, commonly called the black scavenger flies or ensign flies. There are approximately 250 species
Species

In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring....
 worldwide. They are usually found around dung or decaying plant and animal material.They resemble ants
Ant mimicry

Ant mimicry is mimicry of ants by other organisms. Ants are abundant all over the world, and insect predators that rely on vision to identify their prey such as birds and wasps normally avoid them, either because they are unpalatable, or aggressive....
 having a "waist" and glossy black body . Many Sepsidae have a curious wing-waving habit made more apparent by dark patches at the wing end.

Many species have a very wide distribution, reflecting the coprophagous habit of most Sepsidae. Some species have been spread over large territories in association with livestock. Adult flies are found mostly on animal and human excrement
Feces

Feces, faeces, or f?ces is a waste product from an animal's gastrointestinal tract expelled through the anus during defecation....
 (less often on other rotting organic matter), where eggs are laid and larvae
Larva

A larva is a young form of animal with indirect developmental biology, going through or undergoing metamorphosis .The larva can look completely different from the adult form, for example, a caterpillar differs from a butterfly....
 develop, and on nearby vegetation, carrion, fermenting tree sap, and shrubs and herbs.

Many Sepsidae apparently play an important biological role as decomposers of animal excrement. Some species may have a limited hygienic importance because of their association with human feces. Others are useful tools in forensic entomology
Forensic entomology

Forensic entomology is the application and study of insect and other arthropod biology to criminal matters. Forensic entomology is primarily associated with death investigations however it may also be used to detect drugs and poisons, determine the location of an incident, the length of a period of neglect in the elderly or children and the p...
.

Classification

This list may be incomplete.

  • Subfamily Orygmatinae
    • Genus Orygma
  • Subfamily Sepsinae
    • Tribe Saltellini
      • Genus Saltella
    • Tribe Sepsini
      • Genus Archisepsis
      • Genus Decachaetophora
      • Genus Enicita
      • Genus Enicomira
      • Genus Meroplius
      • Genus Nemopoda
      • Genus Ortalischema
      • Genus Sepsidimorpha
      • Genus Sepsis
      • Genus Themira
      • Genus Zuskamira


Further reading


Identification

  • Duda, O. 1926 Monographie der Sepsiden (Dipt.). Ann. Naturhist. Mus. Wien 39 (1925): 1-153 and 40 (1926) : 1-110.
This work is partly out of date but still the only review of world genera
Genus

A genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the classification of living and fossil organisms. The taxonomic ranks are domain , kingdom , phylum, class , order , family , genus, and species....
.
  • Willi Hennig, 1949: 39a. Sepsidae. In Erwin Lindner
    Erwin Lindner

    Erwin Lindner was a Germany entomologist mainly interested in Diptera.He was born in B?glins, Memmingen , 7 April 1888 and died in Stuttgart 30 November 1988, aged 100 years....
     : Die Fliegen der Palaearktischen Region, Bd. V: 1-91, Textfig. 1-81a-d, Taf. I-X, Stuttgart.The only comprehensive work on Palaearctic genera
    Genus

    A genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the classification of living and fossil organisms. The taxonomic ranks are domain , kingdom , phylum, class , order , family , genus, and species....
     and species
    Species

    In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring....
    .
  • Adrian C. Pont and Rudolf Meier The Sepsidae (Diptera) of Europe. Fauna Entomologica Scandinavica Volume 37. 198 pages. ISBN 90-04-12477-2
  • A.L. Ozerov Sepsid Flies (Diptera, Sepsidae) of Russia's Fauna. Studies on the fauna; Archives of the Zoological Museum of Moscow State University: Zool. Mus. Moscow. Univ. Publ.Language: Russian, title, contents and a summary in English. 184 pages.
A very well illustrated guide to all 57 species from 11 genera of Sepsidae flies occurring in Russia, with keys to adults and pre-imaginal stages, and accounts concerning anatomy, phylogeny and distribution.
  • Silva, V. C. . Revisao da familia Sepsidae na regiao Neotropical. Iii. Os generos Palaeosepsis Duda, 1926, Archisepsis Gen. N. e Microsepsis Gen. N., Chave para os Generos Neotropicais (Diptera, Schizophora).. Iheringia. Série Zoologia, v. 75, p. 117-170, 1993.
  • Silva, V. C. . Revision of the family Sepsidae of the Neotropical region. ii. The genus Meropliosepsis Duda, 1926 (Diptera, Schizophora). Revista Brasileira de Entomologia, v. 36, n. 3, p. 549-552, 1992.


World catalogue

  • Ozerov, A.L. World catalogue of the family Sepsidae (Insecta: Diptera), Zoologicheskie issledovania (Zoological Studies), No. 8 (ISSN 1025-532X)


Species lists



External links