Apystomyiidae

Definition

A small family of brachyceran flies (Diptera) comprising one extant genus, Apystomyia, with the single living species Apystomyia elinguis endemic to California, and two extinct genera (Apystomimus, Hilarimorphites) known from Jurassic and Cretaceous ambers. The family's phylogenetic position within the lower Brachycera has been historically uncertain, reflecting its mosaic of plesiomorphic and derived morphological traits.

Etymology

From the type genus Apystomyia (Greek a- 'without' + pystis 'bladder' + myia 'fly'), with the family suffix -idae

Example

Fossil hilarimorphitines in Burmese amber document a Cretaceous distribution of Apystomyiidae in Laurasian forests roughly 99 million years ago, whereas the sole surviving lineage persists as a narrow endemic in the modern Californian chaparral.

Related Terms

• Diptera
• Brachycera
• Apystomyia
• Hilarimorphites
• Apystomimus
• Burmese amber
• relict taxon
• Endemic

Usage Notes

The family is treated as a relict lineage with no close living relatives; workers should distinguish it from the superficially similar Hilarimorphidae (extinct 'hilarimorphid flies' of uncertain placement, not to be confused with the apystomyiid genus Hilarimorphites). The spelling Apystomyiidae (not Apystomyidae) follows the stem of the type genus Apystomyia.