Calliphoridae

Definition

A family of flies (order Diptera) comprising the blowflies and bottle flies, characterized by metallic blue, green, or bronze coloration in adults and maggot larvae adapted to carrion, necrotic tissue, or living hosts. The family is currently recognized as polyphyletic, with constituent subfamilies (Auchmeromyiinae, Calliphorinae, Chrysomyinae, Luciliinae, Rhiniinae) sometimes elevated to family rank in competing classifications. Calliphoridae are ecologically significant as primary colonizers of vertebrate remains, making them central to forensic entomology for estimating postmortem intervals, and medically important as agents of myiasis.

Etymology

From the genus Calliphora (Greek kallos 'beauty' + phoros 'bearing') + -idae (family suffix).

Example

Lucilia sericata (green bottle fly) and Phormia regina (black blow fly) are common Calliphoridae used in forensic casework to estimate minimum time since death based on larval developmental stage.

Synonyms

• blowfly family
• bottle fly family

Related Terms

• Diptera
• Oestroidea
• Calyptrata
• myiasis
• Forensic entomology
• sarcosaprophagy
• Lucilia
• Calliphora
• Chrysomya
• maggot debridement therapy

Usage Notes

The family is widely acknowledged to be non-monophyletic; taxonomic revisions may reclassify subfamilies as separate families. In medical and forensic contexts, the vernacular 'blowfly' typically refers to this group, though the term sometimes extends to related families (e.g., Sarcophagidae). Larvae are commonly called 'gentles' in angling contexts.