Dexiinae

Tribe Guides

Dexiinae is a of tachinid flies (Diptera: Tachinidae) comprising approximately 15 tribes and over 500 described . Members are , with larvae developing inside insects. The subfamily has a distribution and includes notable such as Dexia, Rutilia, and Voria. Australasian Dexiini have been shown to parasitize scarabaeid larvae (soil-dwelling) and cerambycid beetle larvae (wood-dwelling), with host associations correlating to morphological traits.

Trixodes by (c) Katja Schulz, some rights reserved (CC BY). Used under a CC-BY license.

Oestrophasia by (c) Katja Schulz, some rights reserved (CC BY). Used under a CC-BY license.

Oestrophasia by (c) David Dodd, some rights reserved (CC BY), uploaded by David Dodd. Used under a CC-BY license.

Pronunciation

How to pronounce Dexiinae: /ˈdɛksiˌiːnaɪ/

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Images

Distribution

. Documented from Australasian region, Indonesia (Maluku), Papua New Guinea, New Caledonia, Fiji, and the Neotropical region.

Host Associations

Scarabaeidae - larval Australasian Dexiini with carinate parasitize soil-dwelling scarabaeid larvae
Cerambycidae - larval Australasian Dexiini with non-carinate parasitize wood-dwelling cerambycid larvae

Ecological Role

flies that contribute to regulation of , particularly scarabaeids and cerambycids in documented systems.

More Details

Tribal classification

Dexiinae contains approximately 15 tribes: Dexiini, Doleschallini, Dufouriini, Epigrimyiini, Eutherini, Freraeini, Imitomyiini, Rutiliini, Sophiini, Telothyriini, Uramyini, Voriini, and several unplaced . The tribe Voriini is the largest and most diverse.

Morphological diversity

The exhibits substantial morphological variation, with some tribes and characterized by distinct abdominal carinae (keels) that correlate with -finding adaptations for soil-dwelling versus wood-dwelling hosts.