Seaweed or kelp flies | |
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Scientific classification | |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Arthropoda |
Class: | Insecta |
Order: | Diptera |
Section: | Schizophora |
Subsection: | Acalyptratae |
Superfamily: | Sciomyzoidea |
Family: | Coelopidae Hendel, 1910 |
Subfamilies | |
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Coelopidae or kelp flies are a family of Acalyptratae Diptera, they are sometimes also called seaweed flies, though this term is used for a number of seashore diptera. There are less than 40 species worldwide.The family is found in temperate areas, with species occurring in the southern Afrotropical, Holarctic regions and Australasian (which has the most species) regions.
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Coelopids are found in the wrack zone of temperate seashores where the larvae feed on rotting seaweed. They are sometimes very abundant in this habitat. They go through several generations a year. The females lay their eggs in small batches into fresh alga banks.There 3 larval instars. Larvae feed in a bacteria-laden mass Pupation is seldom in the alga substrate that soon collapses, but more frequently in the highest sand layers. Larvae are also found in winter wrack heaps as bacteria raise temperatures to 20-30°C even if the heap is superficially frozen.Larvae and pupae have numerous enemies. Beside birds there is the staphylinid Aleochara and suites of parasites confined to algal banks.
Note: Considerable intraspecific variation in some species, especially in overall size, wing length, and setal characters has led to considerable splitting at the generic level.
Classification after McAlpine [1]
Coelopa frigida (Fabricius) has been reared in the laboratory and used for genetic studies.
McAlpine, D.K. 1998. Family Coelopidae.in Papp, L. nd Darvas, B. (ed.): Contributions to a Manual of Palaearctic Diptera. 3: 335-340. Science Herald, Budapest.
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Cladus: Eukaryota
Supergroup: Unikonta
Cladus: Opisthokonta
Regnum: Animalia
Subregnum: Eumetazoa
Cladus: Bilateria
Cladus: Nephrozoa
Cladus: Protostomia
Cladus: Ecdysozoa
Phylum: Arthropoda
Subphylum: Hexapoda
Classis: Insecta
Cladus: Dicondylia
Cladus: Pterygota
Cladus: Metapterygota
Cladus: Neoptera
Cladus: Eumetabola
Cladus: Endopterygota
Superordo: Panorpida
Cladus: Antliophora
Ordo: Diptera
Subordo: Brachycera
Infraordo: Muscomorpha
Sectio: Schizophora
Subsectio: Acalyptrata
Superfamilia: Sciomyzoidea
Familia: Coelopidae
Genera: Amma - Gluma -
Lopa - Rhis - This
Coelopidae
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For more multimedia, look at Category:Coelopidae on Wikimedia Commons. |
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