Members of the acalypterate family Milichiidae consist of small, blackish, usually shining, flies found worldwide except New Zealand. There are over 250 described living and fossil species in almost 20 genera. Adults of extant forms are found often at flowers. some are commensals on predatory insects. Larvae have been recorded from a variety of habitats including manure, decaying plant matter, carrion, compost, and moist leaf litter. Some larvae are commensals and breed in the detritus of the nests of leaf cutting ants.

In addition to the determined taxa listed below, Grimaldi et al. (1989) discussed and illustrated the presence of a possible emesine milichiid from the Cretaceous amber of New Jersey.

*PHYLLOMYZA Fallén, 1810: 20. Type species: Phyllomyza securicornis Fallén, 1823, by subsequent monotypy in Fallén (1823: 8).
hurdi Sabrosky, 1963: 119. PA: Mexico (Oligocene/Miocene) [A].
jaegeri Hennig, 1967a: 23. PA: Baltic Region (Eocene/Oligocene) [A].
Unidentified sp.-NT: Dominican Republic (Oligocene/Miocene) [A] (Poinar, 1992: 186).

PSEUDODESMOMETOPA Hennig, 1971c: 14. Type species: Pseudodesmometopa succineum Hennig, 1971, by monotypy.
succineum Hennig, 1971c: 14. PA: Baltic Region (Eocene/Oligocene) [A].