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Family MYTHICOMYIIDAE
Mythicomyiids are tiny brachycerous flies (normally
1–3 mm in length) that frequent arid-region flowers chiefly in the spring and
fall months. Recently, certain genera of this family have been discovered to be
associated with the primitive gymnosperm Welwitschia in Namibia
(Evenhuis, unpubl.), which supports the hypothesis that primitive members of this
family could be candidates for potential pollinators of primitive angiosperms
in the Cretaceous. Genera of mythicomyiids had for many years been treated within
the Bombyliidae, in one or more subfamilies. Rohdendorf (1961b) proposed
raising the Cyrtosiinae (= Mythicomyiinae) to familial status, but stated that
corroborative work had to be done to verify his proposal. Zaitzev (1992) proposed
that the Mythicomyiidae are a monophyletic group basal to the remainder of the
Bombyliidae and gave characters to separate them from Bombyliidae s. str.
Yeates (1994) corroborated the monophyly and sister-group relationship of the
group to the Bombyliidae, but preferred to retain it as a subfamily within the
Bombyliidae. However, recent molecular analyses by Trautwein (2009) and
Trautwein et al. (2011) support the
treatment of this group of flies as a separate family by placing it in a clade with
Hilarimorphidae and separate from Bombyliidae sensu stricto.
Greathead & Evenhuis (2001) gave a subfamilial
classification of the family, which is followed here.
Kovalev
in Kalugina & Kovalev (1985) described Palaeoplatypygus from the Jurassic of Siberia, which has a similar
wing venation to members of the extant Psiloderoides group of genera,
adults of which lack mouthparts and the immatures of which are parasitic on
grasshopper egg pods in southern Africa and Australia. The genus Mesomyites
Cockerell was originally placed by Cockerell (1917b) in Empididae as closely
related to Mythicomyia Coquillett. It has since been relegated to
synonymy under Styringomyia Loew in the Limoniidae.
An undescribed
genus of Cyrtosiinae has been seen by me from the Oligocene Florissant shales
of Colorado marking the first fossil representation of the family from the
North American continent. The undetermined specimen illustrated by Kovalev
(1986: 150) as a possible Glabellula or other mythicomyiid from the
Cretaceous strata of western Mongolia has been examined by me and is in too
poor a condition to make any conclusions as to its systematic position among
the Diptera. Some of the venational and antennal characters illustrated by
Kovalev are not evident in the type specimen and it may not be a mythicomyiid.
Grimaldi & Cumming (2011) described the genus Microburmyia from the Upper Cretaceous ambers of Burma, but it is treated
here as questionably placed in Mythicomyiidae. The illustration of one species
shows a complete arculus (vein MA), which is characteristically lacking in
Mythicomyiidae.
Ref.: Zaitzev (1986, review of amber taxa); Evenhuis (2002b, world catalog; 2002c, review of Tertiary amber taxa).
Subfamily
Glabellulinae
Genus Eurodoliopteryx Nel
EURODOLIOPTERYX Nel, 2006: 111. Type species Eurodoliopteryx inexpectatus Nel, 2006,
by original designation.
inexpectatus
Nel, 2006: 111. PA: France (Eocene) [A].
Genus GLABELLULA
Bezzi
*PLATYGASTER
Zetterstedt, 1838: 574. Type species: Platygaster arcticus Zetterstedt,
1838, by monotypy. [Preoccupied by Latreille, 1809.]
*SPHAEROGASTER
Zetterstedt, 1842: 232 (new replacement name for Platygaster
Zetterstedt). Type species: Platygaster arcticus Zetterstedt, 1838,
automatic. [Preoccupied by Sturm, 1826.]
*GLABELLA
Loew, 1873a: 210. Type species: Glabella femorata Loew, 1873, by
monotypy. [Preoccupied by Swainson, 1840.]
*GLABELLULA
Bezzi, 1902: 191 (new replacement name for "Platygaster . . . und Sphaerogaster
. . . und Glabella"). Type species: Platygaster arcticus
Zetterstedt, 1838, by subsequent designation of I.C.Z.N. (1989: 148 [Opinion 1545]).
PROGLABELLULA
Hennig, 1966e: 15. Type species: Proglabellula electrica Hennig,
1966 [= Platygaster arcticus Zetterstedt, 1838], by monotypy.
aggregata Evenhuis, 2013: 371.
PA: Ukraine (Eocene) [A].
brunnifrons Evenhuis, 2002c: 3.
NT: Dominican Republic (Miocene) [A].
electrica
Hennig, 1966e: 15 (Proglabellula). PA: Baltic Region (Eocene/ Oligocene)
[A].
grimaldii
Evenhuis, 2002: 5. NT: Dominican Republic (Miocene) [A].
hannemanni Schumann, 1991: 79. PA: Germany
(Miocene) [A].
kuehnei Schlüter, 1976: 358. NT:
Dominican Republic (Oligocene/Miocene) [A].
perkovskyi
Evenhuis, 2013: 374. PA: Ukraine (Eocene) [A].
Subfamily
Mythicomyiinae
Genus MYTHENTELES Hall & Evenhuis
*MYTHENTELES Hall & Evenhuis, 1987: 332 (as subgenus of Mythicomyia Coquillett). Type species: Mythicomyia angusta Melander, 1961, by
original designation.
baltica
Evenhuis, 2002c: 9. PA: Baltic Region (Eocene) [A].
Genus MYTHICOMYIA
Coquillett
*MYTHICOMYIA
Coquillett, 1893: 208. Type species: Mythicomyia rileyi
Coquillett, 1893, by monotypy.
dominicana Evenhuis, 2002c: 8.
NT: Dominican Republic (Miocene) [A].
Genus PIEZA
Evenhuis
*PIEZA Evenhuis, 2002a: 3. Type
species: Mythicomyia angusta
Melander, 1961, by original designation.
dominicana Evenhuis, 2002a: 10.
NT: Dominican Republic (Miocene) [A].
Genus RIGA
Evenhuis
RIGA Evenhuis, 2013: 378. Type
species Riga toni Evenhuis, 2013, by
original designation.
toni Evenhuis, 2013: 378. PA:
Ukraine (Eocene) [A].
Subfamily Platypyginae
Genus Borrisovia Evenhuis
Borrisovia
Evenhuis, 2002c: 13. type species: Proplatypygus
rohdendorfi Zaitzev, 1986, by original designation.
rohdendorfi
Zaitzev, 1986: 815 (1987: 150) (Proplatypygus).
PA: Russia (Siberia) (Upper Cretaceous) [A].
rohdendorfi
Zaitzev, 1982: 104 (Proplatypygus). Nomen
nudum.
Genus PROCYRTOSIA Zaitzev
PROCYRTOSIA
Zaitzev, 1982: 104. Nomen nudum.
PROCYRTOSIA
Zaitzev, 1986: 817 (1987: 152). Type species: Procyrtosia sukatshevae
Zaitzev, 1986, by original designation.
sukatshevae
Zaitzev, 1986: 817 (1987: 152). PA: Russia (Siberia) (Upper Cretaceous) [A].
Genus PROPLATYPYGUS Hennig
PROPLATYPYGUS
Hennig, 1969b: 58. Type species: Proplatypygus succineus Hennig, 1969,
by monotypy.
matilei Nel & De Ploëg, 2004:
61. PA: France (Eocene) [A].
succineus
Hennig, 1969b: 58. PA: Baltic Region (Eocene) [A].
Subfamily
Psiloderoidinae
Genus CARMENELECTRA Evenhuis
CARMENELECTRA Evenhuis, 2002x: 11. Type species: Carmenelectra shechisme Evenhuis, 2002,
by original designation.
pernigra
Evenhuis, 2013: 376. PA: Baltic region (Eocene) [A].
shechisme
Evenhuis, 2002c: 11. PA: Baltic Region (Eocene) [A].
shehuggme
Evenhuis, 2013: 377. PA: Ukraine (Eocene) [A].
Genus PALAEOPLATYPYGUS
Kovalev
PALAEOPLATYPYGUS
Kovalev, 1985: 186. Type species: Palaeoplatypygus zaitzevi Kovalev,
1985, by original designation.
PALEOPLATYPYGUS.
Incorrect original spelling of Palaeoplatypygus (Kovalev, 1985: 185).
zaitzevi
Kovalev in Kalugina & Kovalev, 1985: 186. PA: Russia (Siberia)
(Middle Jurassic) [C].
Questionably Included Genera in Mythicomyiidae
Genus MICROBURMYIA
Grimaldi & Cumming
MICROBURMYIA Grimaldi &
Cumming, 2011: 312. Type species: Microburmyia
analvena Grimaldi & Cumming, 2011, by original designation.
analvena Grimaldi &
Cumming, 2011: 313. OR: Burma (Upper Cretaceous) [A].
veanalvena Grimaldi &
Cumming, 2011: 315. OR: Burma (Upper Cretaceous) [A].
venanalvena.
Incorrect original spelling of veanalvena
(Grimaldi & Cumming, 2011: 315).
Questionably Included Species
hirsuta
Scudder, 1890: 563 (Acrocera). NE: USA (Eocene) [C].