| Abstrakt: |
The Empidoidea (exclusive of Dolichopodidae sensu stricto), or "dance flies", are a diverse group of Diptera that include six families and 72 genera in the Nearctic Region. An illustrated key to the dance fly genera is presented, updating the 1981 key from the "Empididae" chapter of the Manual of Nearctic Diptera, utilizing over 600 colour photographs displaying many unique characters as well as some rarely seen or photographed genera. Since publication of the Manual chapter, 14 generic names have been added (or updated), five generic names have been removed and two undescribed genera are now recognized. Currently, 953 Nearctic species of Empidoidea (exclusive of Dolichopodidae sensu stricto) have been described. A brief synopsis of each genus is included providing information on number of species, taxonomic literature, biology, defining morphological characters and Nearctic distribution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] |
