Muscoidea | |
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Anthomyia pluvialis | |
Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Arthropoda |
Class: | Insecta |
Order: | Diptera |
(unranked): | Eremoneura |
(unranked): | Cyclorrhapha |
Section: | Schizophora |
Subsection: | Calyptratae |
Superfamily: | Muscoidea |
Families | |
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Muscoidea is a superfamily of flies in the subsection Calyptratae. Muscoidea, with approximately 7000 described species, is nearly 5% of the known species level diversity of the Diptera, the true flies. Most muscoid flies are saprophagous, coprophagous or necrophagous as larvae, but some species are parasitic, predatory, or phytophagous.[1] In September 2008, a study was done on the superfamily using both nucleic and mitochondrial DNA and the conclusion suggested that Muscoidea may actually be paraphyletic.[2]