
Ranking Soldier FliesBy Hank Becker May 16, 1997Telling the good soldier flies from the
bad ones just got easier. Many species of soldier flies are beneficial to agriculture because they
help decompose plant material. But other species are pests of sod and wheat.
For the first time, scientists with USDAs Agricultural Research Service have
compiled detailed descriptions of 33 genera of the subfamily Beridinaeof the soldier fly family Stratiomyidae. The
ARS monograph also proposes nine new
genera, describes two new species and properly classifies many misplaced
species for the first time. Each of the 33 genera is described in detail and a catalogue of world
species and their geographic distributions is presented. The scientists present
a hypothesis on the evolutionary relationships between genera and the placement
of the subfamily with respect to other groups of flies. The monograph contains a comprehensive key to the genera as well as several
regional keys to facilitate soldier fly identification. The publication
includes illustrations of the head and genitalia of species of each genus for
ease of identification. The monograph will be useful to scientists studying these flies and also
will aid agents at U.S. ports of entry who monitor immigrant species that may
be potential pests. Scientific contact: Norman E. Woodley, ARS
Systematic Entomology Laboratory,
Museum of Natural History, Washington,
D.C., phone (202) 382-1802, [email protected]. U.S. Department of Agriculture | |