Actilasioptera
Taxonomy
This page represents the following TreeOfLife-200M taxonomic path.[1]
- Kingdom: Animalia
- Phylum: Arthropoda
- Class: Insecta
- Order: Diptera
- Family: Cecidomyiidae
- Genus: Actilasioptera
Visual Description
Based on observations from the TreeOfLife-200M dataset, species within the genus Actilasioptera are small, delicate flies characteristic of the family Cecidomyiidae.[1] They typically exhibit a slender body form with long, fragile-looking legs and antennae.[1] The wings are often clear or lightly patterned, and the overall coloration is generally muted, blending with their host plant environment.[1]
Biology and Ecology
The genus Actilasioptera consists of gall-inducing midge species that are specialized associates of mangrove plants in the genus Avicennia (Acanthaceae).[2] Avicennia is recognized as a "superhost" for various gall-inducing arthropods in tropical mangrove forests globally, with Actilasioptera species serving as primary agents of gall formation on these plants.[2]
Taxonomic History
The genus Actilasioptera was established by Gagné and Law (1998) to accommodate species previously classified within the genus Stefaniella, such as Actilasioptera falcaria (formerly Stefaniella falcaria).[2] A type species designation for the genus was later published by Gagné in 1999.[3]
Distribution and Host Associations
Actilasioptera species have been documented across various regions:
Gallery
References
- 1 2 3 4 Dataset view for Animalia / Arthropoda / Insecta / Diptera / Cecidomyiidae / Actilasioptera constructed from imageomics/TreeOfLife-200M records under this taxonomic path. Hugging Face Datasets. https://huggingface.co/datasets/imageomics/TreeOfLife-200M.
- 1 2 3 4 5 Rita de Cássia Oliveira dos Santos; Marcus Emanuel Barroncas Fernandes; Marlucia Bonifacio. Are the Species of the Genus Avicennia L. (Acanthaceae) a “Superhost” Plants of Gall-Inducing Arthropods in Mangrove Forests?. InTech eBooks. 2013. https://doi.org/10.5772/55454.
- ↑ Actilasioptera Gagné, 1999. GBIF. https://www.gbif.org/species/1591802. Accessed 2026-07-14.