Archilestris excellens
Taxonomy
This page represents the following TreeOfLife-200M taxonomic path.[1]
- Kingdom: Animalia
- Phylum: Arthropoda
- Class: Insecta
- Order: Diptera
- Family: Asilidae
- Genus: Archilestris
- Species: Archilestris excellens
Visual Description
Archilestris excellens is a robust robber fly, typically ranging from 19 to 26 mm in length [2]. Observations from the TreeOfLife-200M dataset reveal a distinct, slender body form characteristic of the genus [1]. The head is black with a dark chocolate-brown pollinose face and frons, marked by a triangular, silvery-grey pollinose spot situated above the oral margin [2]. The thorax is black with black bristles and exhibits patches of silvery pollinosity on the anterior humeri, lateral margins of the mesonotum, and the postscutellum [2]. The abdomen displays significant color variation; while typically black, it can be largely red, particularly on the posterior segments [2]. The wings are uniformly dark brown [2].
Distribution and Ecology
Archilestris excellens is a South American species, with records from Ecuador and Bolivia [2]. It belongs to a group of closely related species within the subfamily Stenopogoninae that retain primitive morphological traits, such as a narrow face and slender hind femora [2]. While specific ecological requirements are not fully documented, the species may inhabit both forest environments and open formations [2].
Gallery
References
- 1 2 Dataset view for Animalia / Arthropoda / Insecta / Diptera / Asilidae / Archilestris / excellens 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 6 7 8 Nelson Papavero; Nelson Bernardi. Archilestris Loew in the Americas, with the description of two new neotropical species (Diptera, Asilidae, Stenopogoninae). Papéis Avulsos de Zoologia. 1974. https://doi.org/10.11606/0031-1049.1974.27.p263-278.