Overview

This group includes the genera Mallochianamyia Santos-Neto (synonym: Gayomyia Malloch, preoccupied) and Schizostomyia Malloch, both from South America, and a few undescribed Australian species placed in Gayomyia by Hennig (1971) and Colless and McAlpine (1991), but excluded therefrom by Wheeler (2000). There are now only two undescribed Australian species in the group. The Schizostomyia group were formerly associated with the rare South American family Eurychoromyiidae. Wheeler (1994; 2000), included the Nearctic genus Paraleucopis Malloch in this alliance, but this point needs further checking.  

Description

In Australia flies of the Schizostomyia group live from south-east Queensland to Victoria and can be numerous in shady forest habitats, near streams. They are small, rotund and shiny or metallic black flies. The wings are elongate, almost unmarked and carried overlapping and sloping upwards to apices.