Polietes Rondani, 1866

Nihei, Silvio Shigueo & Carvalho, Claudio José Barros De, 2009, The Muscini flies of the world (Diptera, Muscidae): identification key and generic diagnoses, Zootaxa 1976, pp. 1-24 : 18

Polietes Rondani, 1866

Polietes Rondani, 1866: 71 . Type species: Musca lardaria Fabricius, 1781 .

Diagnosis. Colouration blackish with dense silver pruinosity; wing without maculae. Female with proclinate fronto-orbital seta; parafrons setulose along its entire length; interfrontal seta present; frontal vitta setulose on upper half. Presutural acrostichals developed; 3 postsutural pairs. Dorsocentrals 3+4. Postsutural intra-alars 2- 3; intrapostalar absent. Notopleurals 2 (there is an additional posterior seta in P. domitor (Harris) , as in some Mesembrina spp.). Prosternum setulose or bare. Katepisternals 1+1-3. Posterior spiracle usually bare on posterior margin. Vein R4+5 setulose or not dorsally and usually bare ventrally; M straight forward, subparallel to R4+5. Lower calypter glossiform. Subcostal sclerite bare. Calcar strong.

Comments. The monophyly of Polietes was not supported by Nihei and de Carvalho (2007a). Except for Mesembrina , all Muscini genera were nested within Polietes . This genus is traditionally diagnosed and recognized as the only Holarctic genus with glossiform lower calypter and vein M running straight toward the apex of wing, but these are two plesiomorphic non-grouping characters (Nihei & de Carvalho 2007a) that are present in other Muscini genera outside the Holartic Region. A revision and examination of all Polietes species is required before considering the break up of the genus into smaller monophyletic units.

Distribution (11 species). Nearctic, Oriental and Palaearctic.

References. Oriental species: Emden (1965), Xue and Chao (1998); Palaearctic: Hennig (1963a, 1963b), Peris and Llorente (1963), Xue and Chao (1998), Gregor et al. (2002), Shinonaga (2003).