Belongs within: Sciomyzoidea.
The Conopidae are a group of flies that typically mimic wasps in appearance. Larvae are endoparasites of other insects. Living conopids are divided between three subfamilies, Dalmanniinae, Myopinae and Conopinae (a fourth subfamily, Stylogastrinae, is probably not monophyletic with other conopids), with a further subfamily Palaeomyopinae known from the fossil record (Skevington et al. 2010). Members of the subfamily Conopinae have an apical three-segmented stylus on the antenna and a basally constricted abdomen. The Myopinae and Dalmanniinae possess a dorsal two- or three-segmented arista on the antenna. The ovipositor is short in Myopinae but elongate in Dalmannia.
Within Conopinae, the genus Physocephala has crossvein r-m on the wing well beyond cell dm, and lacks ocelli or bristles on the proepisternum; Conopini have r-m at most a little past dm and have at least one bristle on the proepisternum (Smith & Peterson 1987). Members of the genus Physoconops have a distinct ocellar tubercle on the vertex and usually have only one bristle on the proepisternum whereas Conops lack an ocellar tubercle and usually have more proepisternal bristles (Skevington et al. 2010).
Within Myopinae, the proboscis is doubly bent, both near the base and near the middle, in the genera Thecophora and Myopa, but is only bent near the base in Robertsonomyia and Zodion (Smith & Peterson 1987).
Characters (from Smith & Peterson 1987): Rather bare and elongate flies, 3.0-20.0 mm long, usually pruinose, and colored black and yellow, reddish brown, or blackish, often with striking resemblance to solitary wasps and other Hymenoptera. Head broad; proboscis usually long, singly or doubly geniculate. Wing spotted or unmarked, or with a band along costal margin; cell r4+5 closed or nearly so.
<==Conopidae [Archischiza, Conopoidea]
|--PalaeomyopaSP87 [PalaeomyopinaeSTC10]
| `--P. tertiariaSP87
|--DalmanniaSP87 [DalmanniinaeSTC10]
| |--D. nigricepsSP87
| `--D. punctataSP87
|--MyopinaeSTC10
| |--Robertsonomyia palpalisSP87
| |--ThecophoraSP87
| | |--T. nigripesSTC10
| | `--T. occidensisSTC10
| |--Zodion Latreille 1802SP87, L02
| | |--*Z. cinereumL02 [=Conops (Zodion) cinereusG20, Myopa cinereaL02]
| | |--Z. abitusSP87
| | |--Z. americanumSTC10
| | |--Z. fulvifronsSP87
| | |--Z. intermediumSP87
| | |--Z. obliquefasciatumSTC10
| | `--Z. perlongumSTC10
| `--MyopaSTC10
| |--M. buccataSP87
| |--M. clausaB89
| |--M. dorsalisR26
| |--M. fasciataSTC10
| |--M. ferruginea [=Conops (Myopa) ferrugineus]G20
| |--M. pictaA71
| |--M. rubidaSP87
| `--M. variegataK01
`--ConopinaeSTC10
| i. s.: PleurocerinellaO98
|--PhysocephalaSTC10 [PhysocephaliniSP87]
| |--P. bimarginipennisSP87
| |--P. chrysorrhoeaBM76
| |--P. flavipesSP87
| |--P. furcillataSTC10
| |--P. gigasO98
| |--P. inhabilisSTC10
| |--P. marginataSP87
| |--P. rufipesK01
| |--P. sagittariaSP87
| |--P. texana [incl. P. affinis]E66
| `--P. vittataBM76
`--ConopiniSP87
|--PhysoconopsSP87
| |--P. brachyrhynchusSTC10
| |--P. bulbirostrisSTC10
| |--P. frontoSTC10
| |--P. ornatifronsSTC10
| `--P. (Gyroconops) sylvosusSTC10
`--Conops Linnaeus 1758L58
|--C. aculeataR26
|--C. algira Macquart 1847E12
|--C. (Asiconops) bermudensisSP87
|--C. buccata Linnaeus 1758L58
|--C. flavipes Linnaeus 1758L58
|--C. fuscipennis Macquart 1847E12
|--C. geminatusSTC10
|--C. macrocephala Linnaeus 1758L58
|--C. nigraR26
|--C. nobilisSTC10
|--C. rostrata Linnaeus 1758L58
|--C. rufipesR26
|--C. rufiventris Macquart 1847E12
|--C. splendidusCM91
`--C. vesiculariaR26
Conopidae incertae sedis:
Leopoldius coronatusA71
OncomyiaK01
|--O. distinctaK01
`--O. sundevalliK01
*Parazodion schmidtiSTC10
Tropidomyia bimaculataSTC10
Myopella Robineau-Desvoidy 1853M10
MicroconopsCM91
Palaeosicus loewiSP87
ZodiomyiaO98
Australoconops splendidusO98
Poliomyia rectaRJ93
Sicus lineatusSP87, G20
*Type species of generic name indicated
References
[A71] Askew, R. R. 1971. Parasitic Insects. Heinemann Educational Books: London.
[B89] Bigot, J.-M.-F. 1889. Goniorhynchus castaneus. Annales de la Société Entomologique de France, 6e série 9: xlviii.
[BM76] Bohart, R. M., & A. S. Menke. 1976. Sphecid Wasps of the World. University of California Press: Berkeley.
[CM91] Colless, D. H., & D. K. McAlpine. 1991. Diptera (flies). In: CSIRO. The Insects of Australia: A textbook for students and research workers 2nd ed. vol. 2 pp. 717–786. Melbourne University Press: Carlton (Victoria).
[E66] Evans, H. E. 1966. The Comparative Ethology and Evolution of the Sand Wasps. Harvard University Press: Cambridge (Massachusetts).
[E12] Evenhuis, N. L. 2012. Publication and dating of the Exploration Scientifique de l’Algérie: Histoire Naturelle des Animaux Articulés (1846–1849) by Pierre Hippolyte Lucas. Zootaxa 3448: 1–61.
[G20] Goldfuss, G. A. 1820. Handbuch der Naturgeschichte vol. 3. Handbuch der Zoologie pt 1. Johann Leonhard Schrag: Nürnberg.
[K01] Kertész, K. 1901. Legyek [Dipteren]. In: Horváth, G. (ed.) Zichy Jenő Gróf Harmadik Ázsiai Utazása [Dritte Asiatische Forschungsreise des Grafen Eugen Zichy] vol. 2. Zichy Jenő Gróf Harmadik Ázsiai Utazásának Állattani Eredményei [Zoologische Ergebnisse der Dritten Asiatischen Forschungsreise des Grafen Eugen Zichy] pp. 179–201. Victor Hornyánszky: Budapest, and Karl W. Hierseman: Leipzig.
[L02] Latreille, P. A. 1802. Histoire Naturelle, générale et particulière des crustacés et des insectes vol. 3. Familles naturelles des genres. F. Dufart: Paris.
[L58] Linnaeus, C. 1758. Systema Naturae per Regna Tria Naturae, secundum classes, ordines, genera, species, cum characteribus, differentiis, synonymis, locis. Tomus I. Editio decima, reformata. Laurentii Salvii: Holmiae.
[M10] Michelsen, V. 2010. Anthomyiidae (anthomyiid flies). In: Brown, B. V., A. Borkent, J. M. Cumming, D. M. Wood, N. E. Woodley & M. A. Zumbado (eds) Manual of Central American Diptera vol. 2 pp. 1271–1276. NRC Research Press: Ottawa.
[O98] Oosterbroek, P. 1998. The Families of Diptera of the Malay Archipelago. Brill: Leiden.
[R26] Risso, A. 1826. Histoire naturelle des principales productions de l’Europe méridionale et particulièrement de celles des environs de Nice et des Alpes maritimes vol. 5. F.-G. Levrault: Paris.
[RJ93] Ross, A. J., & E. A. Jarzembowski. 1993. Arthropoda (Hexapoda; Insecta). In: Benton, M. J. (ed.) The Fossil Record 2 pp. 363–426. Chapman & Hall: London.
[STC10] Skevington, J. H., F. C. Thompson & S. Camras. 2010. Conopidae (thick-headed flies). In: Brown, B. V., A. Borkent, J. M. Cumming, D. M. Wood, N. E. Woodley & M. A. Zumbado (eds) Manual of Central American Diptera vol. 2 pp. 847–855. NRC Research Press: Ottawa.
[SP87] Smith, K. G. V., & B. V. Peterson. 1987. Conopidae. In: McAlpine, J. F. (ed.) Manual of Nearctic Diptera vol. 2 pp. 749–756. Research Branch, Agriculture Canada.