Belongs within: Oestroidea.
Contains: Metopiini, Miltogrammatini.
The Miltogramminae are a group of flies whose larvae mostly develop in the brood cells of burrowing Hymenoptera, feeding on the host’s stored food reserves and/or the host larva itself. Females may trail wasps carrying prey to the nest (if large enough, the female miltogrammine may ride on the prey insect itself) or they may deposit larvae directly into the nest entrance. Species in the genus Eumacronychia are exceptional in developing as scavengers or predators of reptile eggs. The distinctive genus Macronychia is characterised by short antennae with stout setae on the pedicel, and swelling of the upper part of the proepisternum (Pape & Dahlem 2010).
Characters (from Pape & Dahlem 2010): Head profile with flat or slightly concave occipital region; antennal arista not plumose; eyes distinctly or moderately enlarged; postocular setae not alternating, about equal in size; notopleuron without subprimary brisltes; metasternal area bare; hind coxa bare posteriorly; coxopleural streak present; male midfemur without apical posteroventral ctenidium; male abdominal sternites 2–4 partly hidden by overlapping margins of corresponding tergites, terminalia not or only slightly protruding.
<==Miltogramminae |--+--ChorezmomyiiniF92 | `--MetopiiniF92 `--+--MiltogrammatiniF92 `--+--Amobia Robineau-Desvoidy 1830 [incl. Pachyphthalmus Brauer & Bergenstamm 1889; Amobiini]F92 | |--*A. signata (Meigen 1824) [=Tachina signata]F92 | |--A. aurifrons [incl. Pachyophthalmus signatus]E66 | |--A. distorta (Allén 1926) [=Pachyophthalmus distortus]F92 | |--A. erythruraE66 | `--A. floridensisPD10 `--Phyllotelini [Phyllotelina]F92 |--Synorbitomyia Townsend 1932F92 | `--*S. linearis (Villeneuve 1929) [=Hoplocephala linearis]F92 `--Phylloteles Loew 1844F92 |--*P. pictipennis Loew 1844F92 `--P. stackelbergi Rohdendorf 1975F92 Miltogramminae incertae sedis: Pachygraphomyia spinosaBM76 Eumacronychia [Eumacronychiini]PD10 |--E. polita [=Gymnoprosopa polita]PD10 `--E. sternalisPD10 Macronychia Rondani 1859PD10, F92 [Macronychiinae, Macronychiini] |--M. striginervis (Zetterstedt 1844) (see below for synonymy)F92 |--M. aurataPD10 |--M. griseola (Rondani 1859) [=Tachina griseola]F92 `--M. polyodon (Meigen 1824)F92 OpsidiaPD10 |--O. diademataPD10 |--O. gonioidesPD10 `--O. metopioidesPD10 Euphytomima nomiivoraS87 EuphytoS87 Eusenotainia rufiventrisS87 Gymnopsidia inflaticornisS87 Opsidiotrophus micidusS87 Opsidiopsis oblataS87 Anicia campestrisS87 AenigmetopiaMD13 CraticulinaO98 HoplacephalaO98
Macronychia striginervis (Zetterstedt 1844) [=Xysta striginervis; incl. *Macronychia agrestis Rondani 1859, Miltogramma ungulans Pandelle 1895, Ma. ungulans]F92
*Type species of generic name indicated
References
[BM76] Bohart, R. M., & A. S. Menke. 1976. Sphecid Wasps of the World. University of California Press: Berkeley.
[E66] Evans, H. E. 1966. The Comparative Ethology and Evolution of the Sand Wasps. Harvard University Press: Cambridge (Massachusetts).
[F92] Fan Z. 1992. Key to the Common Flies of China 2nd ed. Science Press: Beijing.
[MD13] Meiklejohn, K. A., M. Dowton, T. Pape & J. F. Wallman. 2013. A key to the Australian Sarcophagidae (Diptera) with special emphasis on Sarcophaga (sensu lato). Zootaxa 3680 (1): 148–189.
[O98] Oosterbroek, P. 1998. The Families of Diptera of the Malay Archipelago. Brill: Leiden.
[PD10] Pape, T., & G. A. Dahlem. 2010. Sarcophagidae (flesh 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. 1313–1335. NRC Research Press: Ottawa.
[S87] Shewell, G. E. 1987. Sarcophagidae. In: McAlpine, J. F. (ed.) Manual of Nearctic Diptera vol. 2 pp. 1159–1186. Research Branch, Agriculture Canada.