Axysta clausseni
Taxonomy
This page represents the following TreeOfLife-200M taxonomic path.[1]
- Kingdom: Animalia
- Phylum: Arthropoda
- Class: Insecta
- Order: Diptera
- Family: Ephydridae
- Genus: Axysta
- Species: Axysta clausseni
Visual Description
Axysta clausseni is a small shore-fly. Based on photographic records, the species exhibits a generally dark body coloration, consistent with its classification within the Ephydridae family. The wings are brown-infuscated with dark brown to black costal veins.[1][2]
Morphology and Identification
Axysta clausseni is one of two Axysta species known to occur in Europe, the other being A. cesta . It can be distinguished from A. cesta by several morphological traits:
- Anepimeron: The anteroventral two-thirds of the anepimeron are typically covered with scattered microtrichia, with only the dorsal portion being shining.
- Legs: The hind metatarsus is usually brown to black and does not contrast strongly with the hind tibia; the knees are dark brown to black.
- Male Terminalia: The male cercus is small, only slightly longer than the depth of the epandrium anterior to it. The phallus is U-shaped at the base, and the phallus apodeme exhibits a distinct angle in lateral view.
- Abdomen: The female abdomen is typically metallic green to brown.
Ecology and Distribution
Axysta clausseni inhabits various wetland environments, including artificial ponds, lakesides, and both temporary and permanent wet areas within forests or fens. Adults are typically collected from dense vegetation rather than bare wetland banks. The species is known from northwest Germany and Finland.[3]
Gallery
References
- 1 2 Dataset view for Animalia / Arthropoda / Insecta / Diptera / Ephydridae / Axysta / clausseni constructed from imageomics/TreeOfLife-200M records under this taxonomic path. Hugging Face Datasets. https://huggingface.co/datasets/imageomics/TreeOfLife-200M.
- ↑ Jens‐Hermann Stuke. A second European Axysta species (Diptera: Ephydridae). Acta Zoologica Academiae Scientiarum Hungaricae. 2022. https://doi.org/10.17109/azh.68.2.159.2022.
- ↑ Axysta clausseni Stuke, 2022. GBIF. https://www.gbif.org/species/11910519. Accessed 2026-07-15.