Musculature of the Male Abdominal Segments and Terminalia of Helina Robineau-Desvoidy, 1830 and Phaonia Robineau-Desvoidy, 1830 (Diptera, Muscidae: Phaoniinae)

Abstract: The genital and pregenital skeleton and musculature were studied in males of the following species of the muscid subfamily Phaoniinae: Helina luteisquama (Zetterstedt, 1845), H. bohemani (Ringdahl, 1916), Phaonia meigeni Pont, 1986, Ph. hybrida (Schnabl, 1888), and Ph. lugubris (Meigen, 1826). The examined species are very similar in the structure of the sclerites and muscles of their terminal segments. The structure of pregenital muscles in Phaoniinae is similar to that in the subfamily Azeliinae, which occupies the basal position within Muscidae. The fewer muscles of the phallapodeme, surstyli, and subepandrial sclerites in Phaoniinae constitute the apomorphic character states and do not allow this subfamily to be placed at the base of the Muscidae branch. In general, the structure of the male pregenital musculature in Phaoniinae is most similar to that in Mydaeinae, and both Phaoniinae and Mydaeinae occupy an intermediate position between the basal Azeliinae and the derived Muscinae. © 2023, Pleiades Publishing, Ltd.