Phylogeny and revised classification of the tribe Elachipterini (Diptera: Chloropidae).

The phylogenetic relationships of the chloropid tribe Elachipterini were analysed. Sixty-eight exemplar species and seven outgroup species were included in a cladistic analysis based on 76 morphological characters of adult specimens in order to test existing, non-phylogenetic, classifications of the tribe. Nine genera are recognized in the Elachipterini: Allomedeia Mlynarek Wheeler, Alombus Becker, Anatrichus Loew, Ceratobarys Coquillett, Disciphus Becker, Elachiptera Macquart, Goniaspis Duda, Melanochaeta Bezzi and Sepsidoscinis Hendel. Myrmecosepsis Kertesz is synonymised with Anatrichus, and Togeciphus Nishijima and Cyrtomomyia Becker are synonymised with Elachiptera. Ceratobarys is removed from synonymy with Elachiptera and all Neotropical species and two Nearctic species previously assigned to Elachiptera are transferred to Ceratobarys. Melanochaeta is a valid genus; the type species Melanochaeta capreolus clusters with other species of Melanochaeta and not Oscinella. New combinations include Anatrichus hystrix (Kertesz, 1914) (Myrmecosepsis); Anatrichus taprobane (Andersson, 1977) (Myrmecosepsis), Ceratobarys attenuata (Adams, 1908) (Elachiptera); Ceratobarys cultrata (Wheeler Forrest, 2002) (Elachiptera); Ceratobarys flavida (Williston, 1896) (Elachiptera); Ceratobarys melinifrons (Mlynarek Wheeler, 2008) (Elachiptera); Ceratobarys fucosa (Mlynarek Wheeler, 2008) (Elachiptera); Ceratobarys queposana (Mlynarek Wheeler, 2008) (Elachiptera); Ceratobarys rubida (Becker, 1912) (Elachiptera); Ceratobarys sacculicornis (Enderlein, 1911) (Elachiptera); Ceratobarys willistoni (Sabrosky, 1948)  (Elachiptera), Elachiptera ensifer (Sabrosky, 1951) (Cyrtomomyia); Elachiptera ericius (Kanmiya, 1983) (Togeciphus); Elachiptera katoi (Nishijima, 1955) (Togeciphus); Elachiptera maculinervis (Becker, 1910) (Cyrtomomyia); Elachiptera punctulata (Becker, 1912) (Cyrtomomyia); Elachiptera subelongata (Kanmiya, 1983) (Disciphus); Elachiptera truncatus (Liu Yang, 2012) (Togeciphus); Elachiptera tuberculata (Adams, 1905) (Cyrtomomyia) and all the species that were placed in Lasiochaeta are returned to Melanochaeta. A key to genera of the tribe Elachipterini is provided and diagnoses are provided for all genera. The tribe is divided into two geographically distinct clades: the Anatrichus clade includes the Old World tropical genera Allomedeia, Alombus, Anatrichus, Disciphus and Sepsidoscinis; the Elachiptera clade includes the primarily Neotropical genera Goniaspis and Ceratobarys and the widespread, but primarily Holarctic, genera Elachiptera and Melanochaeta.