Family Nycteribidae (Insecta: Diptera)

Abstract

Family Nycteribidae bat flies have an interesting reproductive method known as viviparous puparity, in which eggs are fertilized internally and all three larval stages develop within the female. Larvae are nourished by intrauterine glands. Gravid female flies deposit a single, 3rd instar larva on the roosting substrate. The larva then immediately forms a puparium, and following approx. After 3–4 weeks of development, the adult fly emerges to locate and colonize a host. The aim of this article was to investigate the morphological, bioecological, and systematic characteristics of the family Nycteribidae (Insecta: Diptera). For the review, we used indexed articles, scientific book chapters, theses databases, university dissertations, national and international scientific articles, scientific journals, documents, and academic and scientific journals available online ResearchGate, HAL SSRN, Scielo, and Qeios. The present work uses the reference of bibliographical research, understood as the act of inquiring and seeking information on a certain subject, through a survey carried out in national and foreign databases, with the objective of detecting what exists of consensus or controversy.