Eristalini

Eristalini is a tribe of hoverflies. Several species are well-known honeybee mimics, such as the drone fly Eristalis tenax, while other genera such as Helophilus and Parhelophilus exhibit wasp-like patterns of yellow and black stripes, both strategies to avoid predation by visual predators such as birds.

Eristalini
Eristalis tenax
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Diptera
Family:	Syrphidae
Subfamily:	Eristalinae
Tribe:	Eristalini
Subtribes
Eristalina Helophilina

They breed in decaying organic materials such as run-offs from dung heaps (Eristalis) or in ponds and ditches (e.g. Anasimyia). Some others, such as Myathropa and Mallota, breed in wet rotting tree stumps and rot holes.

A characteristic feature of this tribe is the "rat-tailed maggot" with a rear positioned telescopic breathing tube, allowing the larvae to breathe while living submerged in water or mud. This feature is also shared with another hoverfly tribe the Sericomyiini though those flies do not share the characteristic eristaline dip in wing vein R4+5.^[1]

List of genera

Thompson^[2] considers the tribe Sericomyiini a subtribe of the Eristalini while others separate it.

Subtribe: Eristalina[2] Austalis Thompson & Vockeroth, 2003 Axona Walker, 1864 Digulia Meijere, 1913 Dissoptera Edwards, 1915 Eristalinus Rondani, 1845 Eristalis Latreille, 1804 Keda Curran, 1931 Kertesziomyia Shiraki, 1930 Lycastrirhyncha Bigot, 1859 Meromacroides Curran, 1927 Meromacrus Rondani, 1849 Palpada Macquart, 1834 Phytomia Guerin-Meneville, 1833 Senaspis Macquart, 1850 Simoides Loew, 1858 Solenaspis Osten Sacken, 1881

Subtribe: Helophilina[3] Anasimyia Schiner, 1864 Austrophilus Thompson, 2000 Chasmomma Bezzi, 1915 Dolichogyna Macquart, 1842 Habromyia Williston, 1888[4] Helophilus Meigen, 1822[5] Lejops Rondani, 1857 Mallota Meigen, 1822 [5] Mesembrius Rondani, 1857 Myathropa Rondani, 1845 Ohmyia Thompson, 1999 Parhelophilus Girschner, 1897 Quichuana Knab, 1913