Minettia is a genus of small flies

Fly

True flies are insects of the order Diptera . They possess a pair of wings on the mesothorax and a pair of halteres, derived from the hind wings, on the metathorax...

 of the family Lauxaniidae

Lauxaniidae

Lauxaniidae is a family of acalyptrate flies. It contains around 1800 described species in 126 genera distributed worldwide. These are generally small flies with large compound eyes, often brightly coloured in life. Many species have different patterned wings...

. They have almost worldwide distribution, is one of the most species rich genera

Genus

In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...

 of the family with slightly less than 100 known species. The Palaearctic is the most diverse with some 56 described species. The genus is divided into 3 subgenera.

The genus is characterized by the grey microtrichose mesonotum, a pair of black spots on the lateroventral side of the scutellum, 6 rows of acrostichal setulae, only one dorsal preapical seta on the midtibia

Tibia

The tibia , shinbone, or shankbone is the larger and stronger of the two bones in the leg below the knee in vertebrates , and connects the knee with the ankle bones....

, dark transverse stripes on the abdominal tergites and distinctive genitalia.

Species

• M. longipennis (Fabricius
  Johan Christian Fabricius
  Johan Christian Fabricius was a Danish zoologist, specialising in "Insecta", which at that time included all arthropods: insects, arachnids, crustaceans and others...
  
  , 1794)
• M. desmometopa (de Meijere, 1907)
• M. fasciata (Fallén
  Carl Fredrik Fallén
  Carl Fredrik Fallén was a Swedish botanist and entomologist.Fallén taught at the Lund University. He wrote Diptera Sueciae .In 1817, Fallen discovered the Muscina stabulans species of flies....
  
  , 1826)
• M. flaviventris (Costa, 1844)
• M. inusta (Meigen
  Johann Wilhelm Meigen
  Johann Wilhelm Meigen was a German entomologist famous for his pioneering work on Diptera.-Early years:Meigen was born in Solingen, the fifth of eight children of Johann Clemens Meigen and Sibylla Margaretha Bick. His parents, though not poor, were not wealthy either. The ran a small shop in...
  
  , 1826)
• M. longiseta (Loew
  Hermann Loew
  Friedrich Hermann Loew was a German entomologist who specialised in the study of Diptera, an order of insects including flies, mosquitoes, gnats and midges...
  
  , 1847)
• M. lupulina (Fabricius
  Johan Christian Fabricius
  Johan Christian Fabricius was a Danish zoologist, specialising in "Insecta", which at that time included all arthropods: insects, arachnids, crustaceans and others...
  
  , 1787)
• M. plumicornis (Fallén
  Carl Fredrik Fallén
  Carl Fredrik Fallén was a Swedish botanist and entomologist.Fallén taught at the Lund University. He wrote Diptera Sueciae .In 1817, Fallen discovered the Muscina stabulans species of flies....
  
  , 1820)
• M. rivosa (Meigen
  Johann Wilhelm Meigen
  Johann Wilhelm Meigen was a German entomologist famous for his pioneering work on Diptera.-Early years:Meigen was born in Solingen, the fifth of eight children of Johann Clemens Meigen and Sibylla Margaretha Bick. His parents, though not poor, were not wealthy either. The ran a small shop in...
  
  , 1826)
• M. tubifer (Meigen
  Johann Wilhelm Meigen
  Johann Wilhelm Meigen was a German entomologist famous for his pioneering work on Diptera.-Early years:Meigen was born in Solingen, the fifth of eight children of Johann Clemens Meigen and Sibylla Margaretha Bick. His parents, though not poor, were not wealthy either. The ran a small shop in...
  
  , 1826)
• M. filia (Becker
  Theodor Becker
  Theodor Becker was a German civil engineer and entomologist primarily known for his work with flies....
  
  , 1895)