Various chapters I have written for the Manual of Central American Diptera (2009), the Manual of Afrotropical Diptera (2017) and The Biology of Disease Vectors (2004) give a broad overview of family.
Aside from these and other published literature, there are some excellent resources on the web.
The Ceratopogonidae Information Exchange (CIE) appears twice a year for many decades and is faithfully organized by Steve Murphree. It includes current research, requests for help, a directory to others working on biting midges and the latest publications and more.
A Chaos of Delight by Andy Murray includes a page on the remarkable diversity of Forcipomyia larvae with absolutely stunning photos of the larvae and their modifications, including the secretions they produce from strong bristles on their bodies. Amazing!
The Gnatwork is directed to those working on biting midges, blackflies and sandflies and provides information on various projects. For Ceratopogonidae, these concern themselves with Culicoides, many species of which are of medical and veterinary concern.
Of course, some websites, such as iNaturalist, have many lovely photographs of biting midges that show, at least for adults, how diverse they are.
General info and links
The Ceratopogonidae, commonly known as biting midges, no-see-ums or punkies, have a bad reputation a…
Read MoreCulicoides Diversity
Their Classification and Diversity There are now more than 1,360 species of Culicoides known worldwi…
Read MoreRecognizing a Biting Midge
There are 161 different families of true flies (of the order Diptera) in the world and these make up…
Read MoreBiting Midges as Pests
Anyone with any significant outdoor experience knows that biting midges can be terribly annoying. Th…
Read MoreProtecting Oneself from Biting Midges
There are a number of strategies which can be used to fend off the effects of biting midges. When ou…
Read MoreBiting Midges as Beneficial
There are several important roles which biting midges play in ecosystems. As larvae, many are predat…
Read MoreHow and Where do Biting Midges Live?
Like other holometabolous insects, Ceratopogonidae have four distinct life stages: egg, larva, pupa …
Read MoreHow to Capture and Study Biting Midges
Adult biting midges may collected by any of the following techniques: 1. Sweeping vegetation, especi…
Read MoreFuture Research
As is true in most areas of science, we understand far less about ceratopogonids than we actually do…
Read MoreReferences Useful in Understanding More About Biting Midges
Morphology and Taxonomy of biting midges: Blanton, F.S. and W.W. Wirth. 1979. The sand flies (Culico…
Read MoreWhy study Biting Midges?
There are numerous reasons to study biting midges. Primarily, in a world where we have become acutel…
Read MoreHow Many Species are out There?
The biting midges are an extremely diverse group, with 6346 species presently named worldwide. As fo…
Read MoreClassification and Identification
There are currently 109 genera of Ceratopogonidae grouping the more than 6,300 named species and the…
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