International Journal of Zoology Studies

Authors
Sankarappan Anbalagan, Suruliyandi Vijayan

Abstract
Black flies fauna in South-East Asia has been studied extensively, however their taxonomic status and ecology of Indian black flies are still remaining unexplored. The present study was focused to cover the current status of black fly taxonomy in India. The species data is gathered from the world black fly inventory 2022. The information on morphological characters of respective species with distribution was studied from the original publications and subsequent reviews. A total of 88 black fly species are recorded under six subgenera (Eusimulium, Gomphostilbia, Montisimulium, Nevermannia, Simulium and Wilhelmia) in the genus Simulium. North-east region had 61% of species and their majority is found in West Bengal. Of these, seven biting species have recorded. Conclusion: The details of diversity, scope, ecology, taxonomy and medical importance of black flies would helpful for studying black fly in India.