primitive cranefly

Description:

A Tanyderid fly (one of the "primitive craneflies") which superficially resemble some of the craneflies (Tipulidae, Trichoceridae and Ptychopteridae). They have ornate, "boldly marked wings and are usually found near water. They are primitive flies with an essentially Australasian distribution" ( http://museum.wa.gov.au/waiss/images-of-... ). Only the Tanyderidae is represented in Papua by a single genus and three species so this specimen is likely Radinoderus pictipes, R. supernumerarius or Radinoderus toxopei. "Primitive crane flies are relicts of the early radiation of flies. Only a few species have survived and are now restricted to specialized niches and geographical areas. Hence, these flies are considered amongst the rarest of all Diptera. ... Thirty-eight species are known and classified into 10 genera. The family has a bipolar pattern of distribution (restricted to landmasses in the temperate north and south, but absent from the tropics)" [except, I must point out, from New Guinea and tropical Auastralia]. http://www.sel.barc.usda.gov/diptera/tan...

Habitat:

Observed at rest on the underside of a leaf, in a large semi-urban yard & garden adjacent to a disturbed patch of remnant lowland tropical forest. This is in the equatorial tropics of northern New Guinea.

Notes:

Spotted at dusk; bright images used flash. An aside: the pose in photo 4 is reminiscent of a seahorse.