Faunistic data on the genus Balacra in Togo is summarized. Seven species have been recorded from the country, five of them for the first time. For six species the male aedeagus with everted vesica is described and illustrated for the first time, supplemented with additional morphological details. As a result, novel species-specific details of the shapes and positions of cornuti and sclerotized plates have been discovered. They appear to be very useful for the proper separation of these taxa. All the specimens exhibiting colour or pattern variation are illustrated, enabling future verification of their present taxonomic status. Current knowledge of Togolese Lepidoptera is summarized in brief.

The taxonomy of the American doryctine genus Callihormius is revised. Four Nearctic species are redescribed, including the type species of the genus (C. bifasciatus Ashmead, 1900, C. stigmatus Marsh, 1966, C. texanus Marsh, 1966 and C. werneri Marsh, 1966). Four Neotropical species are also described: C. circumlitoris sp. nov., C. franciscomartoi sp. nov., C. palagannensis sp. nov. and C. tayronensis sp. nov. Callihormius longicaudatus (Nettleton, 1938) is considered as “incertae sedis”. A taxonomic key for the 13 currently recognised species of Callihormius is provided.

Haematophagous i.e. blood-feeding or blood-sucking arthropods described from Paleogene Baltic amber are reviewed and commented on. Arthropods feeding on blood from mammals and birds, and occasionally on reptiles and amphibians, are reported as inclusions in fossil resins dated back to the Lower Cretaceous. Eocene Baltic amber from deposits in the Gulf of Gdańsk, Rovno and Bitterfeld, dated from 35 to 50 million years ago, contains 48 fossil species of blood-feeding arthropods placed in extant and extinct genera. Haematophagous fossil arthropods from Acari (1 species), Phthiraptera ( ), Siphonaptera (4), and Diptera (43 species) are reported in Baltic amber. Blood-sucking flies are represented by six families: Ceratopogonidae (11), Corethrellidae (5), Culicidae (5), Psychodidae (5), Simuliidae (9), and Tabanidae (8 species). The percentage of species of blood-sucking dipterans in the Baltic amber forest was similar to that in the extant fauna of Poland (3.4%, and 3.2%, respectively). A catalogue of named haematophagous arthropods reported from Baltic amber is provided.

The ant genus Pristomyrmex Mayr (subfamily Myrmicinae) comprises about 60 extant species, distributed almost exceptionally throughout the tropics except for Central and South America. Single known fossil species from this genus, P. rasnitsyni Dlussky et Radchenko, was previously described from the Late Eocene Scandinavian amber. Here we described two new extinct species: P. elmesi sp. nov. (worker) from the Rovno amber, and P. archaios sp. nov. (male) from the Bitterfeld amber. P. elmesi differs from P. rasnitsyni by the somewhat smaller size (2.4 mm vs. 3 mm), by the slightly elongated, not transversal head (HL/HW 1.02 vs. 0.95), by the somewhat longer antennal scape (SL/HL 0.75 and SL/HW 0.77 vs. 0.72 and 0.68, respectively), by the much shorter, straight and thin propodeal spines (ESL/HW 0.12 vs. 0.25), by the absence of meadial tooth on the anterior cypeal margin, by the another type of mandibular dentation, and by the longer mesosoma. Male of P. archaios differs from all extant species by the presence of two closed cells, 1r 2r and mcu, on the forewing, while forewing of the modern species has only one closed cell, 1r 2r. We consider such kind of forewing venation as the plesiomorphy compare to extant Pristomyrmex species.

Dehesas are typical Mediterranean habitats for extensive livestock raising. Hoverflies (Diptera: Syrphidae) may act as bioindicators in dehesas, but they are still poorly known in this habitat type. With the purpose of the present study, hoverfly diversity was surveyed in Campanarios de Azaba, a typical oak dehesa in Salamanca province, Spain. A total of 41 species were recorded, including Eumerus azabense sp. nov. This new species was found to belong to the Eumerus tricolor group, both in morphological and genetic terms, and clearly separated (DNA characters) from the similar Eumerus niveitibia, which is redescribed here. Genetic monophyly of the E. tricolor group is confirmed in the present paper. An updated hoverfly checklist of Salamanca province is provided (152 sp.) with indication of the 56 species recorded in Campanarios de Azaba. Obtained results address the importance of dehesa biodiversity, which includes species new to science.

European chiropteromyzid flies (Diptera: Acalyptrata: Heleomyzidae) are revised to clarify their nomenclature, taxonomic concepts and relationships. Two species are recognized which are considered to belong to the genus Neossos Malloch, 1927 viz., the widespread N. broersei (de Meijere, 1946) comb. nov. (= Chiropteromyza wegelii Frey, 1952) and N. nidicola (Frey, 1930) known only from type series from Finland. Consequently, the monotypic genera Ornitholeria Frey, 1930 (type species: O. nidicola Frey, 1930) and Chiropteromyza Frey, 1952 (type species: C. wegelii Frey, 1952) are treated as junior synonyms of Neossos Malloch, 1927. The above synonymies and generic affiliations are confirmed on the basis of comparative morphology of both European species and N. marylandicus Malloch, 1927, the type species of the genus Neossos. All studied taxa are redescribed and illustrated including detail of the male genitalia and/or female postabdomen, keyed and their full synonymies are presented. Preimaginal stages (3^rd-instar larva, puparium) of N. broersei are studied for the first time. Research history, morphology of terminalia, relationships, biology and distribution of European species are reviewed and/or discussed. Lectotypes of Ornitholeria nidicola Frey, 1930 and Chiropteromyza wegelii Frey, 1952 are designated. Based on similarities in the external morphology, including the male and female terminalia, and the cephalopharyngeal skeleton of the larva, chiropteromyzids are considered to be a heleomyzoid lineage most closely related to the subfamily Heleomyzinae (of European authors) and, hence, not deserving family rank within Acalyptrata.

The immature stages of Eurypedus nigrosignatus (Boheman, 1854) and the first instar larva of Asteriza sp., members of the tribe Ischyrosonychini Chapuis, 1875, are described for the first time and compared with other Ischyrosonychini. Similarities in the larval morphologies of Cistudinella Champion, 1894, Eurypedus Gistel, 1834, Asteriza Chevrolat, 1836 and Physonota Boheman, 1854 suggest they have a close phylogenetic relationship and should be placed in a single tribe.

The Afrotropical genus Oreoeudesis Franz was previously known to occur in Tanzania, Kenya and Cameroon. A new species, Oreoeudesis ruandensis sp. nov. is described on the basis of a material coming from Rwanda. Differences in cephalic, pronotal, mesonotal and genital structures justify placing the new species in a separate subgenus, Suboreon subgen. nov. Morphological structures of O. ruandensis, especially the large composite eyes and fully developed wings, seem to be plesiomorphic as compared to derived character states in the previously known, microphthalmous or anophthalmous and wingless species.

The neotenic genus Atelius Waterhouse, 1878 from China is reviewed and two new species are described: A. brevicornis sp. nov. and A. kadoorieorum sp. nov., both from the tropical rainforests of Yunnan. The general appearance of all Chinese species and the morphology of male genitalia are illustrated and a key to all Atelius species is provided. The distribution of Atelius and other widespread neotenic net-winged beetles in the northern part of the Oriental region indicates their survival in disjunctive regions, which were not affected by aridization and cooling of the climate. The current distribution is hypothesized as a relict of the earlier continuous range of neotenic beetles in the Oriental region.

Euanoma Reitter, 1889 is the most species-rich genus within the small elateroid family Omalisidae. Here, we redescribe the genus and describe and figure Euanoma plonskii sp. nov., E. trabzonensis sp. nov., E. vavrai sp. nov., and E. wittmeri sp. nov. from Turkey. Euanoma obscura (Pic, 1901) is reported for the first time from Greece (Lesbos, Samos). Euanoma graeca (Pic, 1901b) is transferred to Cimbrion Kazantsev, 2010 as C. graecum (Pic, 1901b) and compared with C. nigricorne (Reitter, 1881). Sixteen described species of Euanoma are known from the Ionian Islands, the Peloponnese, the Aegean Islands, Asia Minor, and the Caucasus. For each species we provide synonyms, information on type material, type locality, diagnosis, distribution, and bibliography. The species distribution map as well as an identification key for the males of all Euanoma species is provided.

The southern hemisphere water scavenger beetle genus Cylorygmus Orchymont, 1933 (Coleoptera: Hydrophilidae: Cylominae) is revised. Three species are recognized, one in Chile and two in South Africa. The morphological differences indicate that the African species are not congeneric with the Chilean one. Relictorygmus gen. nov. is established for the African R. trevornoahi sp. nov. (type species) and R. repentinus (Hebauer, 2002), both known from few localities in the Western Cape province of the Republic of South Africa. The genus Cylorygmus with the only species C. lineatopunctatus Orchymont, 1933 is endemic to a small region in central Chile. Its larva is described in detail based on specimens collected in association with adults. Both genera and all species are diagnosed, described and illustrated, and an identification key for adults is provided. Our study demonstrates that the trans-Atlantic disjunct distribution of Cylorygmus was based on inaccurate taxonomic treatment and did not reflect the real evolutionary history of these beetles.