- Psychodidae
- A family of small flies or gnats characterized by hairy mothlike body and the presence of 7–11 long parallel wing veins lacking cross-veins; includes the sandflies, Phlebotomus and Lutzomyia, vectors of all known forms of leishmaniasis. [G. Psyche, a Greek nymph, sometimes represented as a butterfly]
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Psy·chodi·dae sī-'käd-ə-.dē, -'kōd- n pl a family of very small dipteran flies (suborder Nematocera) that have hairy wings resembling those of moths and larvae developing in moss and damp plant matter and that include some of medical importance belonging to the genus Phlebotomus* * *
Psy·cho·di·dae (si-koґdĭ-de) a family of flies, the owl flies or sandflies, of the order Diptera, characterized by small size, long legs, and abundant hair on both wings and body. It includes the genera Lutzomyia and Phlebotomus.
Medical dictionary. 2011.