The Hawaiian Drosophilidae are descended from a common ancestor estimated to have lived 25 million years ago.

[1] The picture-wing clade of Hawaiian Drosophila is named for the intricate patterns of melanin pigment on their wings.

[13] These tarsal modifications include flattened, spoon-shaped structures, elongated cilia, and clusters of bristles, and are thought to be used in mating displays.

[15] This large group of flies has received relatively less study, in part due to their rarity and because many species are not attracted to typical Drosophila baits.

These flies show a remarkable diversity in breeding ecology, with the majority of species using more than one host family for larval feeding.

Hawaiian Drosophila have been studied as models of speciation, population genetics and genomics, as well as for evolution of behavior and evolutionary development (aka evo-devo).

[1] Research in the 1970s-80s by Hampton L. Carson and others studying patterns of chromosome banding, mating behavior, and hybridization helped resolve relationships between species and contributed to understanding of evolution on islands.

[23] Female flies lay their eggs in a wide array of substrates, including rotting bark, leaves, fruit, sap, and fungi.

Research on the evolution of these traits suggests that variation is related to differences in the substrate where flies lay eggs.

[3] Currently 13 species are listed as federally endangered: Drosophila aglaia, D. differens, D. digressa,[26] D. hemipeza, D. heteroneura, D. montgomeryi, D. musaphilia, D. neoclavisetae, D. obatai, D. ochrobasis, D. sharpi,[27] D. substenoptera, and D. tarphytrichia.