The Systema Dipterorum detail record displays 14 fields of information, which varies according to the kind of name. These fields and their content are outlined below. Users should be aware that the descriptions given below are for the full content and for many records not all details are currently in the database. For example, the name-field should include the author, year and page of the original source publication, but sometimes this information is missing.

Name contains the scientific name and associated information, such as the author, year and page of the original publication. For family-group and genus-group names, there is a single word followed by author information, which may be a single name or a string of names separated by commas and with an ampersand before the last name. After the author string, there is the year followed by a colon and a page number. For species-group names there may be as many as four words before the author string. There will always be two words, an initial genus-group name followed by a species epithet. However, for the species-group names first proposed as trinominals, there will be also be the epithet of the species with which the name was combined and usually an abbreviation indicating the status originally given to the taxon (spp. = subspecies, var. = variety, f. = form).

Type usually contains information about the type of the name. For replacement names, emendations, misspellings, et cetera, this field is an indication of the action and the name affected. For example, "em. X-us Smith," is a statement that the name is an emendation of X-us Smith. Other abbreviations used are mssp. = misspelling of; n. n. = new name for; incosp. = incorrect original spelling of. For family-group names, this is the name of a genus along with its author and year.

For genus-group names, this is usually the name of a species followed by an abbreviation indicating the method of type-fixation (AU = Automatic; FR = First revisor, only used for incorrect original spellings; IN = Indication (typicus, etc.); MO = monotypy; MA = Apparent monotypy; OD = original designation; PD = Present designation; SM = Subsequent monotypy; SD = subsequent designation; TA = Tautonymy; UK = Unknown). Further information may be provided if required by the method of type-fixation or nomenclatural status of the name. For type-fixation which is in another source, the author, year and page of the source is given immediately after the abbreviation.

For species-group names, this is the type-locality of the species followed by indication of the kind of type-specimen, life stage of the type-specimen and the current depository of the type-specimen. The abbreviations used for the kind of type are: HT = holotype; LT = lectotype; NT = neotype; ST = Syntypes; T = Type. For the life stage: A = adult; F = adult female; L = larva; M = adult male; P = pupa or puparium; qualifers, such as ex = exuvia, may be used also. The acronyms for the depository will be found in the collection database in the tools section.

Status contains a status of the nomenclatural and taxonomic status of the name.

Notes contains supplementary information about the name, such as the author and year of the senior homonyms of preoccupied names. Certain key phrases have been coded to ensure consistency in the database. These may be removed in future versions, but their meaning can be found in the Standards document.

Valid Name contains the currently correct name for the taxon behind the name record. For a family-group name this is the name of the appropriate category which is valid, but the current data will always be a family name. For genus-group names this may be either a genus or subgenus. For a species-group name only a species name is given. No subspecies are recognized by Systema Dipterorum.

For names of uncertain placement, an incertae sedis convention is used (see Wiley 1981). A special name consisting of a lead * (asterisk) followed by either F (= family-group) or G (= genus-group) and the name of the taxon in which their placement is certain. For example, *FSyrphidae would be used for a name known to belong within the family Syrphidae, but not to any of the defined subfamilies. See the Systema Dipterorum standards document for more information on this convention.

Family contains the appropriate family to which the name record belongs.

Category contains the name of the taxonomic level that applies to the name record. For species-group names, it is always species; for genus-group names it may be either genus or subgenus; and for family-group names it may be subtribe, tribe, subfamily or family.

Range contains an indication of the area in which the taxon represented by the name record occurs. For family-group and genus-group names this indication is at the level of biotic regions and includes first an indication for the area of occurrence of the type followed after a colon by the area(s) of other included taxa. For valid species-group names there is also a short description of the range.

Citation contains a bibliography reference to the work that is the original source of the name.

Verification Code contains a quality assurance indicator. See the Quality Assurance document for more information about these codes.

Authority contains the name or names of the specialists who certified that the name record corresponds to current taxonomic and nomenclatural standards.

Revision Date contains the date that the record was certified by peer-review. Or a warning that the record has not been reviewed by a specialist. See the Quality Assurance document for more information about peer-review and certification.

Kind of Name contains only the nomenclatural class to which the name belongs. These are three: family-group, genus-group and species-group.

Record# contains the unique key number that is attached to each name record in the Systema Dipterorum. This number should be used when reporting problems with our data.