Phytotelmata habitats have been the focus of much research and are utilized by a wide variety of taxa.
In the past 15 years numerous studies in many geographic regions and covering various types of phytotelmata have
greatly increased our understanding of these unique habitats. The most recent summary of phytotelmata inhabitants
included over 20 families of insects. A review of the literature and extensive work in lowland Ecuador shows the
family level diversity is in fact at least twice that reported earlier. A reassessment of previous phytotelmata
classification schemes, as well as an extensive bibliography, is provided.
