Molophilus has over 90 described species in NZ but only 56 are recognised at present. This is due to their size (< 8 mm) and delicate nature of their bodies, exacerbated by the similarity of many pale species. Seldom can all the necessary characters be seen in any one individual and to identify females of the pale species is beyond comprehension. All species are probably endemic. Basically, present collections are insufficient to get an understanding of the variation between and within species and their distributions within NZ.