A fruiting body of the stinkhorn fungus (Phallus multicolor), Tina sur mer, Noumea, New Caledonia. As with many stinkhorns, the spores are spread by flies, attracted to the putrid stench.
(photo: Tim Adams)
Showing posts tagged Fly
Female Flies Expel Sperm and Eat It
by Tanya Lewis
Female Ulidiid flies have a kinky habit: After mating with a male, they expel his sperm and eat it.
The odd behavior may help these lady flies choose which guy flies will father their young, researchers reported online today (April 11) in the journal Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology.
Studying a species of “picture-winged fly,” known as Euxesta bilimeki, researchers found that 100 percent of the 74 fly couples they studied spewed out ejaculate after mating. Further study revealed that 25 percent of females harbored no sperm afterward. The findings suggest the fly dames were able to control how much sperm to expel in order to select which males fertilized their eggs…
(read more: http://www.livescience.com/28660-female-flies-expel-and-eat-sperm.html)
(photo: Elliotte Rusty Harold)
Mosquito Larva ID:
Hey Paxon, can you ID this 1 cm long predatory mosquito larva?
Paxon:
I believe that this is the larva of the “Elephant Mosquito” (Toxorhynchites speciosus), which is said to be the largest mosquito species in the world.
http://eol.org/pages/769825/overview
http://www.brisbaneinsects.com/brisbane_flies/PredatoryMosquito.htm
http://medent.usyd.edu.au/photos/toxorhynchites%20speciosus.htm
Flower Flies (Toxomerus marginatus) on Narrowleaf Silkgrass (Pityopsis graminifolia), Tosohatchee Wildlife Management Area, Orange County, FL, USA
(photo: Mary Keim)
This scanning electron microscope image of the tarsal claw of the horsefly Tabanus sulcifrons juxtaposes the complexity and simplicity of “nature’s Velcro.” The menacing sturdiness of the tarsal claws contrasts with the delicate nature of the tarsal pad, with fine, hooked hairs that allow the fly to hold on to animal fur.
(Image credit: Valerie A. Tornini, Duke University)
Hoverflies (Simosyrphus grandicornis) mating in midair, oct. 2006, Swifts Creek, Victoria, Australia.
(photo: Fir0002)
Hoverflies (Syrphidae, Diptera)
Hoverflies, sometimes called flower flies or syrphid flies, make up the insect family Syrphidae. As their common name suggests, they are often seen hovering or nectaring at flowers; the adults of many species feed mainly on nectar and pollen, while the maggots eat a wide range of foods.
About 6,000 species in 200 genera have been described. Hoverflies are common throughout the world and can be found on all continents except Antarctica. Hoverflies are harmless despite their mimicry of more dangerous wasps and bees, which serves to ward off predators. One of many features of the family is the fascinating array of stunning eyes many species possess, as evident in these images of local Yunnan species…….
Click images for individual identification (where known)…….
Pu’er, Yunnan, China
See more Chinese flies on my Flickr site HERE…..
A species of stalk-eyed fly, Teleopsis pallifacies, found during an expedition to Mt. Kinabalu, Sabah, Borneo. These insects have eyes that sit on long stems. The longer the stem for males, the more attractive he is to potential mates.
(photo: Stephen Gaimari) (via: Live Science)
Glow-worm, Arachnocampa luminosa
Unlike the European beetle of the same name, this species is actually a kind of gnat native to New Zealand that is especially fascinating in its larval form, although the larval, pupal and adult stages of the insect all glow. But as larva, the glow-worms suspend themselves from the ceilings, walls and stalactites of limestone caves and cast out “fishing lines” made of silk and mucous droplets that look like strings of brilliant, reflective beads. A single larvae will let down as many as 70 lines. Insects get caught on the lines and are reeled in by the larva to be eaten. While the materials and purpose of the lines may sound gross, a cave full of the glow-worm’s shimmering lines is quite the spectacle to behold.
There’s a close-up of the larva itself behind the cut. It’s not as pretty as its fishing lines, believe me.
World’s Smallest Fly Decapitates Ants
by Jennifer Viegas
A newly discovered species, Euryplatea nanaknihali, is the world’s smallest fly, and has the rather unsavory habit of biting off the heads of ants, according to a paper in the latest issue of the Annals of the Entomological Society of America.
At just .4 mm in length, the fly is only a fraction of an inch in size. A house fly is 15 times bigger. A fruit fly is 5 x larger.
The new member to the insect record books is also the first of its genus to be discovered in Asia. Members of its fly family (Phoridae) are all believed to decapitate ants. The process isn’t a simple bite and patooie either.
Members of the Phoridae family lay eggs in the bodies of ants. The resulting larvae feed in the ants’ heads, eventually causing decapitation. Not easy being an ant! On the upside, from a “pest” control perspective, some of these phorid flies are being used to try to control fire ants in the southern United States.
Nature seems to have pitted the world’s smallest flies against the world’s smallest ants.
Author Brian Brown of the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County explained that the newfound flies can probably decapitate ants that have heads as small as .5 millimeters. Although this is speculation at now for the new species, Brown believes it’s highly likely because the fly’s only known relative, Euryplatea eidmanni, is known to parasitize ants in Equatorial Guinea…
(read more: Discovery News) (image: Inna-Marie Strazhnik)
Florida Bee Killer (Mallophora bomboides), Lower Wekiva River State Preserve, Seminole County, FL, USA
- family Asilidae. The large true flies (order Diptera) feed on a variety of Hymenoptera (bees and wasps).
(photo: Mary Keim)
Common Brown Robberfly (Zosteria sp.), feeding on a hoverfly, specimen is approx 25mm in length, Swifts Creek, Victoria, Australia
(photo: Fir0002)
A robberfly (Pegesimallus sp.) captures a leaf beetle (family Chyrsomelidae)
(photo: Muhammad Mahdi Karim)
Huge Robber Fly
- Piedmont, NC, USA
This huge (30-35 mm +) robber fly (family Asilidae) allowed close approach, which these usually don’t. Laphria grossa looks pretty good, though exact identification in this genus can be difficult.
(text/photo: Patrick Coin)
What are Bat Flies?
Bat flies are highly modified true flies. They are members of the order Diptera, and currently are grouped into two families, the Nycteribiidae, and the Streblidae. They are also bloodsucking ectoparasites, living in the fur, or on the wing membranes of bats.
Nycteribiidae are wingless, have reduced eyes, and a spiderlike appearance. This is because their legs actually insert dorsally into the thorax. Streblidae have varying degrees of wing reduction, and appear more like a regular fly. They also have reduced eyes. All bat flies are viviparous, meaning that a third larval stage is borne from the female fly, which is then glued to a structure in the surroundings of the roost. Once deposited, the larva immediately pupates. Depending on the species, these pupae may be located close to the roost, or at quite some distance from the roost…
(read more: Bat Fly Research - SUNY Buffalo)
(image: Penicillidia monoceros (female), Taken off of a Northern Bat (Eptesicus nilssonii) ; taken by Brundlefly @ Diptera.info)
