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What's That Bug? does not endorse extermination

Veined Ctunecha 1000 miles off course, and Tachinid Fly

Blue Bug with Orange Head
Wed, Jun 24, 2009 at 5:00 PM
Found this flying through my garage tonight at sunset in southern Ontario, Canada. Wrongly identified it quickly on the net as a Pine False Webworm, but the wings clearly indicate that it is something else. 2nd one I’ve seen in the area in 2 days and am wondering if there is an invasive species to be concerned about.
Jason
Ontario, Canada

questionable Ctenucha

Veined Ctenucha

Hi Jason,
We are a bit puzzled by your specimen, so we are contacting Julian Donahue, a specialist in the Arctiid Moths. This looks like a member of the genus Ctenucha (pronounced “ten U ka”) but BugGuide only list the Virginia Ctenucha, Ctenucha virginica from your area. It more closely resembles the Veined Ctenucha, Ctenucha venosa, but the Butterflies and Moths of North America lists its range as being nearly 1000 miles south and west of Ontario. Hopefully, Julian will give us a prompt reply. The fly in your one photo is a Spiny Tachinid Fly, Paradejeania rutilioides. According to BugGuide, adults take nectar and larvae are internal parasites of Tiger Moth Caterpillars.

Spiny Tachinid Fly and questionable Ctenucha

Spiny Tachinid Fly and Veined Ctenucha

Expert Comment from Julian Donahue
It’s Ctenucha venosa, alright, a species of the Southwest and Mexico.
Are you sure it’s from Ontario, Canada, and not Ontario, California (I don’t know of any California records, but it is more likely to have been accidentally imported here than to Canada).
If it is really from Canada, pass the photo and details on to Dr. Don Lafontaine, the noctuoid specialist at the Canadian National Collection in Ottawa–he would be greatly interested in Canadian records of this species.
Julian

Ed. Comment
Could it be that this unusual sighting is yet another sign of global warming?????

More Expert Commentary
Hi Daniel & Jason -
As Julian points out, this is definitely a noteworthy record if it is from Ontario; the nearest documented records of venosa are from northeastern Kansas. Since this conspicuous species is not known to occur between Kansas and Ontario, where the fauna is quite well-known, it is highly unlikely that this is a natural range expansion as might be the case with ‘global warming’; it more likely represents an accidental introduction by way of plant material (the larvae feed on grasses and sedges). I occasionally identify C. virginica cocoons attached to shipped nusrsery plants – this may be a similar case.
Jason, since this would be the first documented record of this species for Canada and well outside its known range, could you please provide me with the exact locality and date? Even better would be one or more specimens sent here, also with collecting data – I can give you more info if you are able to do this.
Cheers,
Chris
PS – the tachinid fly in the photo is Hystricia abrupta, a widespread species in northeastern North America; Paradejeania rutilioides is a much larger, differently patterned species that occurs in the southwestern US
B. Christian Schmidt, Ph.D.
Entomologist, Canadian Food Inspection Agency
Canadian National Collection of Insects, Arachnids & Nematodes/.

Posted 25 June 2009 § Tachinid Flies § Tiger Moths and Arctiids ‡ Comments (2) °

Robber Fly

Strange Flying Bug in Yard
Mon, Jun 22, 2009 at 9:16 AM
Flying insect. Looks like it is laying eggs. Fly type body, wasp like wings, has design on body like bee. Looked like a giant mosquito to me. Made deep buzzing sound as a warning when I got too close. Never saw one before.
the bug guy
Tucson, Arizona

Robber Fly: Efferia rapax???

Robber Fly: Efferia rapax???

Dear bug guy,
This is a Robber Fly, and we believe it is in the genus Efferia. There is a photo of Efferia rapax posted to BugGuide with numerous comments. That photo looks very similar to your specimen, and it is also from Arizona. It would really take someone far more qualified than we are to properly identify what species of Robber Fly you have.

Robber Fly: Efferia rapax???

Robber Fly: Efferia rapax???

Posted 22 June 2009 § Robber Flies ‡ Comments (0) °

Southern Bee Killer

Is this a bee or fly?
Tue, Jun 16, 2009 at 4:53 AM
Nearly everyday I come home from work to find one or two of what look like skinny bumblebees on my front porch clinging to the screens. The porch was just recently screened in and doesn’t have a door yet which is how they are getting on the porch. The bees/flies are pretty docile and easy to catch. I’ve been able to catch them in wads of cloth and then I just open the cloth outside and they fly away. I have a large flowerbed right outside the porch with lots of blooming flowers which is probably what is attracting them in the first place. I see plenty of the regular fat bumblebees in the garden all the time. I live in central florida and this has been going on for about a month now.
Just in case the pictures are not clear enough you can also see them in my photobucket acount, which is as follows.
Kara
central Florida, Citrus county

Bee Killer

Bee Killer

Good Morning Kara,
What a magnificent image of a Southern Bee Killer, Mallophora orcina, a species of Robber Fly that is a very convincing bumblebee mimic. Souther Bee Killers prey on insects, including bees. Its proximity to your flower bed can be explained if that flower bed is frequented by bees. BugGuide also has information on this species.  BugGuide indicates this of the genus:  “Large, fuzzy, bee-mimicking robber flies. Resemble Laphria , another genus of robbers that mimic bumblebees, but is even hairier and has antennae with a very thin terminal final segment, whereas Laphria has thick antennae.”  Your specimen has very thin antennae.

Posted 16 June 2009 § Robber Flies ‡ Comments (0) °
What's That Bug? does not endorse extermination

Tachinid Fly

What is this fly?
Wed, Jun 3, 2009 at 8:59 PM
I took this photograph at 4:27 pm June 03, 2009 in the Central Okanagan region of British Columbia. The area it was specifically taken in is characterized by grasses and sagebrush. The temperature was about 30 C and sunny. The fly appeared to be feeding on the flower it is currently sitting on (a popular choice as several other bugs were photographed on the same type of flower).
Scott Thomson
Westbank, British Columbia, Canada

Tachinid Fly

Tachinid Fly

Dear Scott,
This is a Tachinid Fly in the genus Cylindromyia, according to images posted to BugGuide, which indicates they are a “common flower visitor in open weedy areas. “  Of Tachinid Flies in general, BugGuide indicates:  “Larval stages are parasitoids of other insects. Almost every order of insects is attacked by tachinids, including a few types of non-insect arthropods. Some tachinids are very specific and others can parasitize a wide variety of hosts. The most common hosts are caterpillars” and “Most tachinids deposit their eggs directly on the body of their host, and it is not uncommon to see caterpillars with several tachinid eggs on them. Upon hatching the larva usually burrows into its host and feeds internally. When fully developed it leaves the host and pupates nearby. Some tachinids lay their eggs on foliage; the larvae are flattened and are called planidia; they remain on the foliage until they find a suitable host. “  Since we will be out of the office for a week, we are setting your letter to post live on Saturday at noon.

Posted 06 June 2009 § Tachinid Flies ‡ Comments (0) °

Mating March Flies

Higher evolution?
Sun, May 31, 2009 at 1:57 PM
Hi Lisa Anne and Daniel, twice I have found mating March Flies (?) with the head of one being miniscule in comparasion to the other. Could they be as their human counterparts in that the male’s thinking has been usurped by another body part? Perhaps this then is our future.
Just curious,
Dwaine
near Casper, WY

March Flies (male on left) Mating

March Flies (male on left) Mating

Hi again Dwaine,
While your evolutionary comment is highly amusing, the flaw in the logic is that the male March Fly has the larger eyes, and larger head.  We are not certain what species your March Flies in the family Bibionidae represent.  Lovebugs in the genus Plecia are a group of March Flies with considerable notoriety.

Posted 01 June 2009 § March Flies and Lovebugs ‡ Comments (0) ° Tagged:

Water Midge

Flying insect surrounds my house & car
Sun, May 31, 2009 at 7:02 AM
This little bug showed up what seemed to be over night. I first noticed it Friday morning all over my screen door. When I went out they seemed to be swarming like gnats. Then when I got to my car they seemed to be crawling all over it. The pictures don’t show the color well but it is a clearish light green.
If you need more pictures I can send them.
Jason
Mt. Vernon Indiana

Water Midge

Water Midge

Dear Jason,
This appears to be a Water Midge in the family Chironomidae, probably the genus Chironomus.  The aquatic larvae of some species are known as Bloodworms and are sold frozen as tropical fish food, a favorite of our Angelfish and Rams.  BugGuide has many excellent images of Midges.  Charles Hogue in Insects of the Los Angeles Basin writes:  “Small clouds of males are frequently seen hovering in the air over or near water. At times they form larger clouds that look like smoke over trees or tall structures;  these aggregations are attractive to females and are the chief mating strategy of many species.  Tremendous numbers may also gather around lights on warm summer enenings.”

Posted 31 May 2009 § Midges ‡ Comments (0) °

BUG OF THE MONTH JUNE 2009: Golden Backed Snipe Flies Mating

Another Pair of Golden Backed Snipe Flies Mating
Golden Backed Snipe Flies Mating
Tue, Jun 9, 2009 at 5:16 PM
Leaving the house today, these two bugs were on my porch cushion. They were there for almost 1/2hour. They even gave me time to go get my camera , focus a few shots and get this great one! I emailed the pics to a friend as the “gold button” on the flies is truly a gold color- unlike the yellow color that comes off in the picture. The gold is what really attracted me to examine them closely. So, this evening, further intrigued, I hit the internet only to find your site within seconds, identifying the flies with ease, yelling to my husband, “THEY ARE GOLDEN BACKED SNIPE FLIES!!!” Gotta love the web!
A. Shafer
ExtremeNW NJ

Golden Backed Snipe Flies Mating

Golden Backed Snipe Flies Mating

Dear A.,
Thanks for sending in your photo of Golden Backed Snipe Flies mating. We will be adding your letter to the Bug of the Month posting since your photo is so much sharper than the original one we posted.

Golden Backed Snipe Flies Mating
Fri, May 29, 2009 at 5:33 AM
Good morning.
As I was walking from my car about 8am this morning, I chanced upon two bugs mating in the parking lot. They would hop a few feet away each time I got close but firmly refused to go get a room.
Thanks to your site, I was able to learn that the romantic couple is a pair of Golden Backed Snipe Flies. The gold on their backs is quite attractive!
Sorry for the quality of the photo. All I had was my cell phone.
Thank you for this site. It is great when we have a Cool Bug Alert and need to identify what the cool bug is. (In our family, we yell “Cool Bug Alert” and all come running to look. We then look up the bug and learn about them.)
Steph S.
Fairfax, VA

Golden Backed Snipe Flies Mating

Golden Backed Snipe Flies Mating

Dear Steph,
Thanks so much for your kind letter. We would love to hear that more people are using the Cool Bug Alert, since most alerts tend to have such a negative connotation in our modern world that is so full of the threat of terrorist attacks, abductions and contagious diseases. We are also quite happy to post your image of mating Golden Backed Snipe Flies. Since June is upon us, and it will be time to select a new Bug of the Month, we would like to select the Golden Backed Snipe Fly, Chrysopilus thoracicus, for the honor. According to BugGuide, the season for sightings is spring, more specifically “Spring. April-May (North Carolina)” though all of the submissions to our site have been from late May through June in more Northern locations. The May/June sighting calendar is also supported on BugGuide’s Data Page. We witnessed our own first sighting several years ago in Mill Creek Park in Youngstown Ohio in early June. BugGuide also indicates: “Life Cycle Details unknown. This fly is observed in early to mid-spring perched quietly on low vegetation in deciduous woodlands. “

Posted 29 May 2009 § ‡ Comments (0) ° Tagged: ,

Jumping Spider eats Robber Fly in Australia

Salticid kills Asilidae Foodchain
Sat, May 23, 2009 at 10:09 PM
Hi guys,
Got this picture today of a Jumping Spider catching a tiny Robberfly. The spider is one I have been trying to identify with the help of the University of Southern Queensland but there are over 500 species most of which have never been photographed so it is proving quite difficult. Hope you like the shot
aussietrev
Queensland, Australia

Jumping Spider eats Robber Fly

Jumping Spider eats Robber Fly

Hi Trevor,
We cannot believe how far we had to go back in our email inbox to retrieve your letter which we were too busy to post when we first noticed it.  Summer is approaching in the northern hemisphere and our mail is increasing to the point that we must virtually ignore much of it.  Thanks for sending us your awesome image of a Jumping Spider feeding upon a Robber Fly.

Posted 29 May 2009 § Jumping Spiders § Robber Flies ‡ Comments (0) ° Tagged: , ,

Phantom Crane Fly

Can’t Find This Bug Anywhere!!
Thu, May 21, 2009 at 8:05 AM
Dear WTB:
A friend of mine and I were in the parking lot of PetCo, and this not-so-little flier landed on my friends shirt. We thought it looked pretty interesting, so we snapped a few pics with our cell phones(which is the photo isn’t the best) I have looked all over the internet and in all of my field guides and I can not for the life of me identify this one. Any ideas? Thanks!
Corey
Upstate NY, Watertown

Phantom Crane Fly

Phantom Crane Fly

Dear Corey,
The Phantom Crane Fly, Bittacomorpha clavipes, is a fascinating looking creature.  We believe the coloration helps them to appear to vanish and reappear while flying, hence the name phantom.

Posted 22 May 2009 § Crane Fly ‡ Comments (0) °

Rattailed Maggot

What kind of bug is this?
Tue, May 12, 2009 at 3:28 PM
I found this bug in a hole in a tree filled with water. Any ideas?
Natalie West
North East Ohio

Rattailed Maggot

Rattailed Maggot

Hi Natalie,
This is a Rattailed Maggot, the larva of a Drone Fly, possibly Eristalis tenax.  There are a few photos of Rattailed Maggots on BugGuide.

Posted 12 May 2009 § Maggots ‡ Comments (1) °

Mydas Fly

large black fly(?)
Mon, May 4, 2009 at 10:36 AM
Found on tomato plant 5-4-09, in South-central Texas. it is relatively large – more than 1 inch, at least. As the photos indicate, there is a faint light circle near the tips of the upper wings. Also, a bi-color spot (orange and buff) on each side of the abdomen near where it joins the thorax. The antennae are very prominent with black, white, and gray bands, and the head (which looks like mostly eyes) protrudes from the thorax on a small “neck”. It was not moving around very vigorously, perhaps newly hatched from compost or looking for a place to lay eggs. . .
mmcg
Comal County, Texas

Mydas Fly

Mydas Fly

Dear mmcg,
This is a Mydas Fly, probably Mydas clavatus. There are many great photos posted on BugGuide. Despite its wasplike appearance, the Mydas Fly will not sting nor bite humans. There are conflicting sources that claim it is predatory, and there are other sources that claim that males take nectar. Your compost theory is a good one since larvae live in rotting wood or soil where they prey on beetle larvae.

Thank you very much for the helpful i.d. and reply.
How could I have searched BugGuide more effectively to find the photos
and i.d. already there? I tried browsing images of two or three
subgroups under the diptera order, but there are just too many for that
to be a satisfactory search strategy.
I am an amateur naturalist, working on preparing a guide to wildscaping
Hill Country homes and farms, highlighting the native plants of our 7
acres, together with photo-illustrated lists of birds, reptiles &
amphibians, mammals, butterflies and moths, plus some of the
more-interesting other insects found here.
Predictably, the insect identification part is the hardest! I have
really appreciated your website as a resource, though.
Meredith McGuire, Professor of Sociology and Anthropology, Trinity
University

Dear Meredith,
Good luck with your project.  We frequently begin by browsing in BugGuide.  There is a Browse option when you select an order, family or genus, so it is a really good way to narrow your search.  We have to admit that we often spend many fruitless searches on BugGuide, and then when we finally arrive at the answer, it seems so obvious.

Posted 05 May 2009 § ‡ Comments (0) °

Bathroom Fly

black flying heart-shaped bugs everywhere!
Sat, May 2, 2009 at 5:13 AM
I live in Northwest Ohio. I have had a black heart-shaped bug flying around my house for about 2 or 3 months. I can’t figure out where they are coming from. They seem to like water. They hang around in our bathrooms a lot. I have pictures of them on a recently wet towel. When you kill them, they leave a black residue almost like black dust on your wall. I have not had them bite but they will fly close to people. They also like lamps and light bulbs when it gets dark out. They are about half the size of a common house fly. Please help, I need to get rid of them!!!
Maranda
Northwest Ohio

Bathroom Fly

Bathroom Fly

Hi Maranda,
You have Bathroom Flies. The larvae of the Bathroom Fly live in the sludge of your sink and tub drains. If you want to get rid of them, you need to have the pipes cleaned.

Posted 03 May 2009 § Bathroom Flies ‡ Comments (0) ° Tagged:

Crane Flies: Mating Swarm Interrupted!!!

In a stump, flies, mates. What is it?
Mon, Apr 27, 2009 at 4:25 PM
My wife and I have a really decayed stump that we are planing on removing and planting a garden over. So I decided to kick it a bit to see how easy it would be to remove. It crumbled very easily (as does the ground around it where the roots have rotted) but a bunch of these bugs flew out. Well, they hovered because they were busy mating, ends stuck together and flew awkwardly around.
The bugs themselves are dark brown with light yellowish markings. The karings are kinda stripey down the abdomen and a blotch on either side of the thorax. The head looks tiny and curled under the round thorax. I caught a mating pair, one has what looks like a stinger, but I think I know what it really is *winks*. They are about an inch long, with thin long smoke colored wings.
Brian
Tacoma, WA

Crane Flies

Crane Flies

Dear Brian,
What a wonderful account of the mating activity of these Crane Flies. We believe they are Ctenophora vittata – Ctenophora angustipennis as evidenced by the images posted to BugGuide. The “stinger” is actually the ovipositor, and it is the female that is in possession of it. We are going to contact Chen Young at the Crane Flies of Pennsylvania website to see if he can elaborate on the mating activity you witnessed. Our guess is that these adults are newly emerged. Adult Crane Flies don’t feed, so they don’t live long anyways. The larvae, sometimes called Leatherjackets, eat decaying organic material, and perhaps they were in the stump as larvae.  We are also going to tag your images Bug Love despite the mating activity being observed and not documented.

Crane Flies

Crane Flies

Posted 28 April 2009 § Crane Fly ‡ Comments (0) ° Tagged:

Cranefly with Aphid Exoskeleton

hitchhiker on a crane fly
Tue, Apr 21, 2009 at 11:10 AM
I was taking pictures of the moths and bugs surrounding our outside light last night and after enlarging this shot of a crane fly I noticed this little white guy waving from a rear leg while hanging on for dear life. I know crane flies don’t carry their young around so I was wondering what it is. I sent you a larger file so you can enlarge it enough to see the critter.
Larry
Sonoma County, California

Crane Fly with Hitchhiker

Crane Fly with Hitchhiker

Hi Larry,
When we saw your subject line, we thought the hitchhiker must be either a mite or a pseudoscorpion, the two common phoretic organisms that are frequent subjects of our identifications. Phoresy is a nice scientific name for opportunistic hitchhiking. Your creature appears to be an insect, though we are uncertain of its identity, and we wonder if the hitchhiking may have been accidental. We will check with Eric Eaton to see if he has an opinion on this.

Phoretic Insect? or Accidental Hitchhiker???

Phoretic Insect? or Accidental Hitchhiker???

Update: Wednesday, 22 April 2009
Daniel:
LOL!  I’m sorry, I just had to laugh.  The “hitchhiker” is a shed exoskeleton, most likely from an aphid that might have used the crane fly’s leg as a place to perch while molting.  I laugh out of empathy because I’ve made the same kind of assumption myself, many times, when presented with unfamiliar circumstances.
Eric

Posted 22 April 2009 § Crane Fly ‡ Comments (0) ° Tagged:

Bot Fly

additional bot fly pics
Mon, Apr 13, 2009 at 12:02 PM
I saw that you posted some bot fly pics, but they were a little fuzzy. Here are a few I took that are a little more detailed. Perhaps not the exact same kind of bot fly, but pretty similar. There appear to be three tiny eyes between its two big compound eyes.
Vince
Northern Indiana

Bot Fly

Bot Fly

Hi Vince,
Thanks for sending us your Bot Fly images.  Now people can understand why the Interested Mountain Girl thought it looked like a mutant.

Posted 13 April 2009 § Bot Flies ‡ Comments (1) °

Rodent Bot Fly

Black and White Bumblebee-Like Relative Found near Yosemite? Sat, Apr 11, 2009 at 3:12 PM
This might be some sort of mutant insect, because it certainly beats me. I found it rolling amongst the pebbles outside my mountain home near Yosemite, where many common bumblebees and honeybees flourish. Something is definitely off… Instead of mouth parts it has nostril like holes and the flesh above the undersized wings (it cannot fly) appears withdrawn, or peeled up.It’s first two segments have a white furry underbody and a shiny hard top. It’s last segment is shiny and hard. It has no antennae. It’s eyes are black with two red spots, one on the top and the other on the bottom portion. I figure mutations might not be your forte, but is this just a really weird insect? He’s also about an inch long.
Interested Mountain Girl
Coarsegold, near Yosemite Valley, CA

Rodent Bot Fly

Rodent Bot Fly

Dear Interested Mountain Girl,
We wonder how long you are going to maintain your interest when you learn that though it looks like a Bumble Bee, this is actually a fly, a Bot Fly to be exact. We believe it is a Rodent Bot Fly. Bot Flies are endoparasites of various mammals and they cause swellings knows as warbles, giving the Bot Fly the name Warble Fly as well. Rodent Bot Flies tend to parasitize squirrels and rabbits. In Central America, there is a Human Bot Fly.

Wow, this is actually even cooler. I hadn’t realized we had those here, but I’d not paid much attention to the insect and bug life since I moved here a few years ago. Sorry for the poor picture quality, the camera wasn’t working at it’s best, but thank you for the amazing and prompt response, you guys really are amazing bug people!
Right now my little Bot buddy is in a glass jar with a damp paper towel and a few leaves, and he seems to be getting more active by the hour! I’ll free him pretty soon, and he can go back to his biting, buzzing ways, much to the chagrin of the local voles and bunnies.
-Interested Mountain Girl

Posted 12 April 2009 § Bot Flies ‡ Comments (0) °

Greater Bee Fly

bee like insect
Sat, Apr 4, 2009 at 1:13 PM
Found him sitting on the washing line. Sat there with his wings buzzing for ages. Smaller than a bee. paler in colour. Saw him on the 31st March. ….
Jill Cotter
London, east finchley

Greater Bee Fly

Greater Bee Fly

Hi Jill,
What a noble pose you have captured on this Greater Bee Fly.  This species has an extensive range that includes most of North America and Europe.

Posted 05 April 2009 § Bee Flies ‡ Comments (0) °

Greater Bee Fly

Never seen this Insect before
Sun, Mar 29, 2009 at 1:56 PM
Got these photos at work. the bug was just sitting there. Someone said it was a bee, but I didn’t think so. Sorry about the quality of the second one.
Brian Lee
Wilmington, North Carolina, USA

Greater Bee Fly

Greater Bee Fly

Hi Brian,
What a great photo of Bombylius major, the Greater Bee Fly.  This species if found in most of the U.S. and Canada as well as Europe.  You can read more about this species on BugGuide.

Posted 31 March 2009 § Bee Flies ‡ Comments (0) °

Kleptoparasitic Flies from Australia pilfer an Ant from an Ant Hunter Spider

Kleptoparasitic flies
Thu, Mar 19, 2009 at 2:37 AM
Hi guys,
I got this photo of tiny flies trying to get to the ant captured by this jumping spider. Apparently they are Milichiidae (Diptera, Schizophora) some of which are kleptoparasitic of spiders, some specialising in ant snacks such as this one. The spider is a female Salticid, Zenodorus orbiculatus known locally as ant hunters. She is about 7mm long so you can see how tiny those flies are.
aussietrev
Queensland, Australia

Freeloader Flies share Ant Hunter's prey

Freeloader Flies share Ant Hunter's prey

Hi Trevor,
Though you have a long history of providing our site with awesome images of Australian fauna, this image is, in our opinion, one of the most fascinating. The fact that you captured this nuanced example of Kleptoparasitism is phenomenal. One animal stealing food or prey from another is common in the animal kingdom, and it is easily observed in our own brand new aquarium, but to photograph these minuscule creatures evolutionarily adapted to this activity is nothing short of fantastic. These Freeloader Flies, as they are called on one website, in the family Milichiidae, are described by Irina Brake on the Introduction to Milichiidae website: “Thu, 2009-02-12 13:48 — Irina Brake
The Milichiidae (Diptera, Schizophora) are small, mostly black acalyptrate flies. The family contains about 240 described species in 19 genera and is worldwide in distribution.
The behavior of several species of Milichiidae is very specialized. For example, in some species the adults are myrmecophilous (= ant-loving), whilst in some others they are kleptoparasitic, feeding on the prey of spiders or predaceous insects.
The habitats of Milichiidae are diverse. Adults can be collected in open landscapes, such as steppes or meadows, in wadis, at the edges of forests, inside forests, in the forest canopy, in stables or houses, or even in caves. However, they do not seem to be attracted to coastal habitats or to other places near water.
The Milichiidae are divided into three subfamilies, Madizinae, Milichiinae, and Phyllomyzinae.
Common names
Common names are only rarely cited for Milichiidae and seem to be more of an invention of the author than a commonly used name. The English term “filth flies”, for example, which is sometimes used for Milichiidae, was introduced by Sabrosky (1959) in the title of a paper about the genus Meoneura , which now belongs to the family Carnidae. Sabrosky probably used the general expression “filth fly” to describe the biology rather than intending the term to be a common name for the family Milichiidae. The term “filth flies” is generally used for several different taxa associated with ‘filth’.
Since people keep stumbling over the name ‘Milichiidae, I herewith introduce a new english common name: “freeloader flies”. The name refers to the biology of Milichiidae. Definitions for ‘freeloader’ are: ‘ someone who takes advantage of the generosity of others’ ( wordnet.princeton.edu/perl/webwn ) or ‘ one who depends on another for support without reciprocating’ ( http://www.answers.com ). ”
BugGuide also has information on the family Milichiidae. The Geocities website has some nice images of the Ant Eater Spider or Ant Hunter Spider, Zenodorus orbiculatus.

Correction: Mon Mar 23, 2009  7:08:13 AM America/Los_Angeles
Dear Daniel,
thanks for alerting me to your photo and citing my webpage. However, I
discussed it with a collegue of mine and we both think that your flies
are Chloropidae, not Milichiidae. Michael von Tschirnhaus is a
Chloropidae specialist and has more experience with actually watching
the live flies than I have. He wrote to me that from the habitus the
flies are certainly Chloropidae. There are several species who are
kleptoparasitic on spiders. He doesn’t know all Australian genera, so he
can’t tell you which genus it is. Many species of different genera
develop in spider cocons and stay with the spider for a longer period of
time. They can wait endless in the spider net.
Best wishes,
Irina

Posted 21 March 2009 § Ants § Jumping Spiders ‡ Comments (0) ° Tagged: ,

Robber Fly eats Bee in Australia

Robber eats bee foodchain
Sun, Mar 8, 2009 at 11:34 PM
Hi guys,
This robberfly has caught itself a native bee. It is dull and windy here today with a cyclone off the coast so I took the flash with me and was quite pleased with the result. Hope you like it too.
aussietrev
Queensland, Australia

Robber Fly eats Bee

Robber Fly eats Bee

Hi Trevor,
Thanks for sending us a photo demonstrating your new technique. It looks like a studio portrait. We are a bit behind in our posting since we have embarked upon fulfilling a longtime desire to establish a home aquarium. This endeavor has occupied much of our free time since the cabinet needs to be stained and sealed before we can even begin to stock the aquarium with freshwater Amazon species.

Posted 10 March 2009 § Robber Flies ‡ Comments (0) ° Tagged: ,