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What's That Bug? does not endorse extermination

Louse Fly, AKA Ked

What’s this bug?
I found this crawling on my goats and wondering what it is. I am in Vermont. Thanks
Chas

Ed. Note: After a very embarassing misidentification that we thankfully did not post, Chas sent us the following response. While researching, we found his images posted to BugGuide with a dialog series of responses debating Sheep Ked, Melophagus ovinus, versus Deer Ked, Lipoptena cervi.

Daniel,
Thanks for your help. … One of the other suggestions I have had is a Ked in the Family Hippoboscidae, Lipoptena cervi or Melophagus ovinus. If it is one of these keds, it’s important for me to find out wich one to decide if it is a real problem to my goats…. No apologies necessary. I really appreciate you lending your knowledge and experience on the topic. So you agree with the deer ked ID? I am trying to figure out if they are something to worry about. From what I understand the deer ked can only reproduce on deer, but not other mammals. I do wonder if my goats are close enough to deer to be a suitable host, though. There is also a similar bug, the sheep ked, that might be more of a problem for my goats. But I checked the goats closely today and I didn’t find any more keds and no sign of sheep ked (pupa or the blood waste from adults), so I think we are probably all right. Thanks for your help.
Chas

Hi Again Chas,
We don’t possess the necessary skill to identify this Louse Fly to the species level. Louse Flies are true flies that resemble ticks. We do have some information from Hogue’s book, Insects of the Los Angeles Basis, that in a general way, might be helpful. There are many species of Louse Flies, and some are even parasitic on birds. They are ectoparasites, and feed on blood. Here is some of Hogue’s information: “Upon emerging from the pupa, this fly – which possesses wings that are fully developed although fragile – flies among the trees or shrubs in search of the host (it can survive at this stage for only a few days in the absence of the normal host). Upon successfully finding a deer, it immediately crawls through the hair to the skin and begins to suck blood. Here it remains as a permanent parasite, soon losing its wings through wear. … All Louse Flies are blood suckers, although none feeds regularly on humans. They may transmit disease between wild animals but not to and between people. Development of these flies is of a special type: the larva is not free-living but matures within the body of the female parent. When the puparium is formed, the female deposits it on the host whence it soon falls off onto the ground.” So, chances are very good that whatever the species, your Louse Fly will not become an infestation.

Posted 22 November 2007 § ‡ Comments (0) °

Variegated Fritillary, Buckeye, and Drone Flies

flies, bee mimics, and butterflies
This was taken in my garden a week or so ago in Nottingham, Pa. It gets southern exposure, so it was pretty warm in the sun. This yellow mum, which smelled so good, attracted LOTS of attention. it was covered in some sort of bee mimic flies, many butterflies, small black flies, house flies, and little flies that looked like sweat bees. None of the different species seemed to care about the others, except to compete for what little nectar was there. I hope you can identify some of these for me. thanks,
Lee Weber

Hi Again Lee,
The butterflies are relatively easy. First, we rotated your image, so you should see the site. At the top is a Variegated Fritillary, Euptoieta claudia. At the bottom is a Common Buckeye, Junonia coenia. Also at the bottom with close wings is what appears to be a Common Cabbage Butterfly, Pieris rapae. The large bee mimics are Drone Flies, Eristalis tenax. Thanks so much for sending such a rich and wonderful image.

Posted 17 November 2007 § ‡ Comments (0) °

Crane Fly: Pedicia albivitta

unusual insect
Hi
I have been looking for this picture for some time now and found it tonight. I live in Northwestern Ontario, Canada just outside of Kakabeka Falls. This beautiful flying insect showed up in August and I have not seen one like it since. I really enjoy your site and have it bookmarked so I can visit often. Have gone through some of your bug info lists but don’t know where to start with this one. Thanks in advance if you can identify it.
Dave

Hi Dave,
This is a Crane Fly, and we matched it to Pedicia albivitta on the Crane Flies of Pennsylvania website. We agree that it is a beautiful specimen.

Posted 14 November 2007 § Crane Fly ‡ Comments (0) °
What's That Bug? does not endorse extermination

Deer Fly

Fly?
Hey,
I am from Atlantic Canada and this summer I went camping with a friend and this little fly wouldn’t leave me alone. It wasn’t interested in my blood because the few times it landed on me it just stayed there and didn’t move. I was able to get tis picture of it and noticed the odd coloration in its eyes. You have any ideas?
Janita Sullivan

Hi Janita,
Your photo is so pretty. We don’t recognize the species of fly. We haven’t pestered Eric Eaton for an identification in a bit, so we will contact him. Here is Eric’s response: “Hi, Daniel: Neat images! The fly is one of the deer flies in the genus Chrysops (family Tabanidae, which includes the horse flies). Personally, I think the psychedelic eyes are a way of mezmerizing their victims (they slice and dice, then lap up the blood that flows from the wound). Deer flies tend to go for the head of human victims, so simply wearing a hat will help discourage them. Keep up the great work! Eric”

Posted 06 November 2007 § ‡ Comments (0) °

Two Maggots: Rat Tailed Maggot and Leatherback, a Caddisfly Nymph and a Burying Beetle all from Alaska

Alaskan Backyard ‘Bugs’
Hi! You guys are my new heros! I love the site and I don’t know how I’ve missed it before! I am going to be a regular viewer from now on! Without going through ALL your pix I thought you might like these to do with what you will. I am an amateur bug enthusiast (with only a BFA) that has been fortunate enough to periodically get gigs designing exhibits revolving around arthropods. (LA Zoo’s ‘Spider City’ is one of my designs, as is Santa Barbara Zoo’s ‘EEW’ (not my title)). Another exhibit that you may find amusing (it’s my personal favorite) can be found at www.drentomo.com . It’s cool (in more ways than one) to be able to design from my little studio on the bluffs overlooking Kachemak bay here in Homer, Alaska, then head down to the float plane pond to look for fresh water invertebrates then cruise over to the beach to check out the intertidal inverts. With a tidal range of 27 feet there is some cool stuff there for sure. The ones I find most interesting are the terrestrial inverts (collembolids, rove beetles and pseudoscorpions etc) that make their home at around the mean tide line so that they are submered in salt water (albeit in airbubbles in cracks and old barnacle shells) for 6 hours or more a day! But I ramble on… Anyway, keep up the amazing work! Cheers!
DeWaine Tollefsrud
www.arcticstarstudios.net
Tipulid “Crane fly”, Nicrophorus sp., Caddis Fly, Rat-Tail Maggot” Such an ugly common name for Syrphid young

Rat Tailed Maggot Leatherback


Hi DeWaine,
Thanks for the awesome letter. We don’t normally like posting so many different kinds of insects with one letter as it complicates our archiving process, but we are making an exception in your case. We are fond of the common name for Cranefly Larvae, which is Leatherbacks. The Caddisfly Nymph, both in and out if its case, is a nice addition to our site.

Caddisfly Nymph Burying Beetle

Posted 21 October 2007 § Caddisflies § Carrion Beetles § Maggots ‡ Comments (0) ° Tagged:

Mexican Robber Fly

Possible Brachonid Wasp
Hi,
I saw this Wasp-like insect this morning through my kitchen window near Benson, Arizona. It is large (maybe 2 – 3"), orange body, dark wings, white face with short red antenae. Two photos of this insect attached. I searched your pic and think this is in the Brachonid Wasp family. Thank you,
Carol Breton
Benson, Arizona

Hi Carol,
This is a Robber Fly, not a Brachonid Wasp. It sure looks like on of the Hanging Thieves in the genus Diogmites, but there are no exact species matches on BugGuide. We will contact Eric Eaton and Martin Hauser to see if either of them knows the species.

Update: (09/26/2007)
Hi Daniel,
I sent the pics to Eric Fisher, who knows everything about robbers (only the flying ones). He told me it is Archilestris magnificus (Walker), a Mexican species which has been only a few times collected in Arizon, but nowhere else in the US… It is not really a hanging thief, but it sure looks like one. Great catch! Cheers
Martin Hauser

Comment: (09/26/2007)
Wow! Hey, I think a friend of mine got one across the border in Nogales, Sonora, Mexico back in 1989. We were on vacation together, and this big robber fly was trying to get out of a storefront window. So my friend paid the dude for the fly! LOL! Wish I would have tried to outbid him:-) Hope we can get these images migrated over to Bugguide, as I’m sure it would be a new genus and species….but I also know how busy you are, Daniel. Maybe Eric Fisher can take a look at our Bugguide asilids and confirm IDs?
Eric Eaton

Posted 23 September 2007 § Robber Flies ‡ Comments (1) °

Flesh Fly gives viviparous birth to Maggots while in the death throes of an Ambush Bug!!!

ambush bug with flesh fly
Hello,
I’ve spent quite a bit of time on your site in recent months, trying to identify arthropods of all kinds. One I’ve found especially fascinating is the ambush bug–what a formidable hunter!! Several days ago, I was astonished to find one with a Silver-spotted Skipper, quite a large catch for such a small bug. Today, spotted one with a flesh fly. My goal was a good photo of the ambush bug, not the flesh fly; unfortunately, the near constant breezes of the last week are not conducive to ultra-sharp pictures. I almost deleted the picture, but then something caught my attention. The fly, in her death throes, had given birth. Just yesterday, in thumbing through my new Kaufman’s "Field Guide to Insects of N.A., read that some flies, including flesh flies, are viviparous. If you like, you may post the attached picture. Thanks for all you do. Between your site, BugGuide & my new Kaufman’s, I’m happily IDing most of my arthropod photographs. Sincerely,
Linda

Hi Linda,
Your photograph is quite wonderful, even though your primary objective is not as visible as you might hope. Try to remember that the excellent camouflage of the Ambush Bug is key to its success as a predator. We will be archiving your image on numerous pages, including flies, maggots, true bugs and food chain.

Posted 22 September 2007 § ‡ Comments (0) °

Hunchback Bee Fly

Interesting fly…?
Hello!
I came across this interesting insect in the Big Hammock Natural Area along the Altamaha River in Georgia. These shots were taken mid September along the river. I thought it may have been some sort of fly, but the antennae and abdomen seemed curious to me. I can only see one set of wings in the photo and it flew too fast for me to tell if it had more than a pair. I believe the plant in the photo is Rabbit Tobacco (Pseudognaphlium obtusifolium). This plant was almost completely covered by lovebugs. I’ve never come across something like this, any idea?
Anthony

Hi Anthony,
This is a Hunchback Bee Fly which we identified on BugGuide. We suspect the species is Lepidophora lutea because of the yellow scales on the forth segment of the abdomen. The larvae are parasites on solitary wasps.

Posted 21 September 2007 § ‡ Comments (0) °

Cactus Fly, not a Marsh Fly

Summer visitor to chapparal country in Southern California
First of all, I love your website. The variety of life on this planet is more fantastic than any other I’ve visited (at least in recent memory)! My wife and I have long wondered about a winged insect that shows up each year as the weather warms. It seems to like red wine; whenever we go in the backyard with a glass they seem to end up treating our glasses as their personal spa. Since it’s quite dark and looks a bit like the villains in the ‘Babylon 5′ TV series, we call them ‘Shadow Bugs’. They don’t seem harmful; at least they haven’t bitten us yet! We live on the edge of a rocky hill covered in chapparal (cactus, sage, and other desert shrubs). My wife grew up very near here, but in a more urban area and never saw one until we moved to our current house. I would estimate that this critter is between 3/4 of an inch and 1 inch long. In hopes that you can tell us what they are I’m enclosing two pictures. Thanks!
jeff fielding
orange, california

Hi Jeff,
After doing some research, we believe this to be a Marsh Fly in the genus Sepedon. We located some images on BugGuide that look very similar. Perhaps some expert will write in with an exact species.

Correction: Cactus Fly
Provided by Eric Eaton (09/23/2007)
Daniel:
The “marsh fly” is actually a “cactus fly” in the family Neriidae. Fantastic image! We could use it over at Bugguide, as this family is under-represented. Larvae of these insects develop in rotting cacti.
Eric

Correction
(09/23/2007) Maybe a Marsh Fly – not a marsh fly
Hi guys,
I enjoy the site. Your “Maybe a Marsh Fly” from 9/21/2007 is actually a Cactus Fly – Odontoloxozus longicornis. The larvae hang out in decaying cactus. Interesting that the adults like red wine, I’ll forced to experiment with that. Darn. Cheers,
Michael W.

Posted 21 September 2007 § ‡ Comments (0) °

Soldier Fly Perhaps

Unknown Green Fly
This picture taken 2007-09-19 in Kenner (near New Orleans), Louisiana. I have used you site and information but I have been unable to identify this fly. Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Ron M

Hi Ron,
Your fly resembles a species of Soldier Fly pictured on BugGuide, Hedriodiscus binotatus. We are guessing that it is either the same species or something closely related. We hope to get confirmation from Eric Eaton.

Correction
(09/23/2007)
Dear Daniel,
the green fly is more likely Odontomyia cincta. http://bugguide.net/node/view/53711 But the whole group of Odontomyia, etc is very difficult and there are many open questions and a revision of these beautiful flies is needed. It might be strange for you that I can ID an unusual Australian fly, but that I have problems with a common US species… but there has been not enough good work here and amongst specialist, we think that only 30% of all US Diptera are described… So a lot to do in future… You have a great website and I would love to help you ou with identifications in future! Best wishes,
Martin

Posted 19 September 2007 § ‡ Comments (0) ° Tagged:

Bathroom Fly

What’s This Bug?
Bugman:
I live in the San Joaquin Valley in California, and these "flies" are mainly outside and in the garage, although they do not hesitate to enter the house if the opportunity arises. They seem to be sitting around more than they actually fly. When disturbed (like trying to take their picture) they fly a short distance and begin sitting again. I would appreciate your input. Thank you
George

Hi George,
This is a Bathroom Fly, so called since they are often found in bathrooms. The eggs are laid in pipes and the larval flies exist in the sludge caught in drainage pipes. A sewer in your garage would explain their presence.

Posted 09 September 2007 § ‡ Comments (0) °

Rodent Bot Fly Maggot (and it’s edible)

Squirrel insect
These grubs or insects showed up in my cabin along with a dead squirrel the cat brought in. Could be that its a coincidence or perhaps the cat brought them as an additional gift. The insects were not on the squirrel. Can you help me identify these so I can decide weather they a friend or foe.
Rick in Western Colorado

Hi Rick
Here is one sure to gross out our readership. These are Rodent Bot Fly Maggots, Cuterebra species. The Rodent Bot Fly is a mammalian endoparasite. According to a website we located: “The female flies will lay their eggs along rabbit trails and near rodent burrows. The first stage larvae will hatch and quickly attach to hair when a host brushes against the egg. The larvae then burrow into the skin and leave a breathing hole. ” Also on the website is the information: “Cuterebra is a normal bot fly of rodents and rabbits, but can also infect cats, dogs, and man. The adult fly looks like a bumblebee and is rarely seen. It may appear a shiny blue or black color. The third stage larva is dark brown to black with stout black spines. ” Your close-up photo shows the mouth hooks of the maggot, substantiated by this image on BugGuide. Bot Flies are also known as Warble Flies due to the lumps visible on the skin of the hapless host. There is also a Human Bot Fly, Dermatobia hominis, that is found in Central America.

Wolves on Rabbits
(08/15/2007)
Daniel…
After just reading your description of the bot fly larvae, I’m wondering…at certain times of the year (usually late summer, early fall) when my father would go rabbit hunting, (we actually depended on them for food in the ’50’s), they would sometimes get rabbits with what they then called ‘wolves’ in their necks and we were not allowed to use them for a food source. Could it be that I’ve learned after all these years that these were actually bot fly larvae? I large lump would most times be visible. Does this actually damage the meat for human consumption? Thanks for taking the time to read my query and if you have time to answer, that would be great, but if you don’t, I understand…. Sincerely,
Pat, Hawk Point

Hi Pat,
It sounds like your rabbits with wolves were parasitized by a Bot Fly. The meat near the wolf or warble might be unsavory, but cooking the meat would definitely kill the parasite.

Joanne Gets Sick!!!(08/15/2007) The Rodent Bot Fly
Will you pay for cleaning my nice leather recliner cuz I just barfed on it.
Joanne

Close Encounter with a Human Bot Fly!!!
(08/15/2007) Human Bot Fly experience
Hello fellow bug-nuts,
Your recent posting of the rodent bot fly larvae brought back some interesting memories. I brought an unexpected souvenir home from a trip to Costa Rica in ‘00. You guessed it. Luckily, I’d read about these critters. Made me the hit of my local doctor’s office. I actually printed a page from a Canadian website and brought it along in to prove I knew what I was talking about. It is a very weird sensation to feel these beasts move when they’re in your flesh (mine was in the flab of my upper left arm). You can actually feel the bristles they anchor themselves with as they twist about. The research I did told me the adult female bots actually wrestle a mosquito down and lay an egg on the mosquito’s abdomen. Then the mosquito bites a host, the egg on her belly hatches (very quickly, apparently), and the newborn enters the mosquito’s bite site. My research also gave me the bot’s larval timeline, so I knew how long I had, and how insistent to be at the doctor’s office. Love your site! I check it every day.
Don J. Dinndorf
St. Augusta, MN

Bot Fly Larvae are Edible
edibility update on bot fly
Hi Daniel,
Just to keep the gross-out fest going, and to answer Pat’s question: I’m pretty sure that NO, the presence of bot fly larvae would not render the host animal inedible. There’s a good deal of documentation [as recent as 1918] of Inuit hunters taking down caribou that were infested with large fly larvae, and then making a point of cooking and eating the larvae first. Not sure if I could do it, especially considering the textural issue of those rough, stubble-like projections all over the larvae’s sides, but the point is that if some people enjoyed eating the actual flesh-consuming maggots, then eating the rest of the animal would not be a big deal. Reluctance to do so is pure ‘fussiness’ on our part. Best,
Dave
www.slshrimp.com

Posted 15 August 2007 § Maggots ‡ Comments (0) ° Tagged:

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