34-529: A fly is any species of insect of the order Diptera. Flight is the process of flying. Fly may also refer to: Fly Housefly (Muscidae) (top left) Haematopota pluvialis (Tabanidae) (top right) Ctenophora pectinicornis (Tipulidae) (mid left) Ochlerotatus notoscriptus (Culicidae) (mid right) Milesia crabroniformis (Syrphidae) (bottom left) Holcocephala fusca (Asilidae) (bottom right) Nematocera ( paraphyletic ) (inc Eudiptera ) Brachycera Flies are insects of
68-456: A length of up to 7 cm (2.8 in), is generally considered to be the largest fly in the world, while the smallest is Euryplatea nanaknihali , which at 0.4 mm (0.016 in) is smaller than a grain of salt. Brachycera are ecologically very diverse, with many being predatory at the larval stage and some being parasitic. Animals parasitised include molluscs , woodlice , millipedes , insects, mammals , and amphibians . Flies are
102-433: A louse fly of the species Icosta americana was found with West Nile Virus infection from an American Kestrel . In some obsolete taxonomies, the name Hippoboscidae is applied to the group properly known as Pupipara , i.e. the present family plus the bat flies ( Nycteribiidae and " Streblidae "). They are called pupipara because the females birth live young, one at a time, that are deposited as late stage larvae called
136-405: A meal. For visual course control, flies' optic flow field is analyzed by a set of motion-sensitive neurons. A subset of these neurons is thought to be involved in using the optic flow to estimate the parameters of self-motion, such as yaw, roll, and sideward translation. Other neurons are thought to be involved in analyzing the content of the visual scene itself, such as separating figures from
170-401: A mobile head, with a pair of large compound eyes , and mouthparts designed for piercing and sucking (mosquitoes, black flies and robber flies), or for lapping and sucking in the other groups. Their wing arrangement gives them great manoeuvrability in flight, and claws and pads on their feet enable them to cling to smooth surfaces. Flies undergo complete metamorphosis ; the eggs are often laid on
204-447: A prepuparium that pupate immediately at birth. For the species Pseudolynchia canariensis, as well as other louse flies, reproduction is energetically expensive. Larvae feed on milk glands within the female fly prior to being deposited. Single offspring (pupae) can weigh more than an unfed emerged adult fly since the pupal casing is included in the pupal weight and teneral flies often put on mass after their first few blood meals. Two of
238-438: A variety of hosts. The larvae of the shore flies (Ephydridae) and some Chironomidae survive in extreme environments including glaciers ( Diamesa sp., Chironomidae ), hot springs, geysers, saline pools, sulphur pools, septic tanks and even crude oil ( Helaeomyia petrolei ). Adult hoverflies (Syrphidae) are well known for their mimicry and the larvae adopt diverse lifestyles including being inquiline scavengers inside
272-485: Is Spilomyia longicornis , which is a fly but mimics a vespid wasp. Flies have a mobile head with a pair of large compound eyes on the sides of the head, and in most species, three small ocelli on the top. The compound eyes may be close together or widely separated, and in some instances are divided into a dorsal region and a ventral region, perhaps to assist in swarming behaviour. The antennae are well-developed but variable, being thread-like, feathery or comb-like in
306-531: Is a wingless, reddish-brown fly that parasitizes sheep . The Neotropical deer ked, Lipoptena mazamae , is a common ectoparasite of white-tailed deer ( Odocoileus virginianus ) in the southeastern United States. Both winged and wingless forms may be seen. A common winged species is Hippobosca equina , called "the louse fly". Species in other genera are found on birds; for example, Ornithomya bequaerti has been collected from birds in Alaska . Two species of
340-547: Is one of the major insect orders and of considerable ecological and human importance. Flies are major pollinators, second only to the bees and their Hymenopteran relatives. Flies may have been among the evolutionarily earliest pollinators responsible for early plant pollination . Fruit flies are used as model organisms in research, but less benignly, mosquitoes are vectors for malaria , dengue , West Nile fever , yellow fever , encephalitis , and other infectious diseases ; and houseflies , commensal with humans all over
374-524: Is widely thought to be a member of Mecopterida , along with Lepidoptera (butterflies and moths), Trichoptera (caddisflies), Siphonaptera (fleas), Mecoptera (scorpionflies) and possibly Strepsiptera (twisted-wing flies). Diptera has been grouped with Siphonaptera and Mecoptera in the Antliophora, but this has not been confirmed by molecular studies. Diptera were traditionally broken down into two suborders, Nematocera and Brachycera , distinguished by
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#1732793675232408-631: The Jurassic , some 180 million years ago. A third radiation took place among the Schizophora at the start of the Paleogene , 66 million years ago. The phylogenetic position of Diptera has been controversial. The monophyly of holometabolous insects has long been accepted, with the main orders being established as Lepidoptera, Coleoptera, Hymenoptera and Diptera, and it is the relationships between these groups which has caused difficulties. Diptera
442-1071: The Mecopterida , alongside the Mecoptera , Siphonaptera , Lepidoptera and Trichoptera . The possession of a single pair of wings distinguishes most true flies from other insects with "fly" in their names. However, some true flies such as Hippoboscidae (louse flies) have become secondarily wingless. The cladogram represents the current consensus view. Hymenoptera (sawflies, wasps, ants, bees) [REDACTED] Raphidioptera (snakeflies) [REDACTED] Megaloptera (alderflies and allies) [REDACTED] Neuroptera (Lacewings and allies) [REDACTED] Coleoptera (beetles) [REDACTED] Strepsiptera (twisted-wing parasites) [REDACTED] Trichoptera (caddisflies) [REDACTED] Lepidoptera (butterflies, moths) [REDACTED] Diptera [REDACTED] Mecoptera (scorpionflies) [REDACTED] Siphonaptera (fleas) [REDACTED] The first true dipterans known are from
476-666: The Middle Triassic (around 240 million years ago), and they became widespread during the Middle and Late Triassic . Modern flowering plants did not appear until the Cretaceous (around 140 million years ago), so the original dipterans must have had a different source of nutrition other than nectar . Based on the attraction of many modern fly groups to shiny droplets, it has been suggested that they may have fed on honeydew produced by sap-sucking bugs which were abundant at
510-654: The Strepsiptera . In contrast to the flies, the Strepsiptera bear their halteres on the mesothorax and their flight wings on the metathorax. Each of the fly's six legs has a typical insect structure of coxa, trochanter, femur, tibia and tarsus, with the tarsus in most instances being subdivided into five tarsomeres . At the tip of the limb is a pair of claws, and between these are cushion-like structures known as pulvilli which provide adhesion. Hippoboscidae Hypoboscidae ( lapsus ) Hippoboscidae ,
544-437: The louse flies or keds , are obligate parasites of mammals and birds . In this family , the winged species can fly at least reasonably well, though others with vestigial or no wings are flightless and highly apomorphic . As usual in their superfamily Hippoboscoidea , most of the larval development takes place within the mother's body, and pupation occurs almost immediately. The sheep ked, Melophagus ovinus ,
578-570: The order Diptera , the name being derived from the Greek δι- di- "two", and πτερόν pteron "wing". Insects of this order use only a single pair of wings to fly, the hindwings having evolved into advanced mechanosensory organs known as halteres , which act as high-speed sensors of rotational movement and allow dipterans to perform advanced aerobatics. Diptera is a large order containing more than 150,000 species including horse-flies , crane flies , hoverflies , mosquitoes and others. Flies have
612-548: The thorax , bears the wings and contains the flight muscles on the second segment, which is greatly enlarged; the first and third segments have been reduced to collar-like structures, and the third segment bears the halteres , which help to balance the insect during flight. The third tagma is the abdomen consisting of 11 segments, some of which may be fused, and with the 3 hindmost segments modified for reproduction. Some Dipterans are mimics and can only be distinguished from their models by very careful inspection. An example of this
646-827: The Brachycera includes broader, more robust flies with short antennae. Many nematoceran larvae are aquatic. There are estimated to be a total of about 19,000 species of Diptera in Europe, 22,000 in the Nearctic region, 20,000 in the Afrotropical region, 23,000 in the Oriental region and 19,000 in the Australasian region. While most species have restricted distributions, a few like the housefly ( Musca domestica ) are cosmopolitan. Gauromydas heros ( Asiloidea ), with
680-610: The Hippoboscidae – Ornithoica (Ornithoica) podargi and Ornithomya fuscipennis are also common parasites of the tawny frogmouth ( Podargus strigoides ) of Australia. Pseudolynchia canariensis is commonly found on pigeons and doves , and can serve as the vector of "pigeon malaria" . Louse flies of birds may transmit other parasites such as those in the genus Plasmodium or other Haemoproteus parasites. Some evidence indicates that other Hippoboscidae can serve as vectors of disease agents to mammals. For example,
714-1403: The Nematocera. The construction of a phylogenetic tree has been the subject of ongoing research. The following cladogram is based on the FLYTREE project. Ptychopteromorpha (phantom and primitive crane-flies) [REDACTED] Culicomorpha (mosquitoes, blackflies and midges) [REDACTED] Blephariceromorpha (net-winged midges, etc) [REDACTED] Bibionomorpha (gnats) [REDACTED] Psychodomorpha (drain flies, sand flies, etc) [REDACTED] Tipulomorpha (crane flies) [REDACTED] Stratiomyomorpha (soldier flies, etc) [REDACTED] Xylophagomorpha (stink flies, etc) [REDACTED] Tabanomorpha (horse flies, snipe flies, etc) [REDACTED] Nemestrinoidea [REDACTED] Asiloidea (robber flies, bee flies, etc) [REDACTED] Empidoidea (dance flies, etc) [REDACTED] Aschiza (in part) Phoroidea (flat-footed flies, etc) [REDACTED] Syrphoidea (hoverflies) [REDACTED] Hippoboscoidea (louse flies, etc) [REDACTED] Muscoidea (house flies, dung flies, etc) [REDACTED] Oestroidea (blow flies, flesh flies, etc) [REDACTED] Acalyptratae (marsh flies, etc) [REDACTED] Flies are often abundant and are found in almost all terrestrial habitats in
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#1732793675232748-519: The antennae and the maxillary palps bear the main olfactory receptors, while the gustatory receptors are in the labium, pharynx, feet, wing margins and female genitalia, enabling flies to taste their food by walking on it. The taste receptors in females at the tip of the abdomen receive information on the suitability of a site for ovipositing. Flies that feed on blood have special sensory structures that can detect infrared emissions, and use them to home in on their hosts, Many blood-sucking flies can detect
782-404: The differences in antennae. The Nematocera are identified by their elongated bodies and many-segmented, often feathery antennae as represented by mosquitoes and crane flies. The Brachycera have rounder bodies and much shorter antennae. Subsequent studies have identified the Nematocera as being non-monophyletic with modern phylogenies placing the Brachycera within grades of groups formerly placed in
816-431: The different families. The mouthparts are adapted for piercing and sucking, as in the black flies, mosquitoes and robber flies, and for lapping and sucking as in many other groups. Female horse-flies use knife-like mandibles and maxillae to make a cross-shaped incision in the host's skin and then lap up the blood that flows. The gut includes large diverticulae , allowing the insect to store small quantities of liquid after
850-749: The flies, principally in the family Cecidomyiidae (gall midges). Many flies (most importantly in the family Agromyzidae) lay their eggs in the mesophyll tissue of leaves with larvae feeding between the surfaces forming blisters and mines. Some families are mycophagous or fungus feeding. These include the cave dwelling Mycetophilidae (fungus gnats) whose larvae are the only diptera with bioluminescence. The Sciaridae are also fungus feeders. Some plants are pollinated by fungus feeding flies that visit fungus infected male flowers. The larvae of Megaselia scalaris (Phoridae) are almost omnivorous and consume such substances as paint and shoe polish. The Exorista mella (Walker) fly are considered generalists and parasitoids of
884-527: The ground using motion parallax. The H1 neuron is responsible for detecting horizontal motion across the entire visual field of the fly, allowing the fly to generate and guide stabilizing motor corrections midflight with respect to yaw. The ocelli are concerned in the detection of changes in light intensity, enabling the fly to react swiftly to the approach of an object. Like other insects, flies have chemoreceptors that detect smell and taste, and mechanoreceptors that respond to touch. The third segments of
918-431: The larval food-source and the larvae, which lack true limbs, develop in a protected environment, often inside their food source. Other species are ovoviviparous , opportunistically depositing hatched or hatching larvae instead of eggs on carrion , dung, decaying material, or open wounds of mammals. The pupa is a tough capsule from which the adult emerges when ready to do so; flies mostly have short lives as adults. Diptera
952-419: The nests of social insects. Some brachycerans are agricultural pests, some bite animals and humans and suck their blood, and some transmit diseases. Flies are adapted for aerial movement and typically have short and streamlined bodies. The first tagma of the fly, the head, bears the eyes, the antennae , and the mouthparts (the labrum, labium, mandible, and maxilla make up the mouthparts). The second tagma,
986-406: The neural ganglia , and concentration of nerve tissue in the thorax, a feature that is most extreme in the highly derived Muscomorpha infraorder. Some flies such as the ectoparasitic Nycteribiidae and Streblidae are exceptional in having lost their wings and become flightless. The only other order of insects bearing a single pair of true, functional wings, in addition to any form of halteres, are
1020-405: The raised concentration of carbon dioxide that occurs near large animals. Some tachinid flies (Ormiinae) which are parasitoids of bush crickets , have sound receptors to help them locate their singing hosts. Diptera have one pair of fore wings on the mesothorax and a pair of halteres , or reduced hind wings, on the metathorax . A further adaptation for flight is the reduction in number of
1054-568: The second largest group of pollinators after the Hymenoptera (bees, wasps and relatives). In wet and colder environments flies are significantly more important as pollinators. Compared to bees, they need less food as they do not need to provision their young. Many flowers that bear low nectar and those that have evolved trap pollination depend on flies. It is thought that some of the earliest pollinators of plants may have been flies. The greatest diversity of gall forming insects are found among
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1088-606: The time, and dipteran mouthparts are well-adapted to softening and lapping up the crusted residues. The basal clades in the Diptera include the Deuterophlebiidae and the enigmatic Nymphomyiidae . Three episodes of evolutionary radiation are thought to have occurred based on the fossil record. Many new species of lower Diptera developed in the Triassic , about 220 million years ago. Many lower Brachycera appeared in
1122-473: The world apart from Antarctica. They include many familiar insects such as house flies, blow flies, mosquitoes, gnats, black flies, midges and fruit flies. More than 150,000 have been formally described and the actual species diversity is much greater, with the flies from many parts of the world yet to be studied intensively. The suborder Nematocera include generally small, slender insects with long antennae such as mosquitoes, gnats, midges and crane-flies, while
1156-607: The world, spread foodborne illnesses . Flies can be annoyances especially in some parts of the world where they can occur in large numbers, buzzing and settling on the skin or eyes to bite or seek fluids. Larger flies such as tsetse flies and screwworms cause significant economic harm to cattle. Blowfly larvae, known as gentles , and other dipteran larvae, known more generally as maggots , are used as fishing bait , as food for carnivorous animals, and in medicine in debridement , to clean wounds . Dipterans are holometabolans , insects that undergo radical metamorphosis. They belong to
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