Horsefly, or summer troublemaker: description, types, interesting details of life and harm

Gadfly, being a blood-sucking insect, in the warm season gives inconvenience to both animals and people. Many are familiar with his obsessive buzz and painful bites. In hot weather, away from cities, horseflies launch real attacks, interfering with comfortable outdoor recreation or work on a personal plot. They annoy and cattle. What is this insect and why does it attack?

Insect description

According to the biological classification, horsefly is an insect from the order Diptera and suborder Short-billed (lat. Tabanidae). This is a whole family, whose representatives around the globe number approximately 4400 species, classified into 200 genera. In the CIS, 200 species are registered.

Horseflies attract attention, first of all, as one of the components of the midges, because pregnant females need to eat blood. The substances secreted by a bite cause a negative reaction of the body: allergies, inflammation, irritation.

Gnome is a species of insect from the order of dipterans, which suck blood in mammals. In addition to horseflies, ordinary mosquitoes, the exotic tsetse fly, etc.

The body of horseflies is very compact. The length of individuals depends on the species: from 0.6 cm in Haematopota koryoensis to 3 cm, as in Tabanus chrysurus. In the West, these large horseflies received the popular nickname "Black Flying Horse" for their impressive dimensions. The torso is flattened neatly in the abdomen. The flying ability of the insect is provided by 2 wide wings.

The body of horsefly is protected by a thin cover of chitin. Its layer is thicker on the chest and head. The degree of pubescence of an insect depends on its type. Biologists have revealed a pattern according to which the inhabitants of the steppes and deserts have shorter villi than those living in the mountains. The color of horseflies does not attract attention: muted shades of gray, brown, yellow color prevail in it, therefore horsefly merges with the environment.
The thoracic region is wide and massive. Its surface is covered with microscopic villi of small thickness, sitting close to each other, due to which dense pubescence is formed. Wide wings are attached to the middle part of the horsefly chest. In some specimens, they are completely transparent, while in others they are decorated with veins that create a mesh pattern, or are decorated with light gray spots. The rear pair of wings is today a vestige. It is transformed into special hummers, similar in shape to pins with a round head, designed for sewing.

Thanks to the buzzers, the fly balances during the flight and makes a characteristic sound, which certainly accompanies its appearance.

Horseflies have a rather large proboscis of an armed type, hiding sharp stilettos inside themselves. The oral apparatus is equipped with palps, antennae, and mandibles; and its structure allows you to both eat plant foods and drink blood from large animals.

Is the name of the insect justified?

To people who are not previously interested in the life features of this insect, it may seem that it is blind or at best has not very good eyesight. In fact, everything is completely different: these blood-sucking flies see perfectly.

The eyes of horseflies are faceted, rather large in size, located on the sides of the head. The insect has color vision. It is difficult to distinguish between small details of the surrounding world, but it instantly reacts to flickering rays of light. The surface of the eyes of horsefly shimmers with various colors of the rainbow; sometimes covered with small but dense villi.

Some members of the family have 3 additional ocelli, which have a simple structure and are located on special tubercles in the crown of the head. Others have only elevations, but their organs of vision are absent. The remaining horseflies do not even have tubercles.

If you carefully consider the eye area, you can determine the gender of the individual. A sign of the female is the presence of a vertical strip on the forehead, dividing large faceted eyes. In males, this feature is absent. But their abdomen is sharpened towards the end, which facilitates the discrimination of horseflies on the floor.

Common species

Although the species diversity of the subfamily is large, in temperate climates such species of horseflies are more common as:

1. Bull flies live throughout Europe. It differs in large dimensions, because it reaches a length of 2.5 cm. When flying, it emits a loud buzz. The chest of bull flies is decorated with dark stripes and yellow hair, while the body of the insect is dirty brown. Representatives of this species are met even at an altitude of 2 km above sea level.
2. The gold-eyed horsefly, which is also called motley, does not exceed 1.5 cm in length. It differs from its relatives in a bright, almost contrasting color: black chest in combination with yellow blotches on the abdomen. But the real wealth of the insect is attractive eyes, painted in shades of emerald and gold, effectively shimmering in the sun.
3. The gadfly raincoat looks more ordinary: its faded color can not be called smart. But the insect has a significant difference from its counterparts: its activity increases in cloudy weather, while other horseflies prefer sunny days.

These are the three most popular varieties of horseflies that can be encountered in the CIS countries.

Horsefly life

Where do horseflies live? They live on all continents of the world with the exception of Antarctica. They can not be found on some remote islands, separated from the mainland: Iceland and Greenland. The largest number of horseflies (and, interestingly, also by species diversity) are found in wetlands, on the borders of different zones, not far from pastures and corrals of livestock. Also, the number of insects increases as you approach the settlements.

These blood-sucking flies feel good in bright forests, fields, steppes, as well as in deserts and on mountain slopes. Horseflies are crowded to ponds where there is necessary moisture. The larvae of most species develop in water. Adults spend most of their life in flight, well guided by the terrain. They like sunny and hot weather, therefore they are most active in the daytime during the summer days.

Food

The horsefly diet depends on the phase of its development and gender. Insect larvae consume invertebrate animals that live in water or soil. The food of adult specimens, called adults, varies: males feed only on plant products (nectar of flowers, plant sap) or “milk” from aphids, and a fertilized female is literally bloodthirsty. For her life, animal blood is needed - up to 200 mg in one “intake”. While the female does not expect offspring, it can exist on plant foods.

Females can feed on carrion: the corpses of animals that died 1-3 days ago. Because of this, insects become carriers of infectious diseases.

Do not mind tasting human blood. This makes them attack people. Therefore, everyone who, in the midst of summer in sunny weather, was in nature near the reservoir, probably remembers how to bite horseflies.

Breeding

Care for procreation and breeding in bloodsucking flies begins in the warm season. The exact period depends on the climate of the area and the specific type of insect. The way horseflies breed is identical with the type of propagation in dipterans. Under favorable circumstances, heterosexual individuals mate, and after a while makes masonry. Pregnant female horseflies need to be fed the blood of warm-blooded animals.

Horsefly development takes place in 4 stages:

1. The eggs. One female can lay from 400 to 1000 pieces. The eggs are elongated.
2. Larvae. They are spindle-shaped, have no limbs.
3. Dolly. Looks like a butterfly doll.
4. The imago is an adult insect. How many horseflies live depends on the species. But their age cannot be called long: it usually lasts one summer.

The total duration of horsefly from laying eggs to the death of adults is up to 4 years.

Is horsefly harmful to humans?

Horsefly often bites people. Insect saliva causes a painful reaction on the skin. Some suffer from allergies to the bites of bloodsucking flies, and then the affected area is very swollen. Together with saliva, toxic substances that cause pain and swelling, and anticoagulants that prevent blood coagulation, enter the wound. Horseflies are especially dangerous in themselves as carriers of infectious diseases. Therefore, if the temperature rises after the attack, you should seek medical help.

Knowing how horsefly looks, you can distinguish it from other insects. It is difficult to avoid meeting him on clear summer days. During the period of gestation by the female flies of the offspring, they are extremely aggressive and often attack people. To repel horseflies, insecticides in the form of a spray or aerosol are used, and special traps are also built in the areas.