Thursday, May 5, 2011

Horse-Fly

Kingdom: Animalia

Phylum: Arthropoda

Class: Insecta

Order: Diptera

Suborder: Brachycera

Infraorder: Tabanomorpha

Superfamily: Tabanoidea

Family: Tabanidae

This is considered the world's largest true fly, with over 4,500 species worldwide they make up both important pollinators and human pests.

The horse fly feeds mainly on nectar and pollen but females require a blood meal for reproduction. The female uses its mandible to rip open the flesh of usually a mammal to get to the blood.

The eggs of the horse fly is laid nearby water on either a stone or vegetation where upon hatching the larvae will go into the water feeding on small invertebrates like snails and worms

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