Little wolf fly

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Little wolf fly
Little Wolf Fly (Molobratia teutonus)

Little Wolf Fly ( Molobratia teutonus )

Systematics
Class : Insects (Insecta)
Order : Fly (Diptera)
Family : Predator flies (Asilidae)
Subfamily : Dasypogoninae
Genre : Molobratia
Type : Little wolf fly
Scientific name
Molobratia teutonus
( Linnaeus , 1767)
Small wolf fly in a hedge

The little wolf fly ( Molobratia teutonus ) is a two-winged bird from the family of predatory flies (Asilidae).

features

Small wolf flies have a body length of 15 to 24 millimeters and thus belong to the large species in their family in Central Europe. The black base color of the abdomen is contrasted by a striking white markings; the thorax is also black with yellowish parts, the scutum being bordered by a yellow-dusted lateral stripe. The head has red antennae, the face is covered at the bottom by long, yellow-colored bristles in the upper half. The basic color of the legs is orange, the tarsi and joints of the thighs ( femora ) are colored black; the rails ( tibia ) of the first pair are almost entirely black, those of the rear pairs of legs, however, only terminally black. At the apical end of the splints of the forelegs there is a thorn-shaped extension.

Occurrence

The distribution area of ​​the species extends from Iran over Turkey and large parts of mainland Europe north to Sweden and east to central Russia. In Germany, the sites are mainly in the area of ​​the great rivers, with the northwestern German lowlands remaining uninhabited, but it has been proven in the Netherlands and Denmark.

Way of life

with prey

The flight time of the little wolf fly is between April and September. The species can be found on floodplain meadows, dams or on the edge of bushes near rivers. If the habitat is interfered with during its flight time, such as a meadow mowing, it is able to adapt to this by changing its location. The food of the lesser wolf fly consists mainly of hymenoptera , in addition various two-winged birds are also preyed on. Some authors state honey bees as preferred prey. In a study in Montenegro, they made up two thirds of the prey.

Taxonomy

The species was described by Carl von Linné as Asilus teutonus and placed by Frank Montgomery Hull in 1958 as a type species in the newly described genus Molobratia . The genus comprises 11 species that are mainly distributed in East Asia, Molobratia egregia occurs in the Caucasus, otherwise M. teutonus is the only European species of the genus. The species belongs to the Dasypogoninae subfamily. It can be distinguished from the other three species of the subfamily occurring in Germany by a clear thorn at the front (apical) end of the anterior ridge in combination with the yellow side stripes on the scutum.

Danger

In Germany today around two thirds of the historically documented occurrences are extinct. The species must therefore be regarded as endangered in terms of its population.

Web links

Commons : Small Wolf Fly ( Molobratia teutonus )  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ http://www.robberflies.info/keyger/html/keydasypogoninae.html#2
  2. ↑ http://www.naturspaziergang.de/Zweifluegler/Asilidae/Molobratia_teutonus.htm
  3. ↑ http://www.insektenbox.de/zweifl/klewol.htm
  4. ↑ Molobratia teutonus at Fauna Europaea. Retrieved February 4, 2015
  5. ↑ http://www.asilidae.de/index.htm?molotedm.htm
  6. ↑ Marieke Schouten, Aat Barendregt, Pita Verweij, Mark van Veen (2003): Roofviegenverspreiding in Nederland; trapsgewijs toenemende soortenrijkdom. Entomological Reports 63 (6): 157-164.
  7. ↑ Marie Nykjer Larsen & Rudolf Meier (2004): species diversity, distribution, and conservation status of the Asilidae (Insecta: Diptera) in Denmark. Steenstrupia 28 (2): 177-241.
  8. ↑ Flight times of predatory flies in Germany table at Asilidae.de | Download = 4. February 2015}
  9. ↑ a b Schmidt, E. (1933): About the prey of Dasypogon teutonus L. (Dipt. Asilid.). Communications from the German Entomological Society 4 (6): 95-96; Berlin.
  10. ^ Roger A. Morse & Richard Nowogrodzki: Honey Bee Pests, Predators and Diseases. Comstock Publishing, Ithaka and London. 2nd edition, 1990. ISBN 978-0801424069
  11. ↑ Akira Nagatomi, Hiroki Imaizumi, Hisako Nagatomi (1989): Revision of Molobratia from Japan and Taiwan (Insecta, Diptera, Asilidae): Taxonomy and Systematics. Zoological Science 6: 983-1003.
  12. ↑ Torsten Dikow (2009): A phylogenetic hypothesis for Asilidae based on a total evidence analysis of morphological and DNA sequence data (Insecta: Diptera: Brachycera: Asiloidea). Organisms, Diversity and Evolution 9: 165-188. doi : 10.1016 / j.ode.2009.02.004
  13. ^ Key to the Dasypogoninae by Fritz Geller-Grimm
  14. ↑ Wolff, D. (2011): Red list and total species list of predatory flies (Diptera: Asilidae) of Germany. - In: Binot-Hafke, M .; Balzer, S .; Becker, N .; Gruttke, H .; Haupt, H .; Hofbauer, N .; Ludwig, G .; Matzke-Hajek, G. & Strauch, M. (Red.): Red list of endangered animals, plants and fungi in Germany. Volume 3: Invertebrates (Part 1). - Münster (agricultural publisher). - Conservation and biodiversity 70 (3): 143-164. on-line