Tumble flies
| Tumble flies | ||||||||||||
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Ganoderma Applanatum with teat Gallen |
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| Platypezidae | ||||||||||||
| Walker , 1884 | ||||||||||||
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The tumble flies (Platypezidae), also known as mushroom flies, flat feet or sole flies, are a family of the two-winged flies (Diptera). Within this they are assigned to the flies (Brachycera). Around 250 species of tumble flies are known worldwide, 23 of them in Germany. The flies are usually small and reach a body size between two and three millimeters.
features
The gobble flies are black or yellow, with the males often being darker than the females and having larger complex eyes that touch centrally. The feet ( tarsi ) of the last pair of legs are widened in many species and the males can also wear appendages in some North American species. The male genitals are pounded under the abdomen.
Way of life
The flies can often be found in large clusters on shady leaves in damp forests, where they "romp around" and thus get their name. They often fly up and down in flocks and let their legs dangle noticeably. Their zigzag course on leaves and on moist sandy soils is also typical.
Larval development
The larvae reach a body length of four to five millimeters and are often slice-shaped and yellowish to leather-brown in color. They have appendages typical of the species and are found mainly on mushrooms, especially tree mushrooms . However, they are also found in decaying deadwood , obviously only in deciduous trees . The pupae lie in the ground, with pieces of mushrooms often being present like cocoons. Presumably there are two generations a year, with the larvae of the second generation overwintering.
Systematics
The world's approximately 250 types of goblin flies are assigned to 14 genera. These flies have been known to be fossilized since the Jurassic , 11 fossil species have been found so far, which are classified into nine genera.
The best-known type of tumble flies is the teat gall fly ( Agathomyia wankowiczii ), in which the larvae in cone-shaped teat galls on the underside appear to live exclusively from the tree sponge Ganoderma applanatum . The larva leaves the bile through a hole at the tip of the same and pupates on or in the ground. Other common species are members of the genus Platypeza , e.g. B. Platypeza consobrina .
literature
- PJ Chandler: The Flat-footed Flies (Diptera: Opetiidae and Platypezidae) of Europe. (= Fauna Entomologica Scandinavica. 36). Brill, 2000, ISBN 90-04-12023-8
- K. Honomichl, H. Bellmann: Biology and ecology of the insects. CD-ROM. Gustav Fischer Verlag, Stuttgart 1994
