Arachnocampa luminosa | |
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Glowworm (Arachnocampa luminosa) and silk snares | |
Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Arthropoda |
Class: | Insecta |
Order: | Diptera |
Family: | Keroplatidae |
Genus: | Arachnocampa |
Species: | A. luminosa |
Binomial name | |
Arachnocampa luminosa (Skuse, 1891) | |
Synonyms | |
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Arachnocampa luminosa (Skuse, 1891), commonly known as New Zealand glowworm or simply glowworm, is a species of fungus gnat endemic to New Zealand. The larval stage and the imago produce a blue-green bioluminescence. [2] The species is known to dwell in caves and on sheltered banks in native bush where humidity is high. [3] Its Māori name is titiwai, meaning "projected over water".[ citation needed ]
The first written record of the species dates from 1871 when it was collected from a gold mine in New Zealand's Thames region. At first it was thought to be related to the European glowworm beetle ( Lampyris noctiluca ) but, in 1886, a Christchurch teacher showed it was a larva of a gnat, not a beetle. [2] The species was first formally described in 1891 with the species name Bolitiphila luminosa and was assigned to the family Mycetophilidae. [4] In 1924, it was placed within a new genus of its own, Arachnocampa, because the wing venation of the adults and the behaviour of the larvae differed significantly from other Bolitophila fly species.
Arachnocampa luminosa is widespread in both the North and the South Island of New Zealand although populations generally occur in cave systems and in native bush where prey species are available and humidity is high. Some sites have become popular destinations for tourists wanting to see the glowworms. These include the caves in Waitomo, Waipu, Inglewood and Te Ana-au, [2] [5] and also in areas of native vegetation such as the Wellington Botanical Gardens. [6]
The spherical eggs (0.75mm in diameter) are usually deposited directly onto the cave wall. Upon hatching, the cylindrical larva immediately begins to glow. When they first emerge they are usually between 3 and 5 millimeters long, and will grow to between 30 and 40mm across several months. The larva may move around on the surface of the cave or bank before selecting a site to begin producing its silk nest. [2] Most larvae emerge during the spring. [7]
The larva spins a nest out of silk on the ceiling of the cave and then hangs down up to 30 silk threads along which it regularly places small sticky droplets. [8] Their prey largely include other small Diptera (especially midges) [7] although glowworm living on banks may also trap spiders and other non-flying invertebrates. [8] When prey is entangled in a snare, the larva pulls it up by ingesting the snare and starts feeding on the prey alive. [9]
After five larval instars, [7] the larva will suspend itself on a long thread and pupates over up to 24 hours. The pupal phase lasts about two weeks. During this time, the pupa continue to glow although males eventually lose their glow. The adults which eventually emerge are poor fliers. [2] Adults usually emerge during the winter and tend to live for up to 76 hours in the case of females and up to 96 hours in the case of males. [7] Females usually lay over 100 eggs and eggs usually hatch after about 20 days. [2]
Sources of mortality for glowworms include predation by cave harvestmen (including the short-legged harvestmen, Hendea myersi cavernicola , and the long-legged harvestmen, Megalopsalis tumida), parasitic fungi ( Tolypocladium sp.), and possibly cannibalism when adults become entangled in other larvae's silk threads although evidence is mixed. [7] [8]
This luminescent species resides in dark, cool and damp places such as caves and their diet is predatory, they use their bluish green glow to lure in their prey. [8] Compared to other caves the Temperature and Humidity inside the Glowworm Cave are atypical. When comparing climatic data from 1977–80 and 1955 it is shown that the cave was more stable in 1955 than it is now, this increase in climatic variability is thought to be due to the fact that in 1975 the entrance was unblocked forcing the cave to behave as a wind tunnel. [7]
The behavior observed of both the pupae and adult New Zealand glowworm has shown that the longest stage that the Arachnocampa goes through is its larval stage which can last up to a year. Females of A. luminosa are the ones that are actually luminescent but it is still unknown whether or not the female's light is what attracts a male opposed to pheromones, especially when it could possibly be both. Their eyes are designed to function well with the spectral range that covers UV to green wavelengths. Adult A. luminosa are not very good fliers and they only live for a few days, on top of that they do not feed either. [10]
The larvae of this species glow to attract prey into their threads. [8] The glow has a maximum wavelength of 487 nm [11] and, like other species exhibiting bioluminescence, this glow is produced as a result a luciferase enzyme acting upon a small molecule of luciferin. [12] It occurs in modified excretory organs known as Malpighian tubules in the abdomen. [13] The luciferase enzyme in this species shares similarities with the protein that occurs in fireflies. However, the luciferin that the enzyme acts upon is entirely different to that of fireflies and, indeed, other currently known bioluminescent systems. [12]
The pupae and adults of this species also produce light although the purpose is not clear. One suggestion has been that the light allows adult males to find potential mates. [14] However, there is little evidence to support this. [15] It is possible that the bioluminescence in adults is simply a carry-over from the larval form because the Malpighian tubules are unaffected during metamorphosis. [16]
The Lampyridae are a family of elateroid beetles with more than 2,000 described species, many of which are light-emitting. They are soft-bodied beetles commonly called fireflies, lightning bugs, or glowworms for their conspicuous production of light, mainly during twilight, to attract mates. Light production in the Lampyridae is thought to have originated as an honest warning signal that the larvae were distasteful; this was co-opted as a mating signal in the adults. In a further development, female fireflies of the genus Photuris mimic the flash pattern of Photinus species to trap their males as prey.
The Melba Gully State Park was formed to protect a small pocket of natural temperate rainforest in the Otway Ranges near Apollo Bay, Victoria, Australia. The 48-hectare (120-acre) park is extremely valuable as one of the few pockets of natural old-growth Otway Ranges rainforests to survive the logging and subsequent fires, making it a key part of the regeneration of the original Otway Ranges rainforests. The park now forms part of the Great Otway National Park.
Bioluminescence is the production and emission of light by living organisms. It is a form of chemiluminescence. Bioluminescence occurs widely in marine vertebrates and invertebrates, as well as in some fungi, microorganisms including some bioluminescent bacteria, and terrestrial arthropods such as fireflies. In some animals, the light is bacteriogenic, produced by symbiotic bacteria such as those from the genus Vibrio; in others, it is autogenic, produced by the animals themselves.
A railroad worm is a larva or larviform female adult of a beetle of the genus Phrixothrix in the family Phengodidae, characterized by the possession of two different colors of bioluminescence. It has the appearance of a caterpillar. The eleven pairs of luminescent organs on their second thoracic segment through their ninth abdominal segment can glow yellowish-green, while the pair on their head can glow red; this is due to different luciferases in their bodies, as the reaction substrate, called luciferin, is the same.
Glowworm or glow-worm is the common name for various groups of insect larvae and adult larviform females that glow through bioluminescence. They include the European common glow-worm and other members of the Lampyridae, but bioluminescence also occurs in the families Elateridae, Phengodidae and Rhagophthalmidae among beetles; as well as members of the genera Arachnocampa, Keroplatus and Orfelia among keroplatid fungus gnats.
The Malpighian tubule system is a type of excretory and osmoregulatory system found in some insects, myriapods, arachnids and tardigrades.
Arachnocampa is a genus of nine fungus gnat species which have a bioluminescent larval stage, akin to the larval stage of glowworm beetles. The species of Arachnocampa are endemic to Australia and New Zealand, dwelling in caves and grottos, or sheltered places in forests.
Fungus gnats are small, dark, short-lived gnats, of the families Sciaridae, Diadocidiidae, Ditomyiidae, Keroplatidae, Bolitophilidae, and Mycetophilidae ; they comprise six of the seven families placed in the superfamily Sciaroidea.
Mycetophilidae is a family of small flies, forming the bulk of those species known as fungus gnats. About 3000 described species are placed in 150 genera, but the true number of species is undoubtedly much higher. They are generally found in the damp habitats favoured by their host fungi and sometimes form dense swarms.
The Sciaridae are a family of flies, commonly known as dark-winged fungus gnats. Commonly found in moist environments, they are known to be a pest of mushroom farms and are commonly found in household plant pots. This is one of the least studied of the large Diptera families, probably due to the small size of these insects and the similarity among species.
The Waitomo Glowworm Caves attraction is a cave at Waitomo on the North Island of New Zealand. It is known for its population of Arachnocampa luminosa, a glowworm species found exclusively in New Zealand. This cave is part of the waitomo streamway system that includes the Ruakuri Cave, Lucky Strike, and Tumutumu Cave.
Chaetopterus pugaporcinus, commonly known as the pigbutt worm or flying buttocks, is a species of worm first described by scientists at the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute in 2007. The worm is round in shape, approximately 10 to 20 millimeters in length, and bears a strong resemblance to a disembodied pair of buttocks. Because of this, it was given a Latin species name that roughly translates to "resembling a pig's rear."
Lampyris noctiluca, the common glow-worm of Europe, is the type species of beetle in the genus Lampyris and the family Lampyridae.
Sciaroidea is a superfamily in the infraorder Bibionomorpha. There are about 16 families and more than 15,000 described species in Sciaroidea. Most of its constituent families are various gnats.
Orfelia fultoni or “dismalites” is a carnivorous species of fly larvae. It is the only bioluminescent species of dipteran fly found in North America. They produce the bluest light of any studied bioluminescent insect.
Motyxia is a genus of cyanide-producing millipedes that are endemic to the southern Sierra Nevada, Tehachapi, and Santa Monica mountain ranges of California. Motyxias are blind and produce the poison cyanide, like all members of the Polydesmida. All species have the ability to glow brightly: some of the few known instances of bioluminescence in millipedes.
Diptera is an order of winged insects commonly known as flies. Diptera, which are one of the most successful groups of organisms on Earth, are very diverse biologically. None are truly marine but they occupy virtually every terrestrial niche. Many have co-evolved in association with plants and animals. The Diptera are a very significant group in the decomposition and degeneration of plant and animal matter, are instrumental in the breakdown and release of nutrients back into the soil, and whose larvae supplement the diet of higher agrarian organisms. They are also an important component in food chains.
Ruakuri Cave is one of the longer caves in the Waitomo area of New Zealand. It was first discovered by local Māori between 400 and 500 years ago. The name Te Ruakuri, or "The Den of Dogs" was given to the surrounding area when wild dogs were discovered living in the entrance of the cave.
The Waitomo Caves Discovery Centre is a museum located in the town of Waitomo in the North Island of New Zealand. The museum is also referred to as the Waitomo Caves Discovery Centre, the Waitomo Museum of Caves and the Waitomo Education Centre.
Forsteropsalis photophaga, also known as the glow-worm hunter, is a species of long-legged harvestman in the family Neopilionidae. This species is endemic to New Zealand, found in North Island caves in the vicinity of Waitomo. The name "photophaga" comes from their habit of feeding on the luminescent larvae, pupae, and adults of the New Zealand glow-worm Arachnocampa luminosa.
Media related to Arachnocampa luminosa at Wikimedia Commons