Bill Gates' flower fly | |
---|---|
Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Arthropoda |
Class: | Insecta |
Order: | Diptera |
Family: | Syrphidae |
Genus: | Eristalis |
Species: | E. gatesi |
Binomial name | |
Eristalis gatesi Thompson, 1997 | |
Bill Gates' flower fly (Eristalis gatesi) is a flower fly endemic to Costa Rica named after Bill Gates. [1] Another fly found in similar habitats was named after Gates' associate Paul Allen, called Paul Allen's flower fly ( Eristalis alleni ); according to Chris Thompson, the describer of these species, both names were in "recognition of [their] great contributions to the science of Dipterology". [2] [3]
William Henry Gates III is an American businessman, investor, philanthropist, and writer best known for co-founding the software giant Microsoft, along with his childhood friend Paul Allen. During his career at Microsoft, Gates held the positions of chairman, chief executive officer (CEO), president, and chief software architect, while also being its largest individual shareholder until May 2014. He was a major entrepreneur of the microcomputer revolution of the 1970s and 1980s.
Costa Rica is an active member of the international community and, in 1983, claimed it was for neutrality. Due to certain powerful constituencies favoring its methods, it has a weight in world affairs far beyond its size. The country lobbied aggressively for the establishment of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights and became the first nation to recognize the jurisdiction of the Inter-American Human Rights Court, based in San José.
Hoverflies, also called flower flies or syrphids, make up the insect family Syrphidae. As their common name suggests, they are often seen hovering or nectaring at flowers; the adults of many species feed mainly on nectar and pollen, while the larvae (maggots) eat a wide range of foods. In some species, the larvae are saprotrophs, eating decaying plant and animal matter in the soil or in ponds and streams. In other species, the larvae are insectivores and prey on aphids, thrips, and other plant-sucking insects.
Paul Allen's flower fly is a flower fly found only in Costa Rican forests in the central highlands. It was named after Paul Allen. Another fly was also named after Allen's associate Bill Gates, Bill Gates' flower fly.
Eristalis is a large genus of hoverflies, family Syrphidae, in the order Diptera. Several species are known as drone flies because they bear a resemblance to honeybee drones.
Eristalis tenax, the common drone fly, is a common, migratory, cosmopolitan species of hover fly. It is the most widely distributed syrphid species in the world, and is known from all regions except the Antarctic. It has been introduced into North America and is widely established. It can be found in gardens and fields in Europe and Australia. It has also been found in the Himalayas.
Tourism in Costa Rica has been one of the fastest growing economic sectors of the country and by 1995 became the largest foreign exchange earner. Since 1999, tourism has earned more foreign exchange than bananas, pineapples and coffee exports combined. The tourism boom began in 1987, with the number of visitors up from 329,000 in 1988, through 1.03 million in 1999, over 2 million in 2008, to a historical record of 2.66 million foreign visitors in 2015. In 2012, tourism contributed with 12.5% of the country's GDP and it was responsible for 11.7% of direct and indirect employment. In 2009, tourism attracted 17% of foreign direct investment inflows, and 13% in average between 2000 and 2009. In 2010, the tourism industry was responsible for 21.2% of foreign exchange generated by all exports. According to a 2007 report by ECLAC, tourism contributed to a reduction in poverty of 3% in the country.
Eristalinae are one of the four subfamilies of the fly family Syrphidae, or hoverflies. A well-known species included in this subfamily is the dronefly, Eristalis tenax.
Eristalis horticola is a Palearctic species of hoverfly.
Eristalini is a tribe of hoverflies. Several species are well-known honeybee mimics, such as the drone fly Eristalis tenax, while other genera such as Helophilus and Parhelophilus exhibit wasp-like patterns of yellow and black stripes, both strategies to avoid predation by visual predators such as birds.
Eristalis bellardii, the Mexican mountain drone fly, is an uncommon species of syrphid fly first officially described by Jaennicke in 1867. It is infrequently found in the Southwestern United States, Mexico and Central America. In appearance it is somewhat like that of a honeybee. Hoverflies get their names from the ability to remain nearly motionless while in flight. The adults are also known as flower flies for they are commonly found around and on flowers, from which they get both energy-giving nectar and protein-rich pollen.
Eristalis dimidiata, the black-shouldered drone fly, is a species of hoverfly native to much of Canada and the eastern and northern United States. It flies year-round in southern areas and from late March to mid-November further north. It is one of the earliest hoverflies to fly in the spring, and as such likely overwinters as an adult. It lives primarily in forests.
Eristalis obscura, the dusky drone fly, is a common species of syrphid fly first officially described by Loew in 1866. This species is widespread in the northern part of North America and Europe east to Siberia. Hoverflies get their names from the ability to remain nearly motionless while in flight. The adults are also known as flower flies for they are commonly found around and on flowers from which they get both energy-giving nectar and protein-rich pollen. The larvae are aquatic filter-feeders of the rat-tailed type.
Eristalis hirta, the black-footed drone fly, is a common Western North American species of syrphid fly, first officially described by Loew in 1866. Hoverflies get their names from the ability to remain nearly motionless while in flight. The adults are also known as flower flies as they are commonly found on and around flowers, from which they get both energy-giving nectar and protein-rich pollen. The larvae are aquatic filter-feeders of the rat-tailed type.
Eutreta apicalis is a species of fruit fly in the family Tephritidae.
Frederic Christian Thompson was an American entomologist specializing in the study of Diptera.
Spilomyia wirthi is a species of syrphid fly in the family Syrphidae.