Tabanus sudeticus

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Tabanus sudeticus
Tabanus sudeticus02.jpg
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Diptera
Family: Tabanidae
Subfamily: Tabaninae
Tribe: Tabanini
Genus: Tabanus
Species:
T. sudeticus
Binomial name
Tabanus sudeticus
Zeller, 1842 [1]
Synonyms
  • Tabanus verralli Oldroyd, 1939 [2]
  • Tabanus sudeticus f. confususGoffe, 1931 [3]
  • Tabanus sudeticus f. distinctusGoffe, 1931 [3]
  • Tabanus sudeticus f. meridionalisGoffe, 1931 [3]
  • Tabanus sudeticus var. perplexus Verrall, 1909 [4]

Tabanus sudeticus, also known as the dark giant horsefly, is a species of biting horse-fly. [5] [6] It is the heaviest fly in Europe. [7]

Contents

Description

The dark giant horsefly's length is around 20-25 millimeters. [8] They have uniform dark brown eyes. [8]

Dark giant horseflies are a common species to be found buzzing around cows and horses. [8] They usually only suck blood from those horses and cows, avoiding humans. [8] They fly with a very loud buzzing. [8] [9]

Distribution

Female T. sudeticus Tabanus sudeticus may 2020.jpg
Female T. sudeticus

Tabanus sudeticus is found in many countries of Western Europe. It has a marked northern and western distribution; being found as far north as southern Norway and the Western Isles of Scotland, and with an occasional record from Belarus. [10]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tabanidae</span> Family of insects

Horse-flies and deer flies are true flies in the family Tabanidae in the insect order Diptera. The adults are often large and agile in flight. Only female horseflies bite land vertebrates, including humans, to obtain blood. They prefer to fly in sunlight, avoiding dark and shady areas, and are inactive at night. They are found all over the world except for some islands and the polar regions. Both horse-flies and botflies (Oestridae) are sometimes referred to as gadflies.

Harold Oldroyd (24 December 1913 – 3 September 1978) was a British entomologist. He specialised in the biology of flies, and wrote many books, especially popular science that helped entomology to reach a broader public. His The Natural History of Flies is considered to be the "fly Bible". Although his speciality was the Diptera, he acknowledged that they are not a popular topic: "Breeding in dung, carrion, sewage and even living flesh, flies are a subject of disgust...not to be discussed in polite society". It was Oldroyd who proposed the idea of hyphenating the names of true flies (Diptera) to distinguish them from other insects with "fly" in their names. Thus, the "house-fly", "crane-fly" and "blow-fly" would be true flies, while the "dragonfly", "scorpion fly" and so on belong to other orders. He also debunked the calculation that a single pair of house-flies, if allowed to reproduce without inhibitions could, within nine months, number 5.6×1012 individuals, enough to cover the Earth to a thickness of 14.3 m (47 ft). Oldroyd calculated that such a layer would only cover Germany, but remarked "that is still a lot of flies".

<i>Tabanus bovinus</i> Species of fly

Tabanus bovinus, sometimes called the pale giant horse-fly, is a species of biting horse-fly. As the scientific name suggests, it prefers bovine animals as the source of blood, although it may bite other kind of mammals as well. The insect is relatively large for a horse-fly, adults usually being 25–30 mm long. Like most other horseflies, its compound eyes are very colorful with stripe-like patterns. Its body and wings are mostly colored brownish gray. It is quite fast and an able flier, being capable of evading most attempts to swat it with ease. It bites humans infrequently, because of its preference of bovine animals. This loud-buzzing horse-fly can be a nuisance, as it circles around its target and occasionally lands to deliver a bite. However, to humans it is considerably less harmful than deer flies (Chrysops), which bite much more vigorously.

<i>Tabanus</i> Genus of insects

Tabanus is a genus of biting horseflies of the family Tabanidae. Females have scissor-like mouthparts that aim to cut the skin. The horsefly can then lap up the blood. Horseflies of this genus are known to be potential vectors of anthrax, worms and trypanosomes. Some species, such as Tabanus bovinus, prefer bovine animals and are less harmful to humans. The genus contains hundreds of species and many species groups.

<i>Tabanus bromius</i> Species of fly

Tabanus bromius, sometimes called the band-eyed brown horsefly, is a species of biting horseflies.

<i>Tabanus autumnalis</i> Species of insect

Tabanus autumnalis, the large marsh horsefly, is a medium-sized species of biting horse-fly. It is somewhat scarce compared to T. bromius and T. bovinus. This species shows slightly more of a preference for coastal marsh than some of the other European Tabanus, sometime even found in saltmashes. Wing length is 13–16 mm and about 16–22 mm in body length.

<i>Tabanus cordiger</i> Species of fly

Tabanus cordiger also known as the plain-eyed grey horsefly is a species of biting horse-fly.

<i>Tabanus glaucopis</i> Species of fly

Tabanus glaucopis, also known as the downland horsefly, is a species of biting horse-fly.

<i>Tabanus maculicornis</i> Species of fly

Tabanus maculicornis also known as the narrow-winged horsefly is a species of biting horse-fly.

Tabanus miki also known as the plain-eyed brown horsefly is a species of biting horse-fly.

Tabanus spodopterus also known as the black horned giant horsefly is a species of biting horse-fly. It is widespread in Europe, but only one doubtful specimen has been found in the United Kingdom.

<i>Tabanus eggeri</i> Species of fly

Tabanus eggeri is a Mediterranean species of biting horse-fly, found in southern France, Italy, Albania, Croatia, Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Portugal and Morocco. There are also unverified accounts of sightings in Spain and Israel.

Tabanus darimonti is a Mediterranean species of biting horse-fly. Only female specimens are known.

<i>Haematopota pluvialis</i> Species of fly

Haematopota pluvialis, the common horse fly or notch-horned cleg fly, or simply cleg in Scotland and northern parts of Ireland, is a species belonging to the family Tabanidae subfamily Tabaninae.

<i>Chrysops caecutiens</i> Species of deer fly

Chrysops caecutiens, common name splayed deer fly, is a species of horse fly belonging to the family Tabanidae. It is also known by the colloquial name Scotch Cleg.

<i>Tabanus quatuornotatus</i> Species of fly

Tabanus quatuornotatus is a species of biting horse-fly.

<i>Hybomitra montana</i> Species of fly

Hybomitra montana, the slender-horned horsefly, is a species of horse flies in the family Tabanidae.

Tabanus petiolatus is a species of horse fly in the family Tabanidae. Unlike many Tabanus species, the colour pattern of male eyes is found in the larger, upper lenses - appearing as a dark, brown streak across the light coloured lens. Females of this species have uniformly coloured dark brown eyes. Often confused with Tabanus melanocerus or Tabanus trimaculatus.

Hybomitra expollicata, also known as the striped horsefly, is a Palearctic species of horse fly in the family Tabanidae.

References

  1. Zeller, P.C. (1842). "Dipterologische Beytrage. Zweyte Abtheilung". Isis (Oken's). 1842: 807–847.
  2. Oldroyd, H. (1939). Tabanidae. In Edwards, F.W., Oldroyd, H. & Smart, J., British blood-sucking flies. Vol. 8. London. pp. 1–156.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  3. 1 2 3 Goffe, E.R. (1931). "British Tabanidae (Diptera). With an account of the principal variation. With descriptions of a number of new forms, and of some additions to the British List". Transactions of the Entomological Society of the South of England. 6(1930): 43–114.
  4. Verrall, G.H. (1909). Stratiomyidae and succeeding families of the Diptera Brachycera of Great Britain In his British flies. Vol. 5. London: Gurney & Jackson. pp. 780 pp. Retrieved 14 October 2022.
  5. Moucha, J. (1976). "Horse-flies (Diptera: Tabanidae) of the World. Synoptic Catalogue" (PDF). Acta Entomologica Musei Nationalis Pragae Supplements. 7: 1–320. Retrieved 11 September 2022.
  6. Stubbs, A. & Drake, M. (2001). British Soldierflies and Their Allies: A Field Guide to the Larger British Brachycera. British Entomological & Natural History Society. pp. 512 pp. ISBN   1-899935-04-5.
  7. "Check out this massive fly". Naturenet. 7 June 2009. Retrieved 25 August 2020.
  8. 1 2 3 4 5 THES, MoveCMS by. "Dark giant horsefly | Animal | Life Habitats". www.lifehabitats.com. Retrieved 2022-09-17.
  9. Chvála, Milan; Lyneborg, Leif; Moucha, Josef (1972). The Horse Flies of Europe (Diptera, Tabanidae). Copenhagen: Entomological Society of Copenhagen. pp. 598pp, 164figs. ISBN   978-09-00-84857-5.
  10. "Dark Giant Horse Fly Tabanus sudeticus". iNaturalist. Retrieved 10 June 2020.
Female; Detail of head Tabanus sudeticus MHNT Portrait.jpg
Female; Detail of head