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| Sepsis fulgens | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 Sepsis fulgens
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| Sepsis fulgens Meigen, 1826 |
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Sepsis fulgens is a small ant mimic fly sometimes called the Lesser Dung Fly.1
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Distribution
It is common thought out much of Europe, North Africa, Middle East and the Russian Far East. I tends to be less common at the Northern most areas of its range. In Northern Europe it can be found from May to early October. In southern Europe it can be found year round. 2
Biology
This fly is often seen visiting flowers on order to obtain a carbohydrate meal. But It is most often associated a verity of animal dung, particularly that of cow and horse, on which the female will lay her eggs, and the larva will feed. Male S. fulgens are often more common on dung, as it here that they will wait for the females. In fact, males are so keen, that they will very often mount any visiting fly that bares a slight resemblance to another Sepsis, including other males, but they will quickly dismount again when the error is apparent. When a suitable mate is found the male will stay firmly attached to the female, and copulation will normally take place later and at another location. So attached are the pair that it usually takes a 180 degree maneuver for the couple to part company.2
S. fulgens are also know so their swarming behavior, and these swarms have been estimated to sometimes reach 30.000 to 50,000. In places where these swarms takes place, there is often a distinctive odor. 1
Parasites
There are a number of parasites that are associated with S. fulgens, particularly the mites Bonomoia sphaerocerae and Macrocheles insignitus, and possibly the nematode Diplogaster coprophila. 2
References
- ^ a b Pont, A.C. (1979). Sepsidae. Diptera (Handbooks for the Identification of British Insects 10/5c) (in English). London: Royal Entomological Society of London, 35 pp.
- ^ a b c Pont, A.C.; Meier, R. (2002). The Sepsidae (Diptera) of Europe (Fauna Entomologica Scandinavica 37) (in English). Brill, 198 pp.
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