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Phorid Fly
The Phoridae are a family (biology), family of small, hump-backed Fly, flies resembling Drosophila melanogaster, fruit flies. Phorid flies can often be identified by their escape habit of running rapidly across a surface rather than taking flight. This behaviour is a source of one of their alternate names, scuttle fly. Another vernacular name, coffin fly, refers to ''Conicera tibialis''. About 4,000 species are known in 230 genera. The most well-known species is cosmopolitan ''Megaselia scalaris''. At 0.4 mm in length, the world's smallest fly is the phorid ''Euryplatea nanaknihali''. Description Phorid flies are minute or small – 0.5–6 mm (– in) in length. When viewed from the side, a pronounced hump to the thorax is seen. Their colours range from usually black or brown to more rarely yellow, orange, pale grey, and pale white. The head is usually rounded and in some species narrowed towards the vertex. The vertex is flat. In some species, the ocellar c ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pseudacteon
''Pseudacteon'' is a genus of flies in the family Phoridae. There are over 70 described species of ''Pseudacteon'' fly. They are also known as ant-decapitating flies due to their parasitic larval stage. An egg is injected by the female fly into the shoulder joint of an ant worker. Soon after, the egg undergoes rapid inflation as it appears to absorb ant hemolymph. This first instar larva migrates into the ant head and consumes the jaw muscle and other tissues, leaving the mandibles hanging and preparing a future exit space. After about two weeks, the ant worker is termed a "zombie" because the fly larva has effectively taken control. The worker leaves the nest and dies in the leaf litter or in a crack in the soil. As it dies, the ant's head falls off, apparently because the fly larva releases an enzyme that dissolves the membrane attaching the ant's head to its body. The fly pupates in the detached head capsule, requiring a further two weeks before emerging through the ant's mouth. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Albian
The Albian is both an age (geology), age of the geologic timescale and a stage (stratigraphy), stage in the stratigraphic column. It is the youngest or uppermost subdivision of the Early Cretaceous, Early/Lower Cretaceous epoch (geology), Epoch/series (stratigraphy), Series. Its approximate time range is 113.0 ± 1.0 annum, Ma to 100.5 ± 0.9 Ma (million years ago). The Albian is preceded by the Aptian and followed by the Cenomanian. Stratigraphic definitions The Albian Stage was first proposed in 1842 by Alcide d'Orbigny. It was named after Alba, the Latin name for Aube (river), River Aube in France. A Global Boundary Stratotype Section and Point (GSSP), ratified by the IUGS in 2016, defines the base of the Albian as the first occurrence of the planktonic foraminiferan ''Hedbergellidae, Microhedbergella renilaevis'' at the Col de Pré-Guittard section, Arnayon, Drôme, France. The top of the Albian Stage (the base of the Cenomanian Stage and Upper Cretaceous Series) is defined ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ross Piper
Ross Piper is a British zoologist, entomologist, and explorer. Biography Piper's fascination by animals began at a young age through early encounters with a violet ground beetle and the caterpillar of an elephant hawk moth. This early interest led to a degree in zoology from Bangor University and a PhD in insect ecology from the University of Leeds. Piper has travelled widely in Europe, the Americas, Africa and Southeast Asia, searching for interesting and elusive beasts. Although his focus is arthropods, the sheer diversity of animal forms and lifestyles is a continual source of fascination. In 2015 he was awarded the Alumnus of the Year award by Bangor University and has since become a member of their alumni advisory board. He is also a student mentor for the University of Leeds and a Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society. He is currently a visiting research fellow at the University of Leeds and a visiting fellow at the University of Essex. His current projects include a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Parasitoid
In evolutionary ecology, a parasitoid is an organism that lives in close association with its host (biology), host at the host's expense, eventually resulting in the death of the host. Parasitoidism is one of six major evolutionarily stable strategy, evolutionary strategies within parasitism, distinguished by the fatal prognosis for the host, which makes the strategy close to predation. Among parasitoids, strategies range from living inside the host (''endoparasitism''), allowing it to continue growing before emerging as an adult, to Paralysis, paralysing the host and living outside it (''ectoparasitism''). Hosts can include other parasitoids, resulting in hyperparasitism; in the case of oak galls, up to five levels of parasitism are possible. Some parasitoids Behavior-altering parasite, influence their host's behaviour in ways that favour the propagation of the parasitoid. Parasitoids are found in a variety of Taxon, taxa across the insect superorder Endopterygota, whose compl ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pupa
A pupa (; : pupae) is the life stage of some insects undergoing transformation between immature and mature stages. Insects that go through a pupal stage are holometabolous: they go through four distinct stages in their life cycle, the stages thereof being egg, larva, pupa, and imago. The processes of entering and completing the pupal stage are controlled by the insect's hormones, especially juvenile hormone, prothoracicotropic hormone, and ecdysone. The act of becoming a pupa is called pupation, and the act of emerging from the pupal case is called eclosion or emergence. The pupae of different groups of insects have different names such as ''chrysalis'' for the pupae of butterflies and ''tumbler'' for those of the mosquito family. Pupae may further be enclosed in other structures such as cocoons, nests, or shells. Position in life cycle The pupal stage follows the larval stage, or in some cases a prepupal stage, and precedes adulthood ('' imago'') in insects with compl ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Larva
A larva (; : larvae ) is a distinct juvenile form many animals undergo before metamorphosis into their next life stage. Animals with indirect development such as insects, some arachnids, amphibians, or cnidarians typically have a larval phase of their life cycle. A larva's appearance is generally very different from the adult form (''e.g.'' caterpillars and butterflies) including different unique structures and organs that do not occur in the adult form. Their diet may also be considerably different. In the case of smaller primitive arachnids, the larval stage differs by having three instead of four pairs of legs. Larvae are frequently adapted to different environments than adults. For example, some larvae such as tadpoles live almost exclusively in aquatic environments but can live outside water as adult frogs. By living in a distinct environment, larvae may be given shelter from predators and reduce competition for resources with the adult population. Animals in the lar ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Egg (biology)
An egg is an organic vessel grown by an animal to carry a possibly fertilization, fertilized egg cell (a zygote) and to egg incubation, incubate from it an embryo within the egg until the embryo has become an animal fetus that can survive on its own, at which point the animal hatches. Most arthropods, vertebrates (excluding live-bearing mammals), and Mollusca, mollusks lay eggs, although some, such as scorpions, do not. Reptile eggs, bird eggs, and monotreme eggs are laid out of water and are surrounded by a protective eggshell, shell, either flexible or inflexible. Eggs laid on land or in nests are usually kept within a warm and favorable temperature range while the embryo grows. When the embryo is adequately developed it hatches, i.e., breaks out of the egg's shell. Some embryos have a temporary egg tooth they use to crack, pip, or break the eggshell or covering. The largest recorded egg is from a whale shark and was in size. Whale shark eggs typically hatch within the m ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Verticillium Dry Bubble
Verticillium dry bubble, recently named ''Lecanicillium fungicola'', is a mycoparasite that attacks white button mushrooms (''Agaricus bisporus''), among other hosts, during its generative period. ''L. fungicola'' infects the casing layer on the cap structure of several edible mushrooms. This fungal pathogen does not typically infect wild mushrooms, but more commonly cultivated mushrooms are infected such as ''A. bisporus'', which are typically grown in large quantities. Severity of disease depends on several factors, including timing of infection and environmental conditions. Dry bubble follows the typical verticillium life cycle, although insect vectors play a large role in the spread of this disease. Control for ''L. fungicola'' is limited, and strict measures must be taken to prevent the spread of infection. ''L. fungicola'' is a devastating pathogen in the mushroom industry and causes significant losses in the commercial production of its main host ''A. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Megaselia Halterata
The mushroom phorid fly ''(Megaselia halterata)'' is a species of scuttle fly or hump-backed flies in the family Phoridae. "The mushroom phorid" is also used to refer to ''M. halterata''. ''Megaselia halterata'' is a common pest of mushroom cultivation, attracted by the aroma of developing fungal mycelium. The larvae damage both the mushroom mycelium and gill tissues. ''Megaslia halterata'' can be found worldwide. ''Megaselia halterata'' is an important pest of mushroom cultivation, capable of severely limiting mushroom yield. ''Megaselia'' are naturally infected by '' Howardula'' nematodes, however entomopathogenic nematodes do not readily control ''M. halterata.'' Physical appearance Adult mushroom phorid flies are 2-3mm in length with a blackish-brown color. Their antennae are short, with only three segments. Belonging to the "Hump-backed flies" (Phoridae The Phoridae are a family of small, hump-backed flies resembling fruit flies. Phorid flies can often be identified by ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Forensic Entomology
Forensic entomology is a branch of applied entomology that uses insects and other arthropods as a basis for legal evidence. Insects may be found on cadavers or elsewhere around crime scenes in the interest of forensic science. Forensic entomology is also used in cases of neglect and abuse of a property, as well as subjects of a toxicology analysis to detect drugs and incidents of food contamination. Therefore, forensic entomology is divided into three subfields: medico-legal/medico-criminal entomology, urban, and stored-product. The field revolves around studying the types of insects commonly found in and on the place of interest (such as cadavers), their life cycles, their presence in different environments, and how insect assemblages change with the progression of decomposition (the process of "succession"). Insect assemblages can help approximate a body's primary location, as some insects are unique to specific areas. In medico-criminal cases, the primary goal is ofte ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dead Body
A cadaver, often known as a corpse, is a dead human body. Cadavers are used by medical students, physicians and other scientists to study anatomy, identify disease sites, determine causes of death, and provide tissue to repair a defect in a living human being. Students in medical school study and dissect cadavers as a part of their education. Others who study cadavers include archaeologists and arts students. In addition, a cadaver may be used in the development and evaluation of surgical instruments. The term ''cadaver'' is used in courts of law (and, to a lesser extent, also by media outlets such as newspapers) to refer to a dead body, as well as by recovery teams searching for bodies in natural disasters. The word comes from the Latin word ''cadere'' ("to fall"). Related terms include ''cadaverous'' (resembling a cadaver) and ''cadaveric spasm'' (a muscle spasm causing a dead body to twitch or jerk). A cadaver graft (also called “postmortem graft”) is the grafting of tis ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Leaf Miner
A leaf miner is any one of numerous species of insects in which the larval stage lives in, and eats, the leaf tissue of plants. The vast majority of leaf-mining insects are moths (Lepidoptera), sawflies (Symphyta, a paraphyletic group which Apocrita (wasps, bees and ants) evolved from), and flies (Diptera). Some beetles also exhibit this behavior. Like woodboring beetles, leaf miners are protected from many predators and plant defenses by feeding within the tissues of the leaves, selectively eating only the layers that have the least amount of cellulose. When consuming ''Quercus robur'' (English oak), they also selectively feed on tissues containing lower levels of tannin, a deterrent chemical produced in great abundance by the tree. The pattern of the feeding tunnel and the layer of the leaf being mined is often diagnostic of the insect responsible, sometimes even to species level. The mine often contains frass, or droppings, and the pattern of frass deposition, mine sha ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
