''Chionea'' is a genus of wingless limoniid

crane flies Crane fly is a common name referring to any member of the insect family Tipulidae. Cylindrotominae, Limoniinae, and Pediciinae have been ranked as subfamilies of Tipulidae by most authors, though occasionally elevated to family rank. In the ...

. It consists of two subgenera, the

holarctic The Holarctic realm is a biogeographic realm that comprises the majority of habitats found throughout the continents in the Northern Hemisphere. It corresponds to the floristic Boreal Kingdom. It includes both the Nearctic zoogeographical regi ...

''Chionea'' and

palaearctic The Palearctic or Palaearctic is the largest of the eight biogeographic realms of the Earth. It stretches across all of Eurasia north of the foothills of the Himalayas, and North Africa. The realm consists of several bioregions: the Euro-Si ...

''Sphaeconophilus''. About 40 species are currently recognized in the northern hemisphere, but there are probably several undescribed species. They are commonly called snow flies.

Description

Adults occur during winter, where they can be observed walking over snow. They produce

glycerol Glycerol (), also called glycerine in British English and glycerin in American English, is a simple triol compound. It is a colorless, odorless, viscous liquid that is sweet-tasting and non-toxic. The glycerol backbone is found in lipids know ...

in their

hemolymph Hemolymph, or haemolymph, is a fluid, analogous to the blood in vertebrates, that circulates in the interior of the arthropod (invertebrate) body, remaining in direct contact with the animal's tissues. It is composed of a fluid plasma in which ...

, preventing them from freezin

Up to 200 eggs have been found in female snow flies, which are laid singly. The larvae occur under decaying leaves in wooded regions (Marchand, 1917). At least the larvae of some species seem to feed on feces in

rodent Rodents (from Latin , 'to gnaw') are mammals of the Order (biology), order Rodentia (), which are characterized by a single pair of continuously growing incisors in each of the upper and lower jaws. About 40% of all mammal species are roden ...

burrows. Adults seem to actively seek out the coldest place they can find and drink water by pressing their

proboscis A proboscis () is an elongated appendage from the head of an animal, either a vertebrate or an invertebrate. In invertebrates, the term usually refers to tubular mouthparts used for feeding and sucking. In vertebrates, a proboscis is an elonga ...

against the snow (Marchand, 1917), but are not known to feed. Adult snow flies live for up to two months. They can walk at a speed of about 1.30 m per minute, and at least males have been observed to leap, without being provoked. Male ''C. alexandriana'' are about seven millimeters long. They are easiest found on snowbanks in the afternoon, in areas that are to some extent forested. Some species have been found to be abundant on the floor of caves. The winglessness of the genus is probably attributable to the fact that at sub-freezing temperatures, it is very hard to generate enough energy for maintaining flight muscles. Also, the space normally taken by flight muscles is used to store eggs. However, the

haltere ''Halteres'' (; singular ''halter'' or ''haltere'') (from grc, ἁλτῆρες, weights held in the hands to give an impetus in leaping) are a pair of small club-shaped organs on the body of two orders of flying insects that provide infor ...

s have not been reduced and are innervated, thus probably serving as sensory organs.

Cold tolerance

As some species of ''Chionea'' are adapted to living on snow and in subnivean habitats, they are considered cold tolerant insects. It has been frequently reported that ''Chionea'' are observed at temperatures between 0 and -6 °C. In an experiment conducted in a laboratory environment, ''Chionea araneoides'' specimens died at a mean temperature of -7.5 °C, their

supercooling Supercooling, also known as undercooling, is the process of lowering the temperature of a liquid or a gas below its melting point without it becoming a solid. It achieves this in the absence of a seed crystal or nucleus around which a crystal ...

point; another experiment on an undetermined species of European ''Chionea'' demonstrated a supercooling point of -11.2 °C. The antifreeze agent found in ''Chionea''

has been determined to be sugar trehalose.

Reproduction

Mating is indiscriminate (probably because it is very hard to find a specimen of the other sex for them) and takes 30 to 70 minutes. While winged crane flies face in opposite directions, snow flies position themselves similar to many beetles, thereby requiring the male copulatory organs to be inverted 180 degrees.

Predators

One of the reasons why adults emerge in winter seems to be the absence of

predator Predation is a biological interaction where one organism, the predator, kills and eats another organism, its prey. It is one of a family of common feeding behaviours that includes parasitism and micropredation (which usually do not kill ...

s. However, "rock crickets" (

Grylloblattidae Grylloblattidae, commonly known as the icebugs, or ice crawlers, is a family of extremophile ( psychrophile) and wingless insects that live in the cold on top of mountains and the edges of glaciers. They belong, along with Mantophasmatidae (r ...

) have been shown to feed on them. Because the

cysticercoid A cysticercoid is the larval stage of certain tapeworms, similar in appearance to a cysticercus, but having the scolex filling completely the enclosing cyst. In tapeworm infections, cysticercoids can be seen in free form as well as enclosed by cy ...

form of a

tapeworm Eucestoda, commonly referred to as tapeworms, is the larger of the two subclasses of flatworms in the class Cestoda (the other subclass is Cestodaria). Larvae have six posterior hooks on the scolex (head), in contrast to the ten-hooked Cestod ...

species has been found in two out of three ''C. stoneana'' specimens in eastern Kansas, they also have to be eaten by mice, which are the tapeworm's host. The snow fly larvae likely take up these tapeworms via mouse feces. Chionea Parasitic Collar

Parasites

Tapeworm

s, possibly of the genus ''Hymenolepis'', have been found in the abdomens of ''Chionea stoneana''. While most likely not a parasite of snow flies, a species of nematode, similar to ''

Rhabditis ''Rhabditis'' is a genus of nematodes in the family Rhabditidae. ; Names brought to synonymy: ''Rhabditis (Caenorhabditis)'' Osche, 1952 is a synonym for ''Caenorhabditis'' Dougherty, 1955 Species *''Rhabditis aberrans'' *''Rhabditis marina ...

'', can sometimes be found in a ringed capsule, which is called a dauer, around the neck of adult snow flies. Immature nematodes develop inside the dauer before ultimately dispersing from it. It has been speculated that the female nematode lays this ring around the fly's neck when it emerges from the

pupa A pupa ( la, pupa, "doll"; plural: ''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 ...

and cannot yet move properly. These nematodes are presumed to be phoretic, meaning that they use the snow fly as a mechanism for dispersal, and not snow fly parasites.

Species

: ''This list was adapted from the (January 2007).'' Subgenus ''Chionea'' (

Holarctic The Holarctic realm is a biogeographic realm that comprises the majority of habitats found throughout the continents in the Northern Hemisphere. It corresponds to the floristic Boreal Kingdom. It includes both the Nearctic zoogeographical regi ...

) * ''

Chionea albertensis ''Chionea albertensis'' is a species of limoniid crane fly in the family Limoniidae. References Limoniidae Articles created by Qbugbot Insects described in 1941 {{limoniidae-stub ...

'' Alexander, 1941 (Canada, United States south to

Oregon Oregon () is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of its eastern boundary with Idah ...

Idaho Idaho ( ) is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. To the north, it shares a small portion of the Canada–United States border with the province of British Columbia. It borders the states of Montana and W ...

) * ''

Chionea alexandriana ''Chionea alexandriana'' is a species of snow fly (''chionea ''Chionea'' is a genus of wingless limoniid crane flies. It consists of two subgenera, the holarctic ''Chionea'' and palaearctic ''Sphaeconophilus''. About 40 species are currentl ...

'' Garrett, 1922 (Canada, USA to

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the ...

Utah Utah ( , ) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. Utah is a landlocked U.S. state bordered to its east by Colorado, to its northeast by Wyoming, to its north by Idaho, to its south by Arizona, and to its ...

) * ''

Chionea araneoides ''Chionea'' is a genus of wingless limoniid crane flies. It consists of two subgenera, the holarctic ''Chionea'' and palaearctic ''Sphaeconophilus''. About 40 species are currently recognized in the northern hemisphere, but there are probably s ...

'' Dalman, 1816 (Europe: Sweden to Italy, Romania and Russia) * ''

Chionea carolus ''Chionea carolus'' is a species of limoniid crane fly in the family Limoniidae. References Limoniidae Articles created by Qbugbot Insects described in 1979 {{limoniidae-stub ...

'' Byers, 1979 (USA: California,

Nevada Nevada ( ; ) is a state in the Western region of the United States. It is bordered by Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. Nevada is the 7th-most extensive, ...

) * '' Chionea crassipes'' Boheman, 1846 ** ''Chionea crassipes crassipes'' (

Scandinavia Scandinavia; Sámi languages: /. ( ) is a subregion in Northern Europe, with strong historical, cultural, and linguistic ties between its constituent peoples. In English usage, ''Scandinavia'' most commonly refers to Denmark, Norway, and Swe ...

, Russia to Japan) ** ''Chionea crassipes magadanensis'' Narchuk, 1998 (Russia:

Magadan Oblast Magadan Oblast ( rus, Магаданская область, r=Magadanskaya oblast, p=məgɐˈdanskəjə ˈobləsʲtʲ) is a federal subject (an oblast) of Russia. It is geographically located in the Far East region of the country, and is admin ...

) * '' Chionea durbini'' Byers, 1983 (USA: California) * '' Chionea excavata'' Byers, 1983 (USA: California, Nevada) * '' Chionea hybrida'' Byers, 1983 (USA: Idaho, Utah) * ''

Chionea jellisoni ''Chionea'' is a genus of wingless Limoniidae, limoniid crane fly, crane flies. It consists of two subgenera, the holarctic ''Chionea'' and palaearctic ''Sphaeconophilus''. About 40 species are currently recognized in the northern hemisphere, but ...

'' Byers, 1983 (USA:

Montana Montana () is a U.S. state, state in the Mountain states, Mountain West List of regions of the United States#Census Bureau-designated regions and divisions, division of the Western United States. It is bordered by Idaho to the west, North ...

, Idaho, Utah) * '' Chionea jenniferae'' (Byers, 1995) (USA: California) * ''

Chionea kanenoi ''Chionea'' is a genus of wingless limoniid crane flies. It consists of two subgenera, the holarctic ''Chionea'' and palaearctic ''Sphaeconophilus''. About 40 species are currently recognized in the northern hemisphere, but there are probably se ...

'' Sasakawa, 1986 (Japan:

Honshū , historically called , is the largest and most populous island of Japan. It is located south of Hokkaidō across the Tsugaru Strait, north of Shikoku across the Inland Sea, and northeast of Kyūshū across the Kanmon Straits. The island ...

) * '' Chionea lyrata'' Byers, 1983 (USA: California) * '' Chionea macnabeana'' Alexander, 1947 (Canada, USA to

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...

, Oregon) * '' Chionea mirabilis'' Vanin, 2008 (

Korea Korea ( ko, 한국, or , ) is a peninsular region in East Asia. Since 1945, it has been divided at or near the 38th parallel, with North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) comprising its northern half and South Korea (Republi ...

) * ''

Chionea nigra ''Chionea'' is a genus of wingless limoniid crane flies. It consists of two subgenera, the holarctic ''Chionea'' and palaearctic ''Sphaeconophilus''. About 40 species are currently recognized in the northern hemisphere, but there are probably se ...

'' Byers, 1983 (USA: Utah,

Colorado Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the wes ...

) * '' Chionea nipponica'' Alexander, 1932 (Russia:

Primorsky Krai Primorsky Krai (russian: Приморский край, r=Primorsky kray, p=prʲɪˈmorskʲɪj kraj), informally known as Primorye (, ), is a federal subject (a krai) of Russia, located in the Far East region of the country and is a part of t ...

, Japan) * '' Chionea nivicola'' Doane, 1900 (USA: Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Montana) * '' Chionea obtusa'' Byers, 1983 (Canada, USA to Oregon, Idaho) * '' Chionea pusilla'' Savchenko, 1983 (Russia: Primorsky Krai) * '' Chionea racovitzai'' Burghele-Balacesco, 1969 (Romania) * '' Chionea reclusa'' Byers, 1995 (USA:

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolitan areas include, Peoria and Roc ...

) * ''

Chionea scita ''Chionea scita'' is a species of crane fly in the family Limoniidae. ''C. scita'' is known as a type of snow crane fly because it is commonly seen walking on piles of snow during the winter months. These flies are also often observed in caves a ...

'' Walker, 1848 (Canada, USA to

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virgini ...

Tennessee Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to ...

and

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to t ...

) * '' Chionea stoneana'' Alexander, 1940 (USA: Minnesota to Indiana, south to

Kansas Kansas () is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its capital is Topeka, and its largest city is Wichita. Kansas is a landlocked state bordered by Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to ...

, Oklahoma and

Missouri Missouri is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it is bordered by eight states (tied for the most with Tennessee ...

) * '' Chionea valga'' Harris, 1841 (Canada, USA south to Minnesota,

Wisconsin Wisconsin () is a state in the upper Midwestern United States. Wisconsin is the 25th-largest state by total area and the 20th-most populous. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake M ...

, Tennessee,

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia a ...

and

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the East Coast of the United States, Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography an ...

) * ''

Chionea wilsoni ''Chionea'' is a genus of wingless Limoniidae, limoniid crane fly, crane flies. It consists of two subgenera, the holarctic ''Chionea'' and palaearctic ''Sphaeconophilus''. About 40 species are currently recognized in the northern hemisphere, but ...

'' Byers, 1983 (USA: Alabama, Tennessee, North Carolina) Subgenus ''Sphaeconophilus'' (

Palaearctic The Palearctic or Palaearctic is the largest of the eight biogeographic realms of the Earth. It stretches across all of Eurasia north of the foothills of the Himalayas, and North Africa. The realm consists of several bioregions: the Euro-Si ...

) * '' Chionea alpina'' Bezzi, 1908 (Europe: France to Spain, Germany to

Montenegro ) , image_map = Europe-Montenegro.svg , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Podgorica , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , official_languages = ...

) * '' Chionea ancae'' (Menier and Matile, 1976) (France) * '' Chionea arverna'' (Brunhes, 1986) (France:

Massif Central The (; oc, Massís Central, ; literally ''"Central Massif"'') is a highland region in south-central France, consisting of mountains and plateaus. It covers about 15% of mainland France. Subject to volcanism that has subsided in the last 10,00 ...

) * '' Chionea austriaca'' (Christian, 1980) (Austria) * '' Chionea belgica'' (Becker, 1912) (Europe: Belgium, Denmark, Germany, Hungary,

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

, Switzerland) * ''

Chionea besucheti ''Chionea'' is a genus of wingless limoniid crane flies. It consists of two subgenera, the holarctic ''Chionea'' and palaearctic ''Sphaeconophilus''. About 40 species are currently recognized in the northern hemisphere, but there are probably se ...

'' (Bourne, 1979) (Switzerland) * '' Chionea botosaneanui'' (Burghele-Balacesco, 1969) (

Czech Republic The Czech Republic, or simply Czechia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Historically known as Bohemia, it is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the southeast. Th ...

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, , is a country in Central Europe. Poland is divided into Voivodeships of Poland, sixteen voivodeships and is the fifth most populous member state of the European Union (EU), with over 38 mill ...

Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central, Eastern, and Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Moldova to the east, a ...

Slovakia Slovakia (; sk, Slovensko ), officially the Slovak Republic ( sk, Slovenská republika, links=no ), is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the ...

) * '' Chionea catalonica'' (Bourne, 1979) (Spain: central

Pyrenees The Pyrenees (; es, Pirineos ; french: Pyrénées ; ca, Pirineu ; eu, Pirinioak ; oc, Pirenèus ; an, Pirineus) is a mountain range straddling the border of France and Spain. It extends nearly from its union with the Cantabrian Mountains to ...

) * '' Chionea jurassica'' (Bourne, 1979) (France) * ''

Chionea lutescens ''Chionea'' is a genus of wingless Limoniidae, limoniid crane fly, crane flies. It consists of two subgenera, the holarctic ''Chionea'' and palaearctic ''Sphaeconophilus''. About 40 species are currently recognized in the northern hemisphere, but ...

'' ** ''

Chionea lutescens lutescens ''Chionea'' is a genus of wingless limoniid crane flies. It consists of two subgenera, the holarctic ''Chionea'' and palaearctic ''Sphaeconophilus''. About 40 species are currently recognized in the northern hemisphere, but there are probably se ...

'' Lundstrom, 1907 (Europe: Sweden to

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, In recognized minority languages of Portugal: :* mwl, República Pertuesa is a country located on the Iberian Peninsula, in Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Macaronesian ...

Ukraine Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian invas ...

, Russia) ** '' Chionea lutescens stelviana'' Suss, 1982 (Italy:

Lombardia (man), (woman) lmo, lumbard, links=no (man), (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , ...

) * '' Chionea pyrenaea'' (Bourne, 1981) (France: Pyrenees)

References

* Marchand, W. (1917). Notes on the habits of the snow-fly (''Chionea''). ''Psyche'' 24:142-152
PDF
( Creative Commons Attribution 2.5 license) * Byers, G.W. (1983). The crane fly genus ''Chionea'' in North America. ''Univ. of Kansas Science Bulletin'' 52(6):59-195. * Schrock, J.R. (1992). Snow Flies. ''The Kansas School Naturalist'' 38(2)
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External links

Picture of a ''Chionea'' species
{{Taxonbar, from=Q4357396 Limoniidae Nematocera genera Taxa named by Johan Wilhelm Dalman

Description

Cold tolerance

Reproduction

Predators

Parasites

Species

See also

References

External links