[Download] "Flower Visitation by Adult Shore Flies at an Inland Site in Florida (Diptera: Ephydridae) (Report)" by Florida Entomologist " eBook PDF Kindle ePub Free
eBook details
- Title: Flower Visitation by Adult Shore Flies at an Inland Site in Florida (Diptera: Ephydridae) (Report)
- Author : Florida Entomologist
- Release Date : January 01, 2008
- Genre: Life Sciences,Books,Science & Nature,
- Pages : * pages
- Size : 176 KB
Description
Shore flies (Ephydridae) are small acalypterates whose larvae are usually aquatic or semi-aquatic. Adult feeding habits are varied and known for only a small proportion of species. Most adults consume algae or bacterial slurries, but some are predators on smaller arthropods, scavengers, or nectar feeders (Wirth et al. 1987). At the Archbold Biological Station in south-central Florida some adult ephydrids occur regularly on flowers. These species and their floral hosts are listed below. The Archbold Biological Station (ABS), located in Highlands County, is near the south end of the Lake Wales Ridge, a distinctive sandy upland. During the rainy season (Jun-Oct) low areas on the Ridge accumulate water in extensive shallow ponds, more than 150 of which occur on the ABS. These ponds usually dry up in winter and spring. Their drying shores become zones of biological hyperactivity as oxygen becomes more available for plants and animals, stranded aquatic organisms die, algae become concentrated, and nutrients are released. Such edges are ideal for a variety of shore flies. Drying ditches and a permanent lake also produce ephydrids. About 45 species of ephydrids are known from the ABS, but there are probably many additional species. Only a small number of species are known to visit flowers at the ABS.