New species +1, Cangshan burrowing fly discovered in Dali, Yunnan – Yunnan News – Yunnan Daily

Original title: New species +1, Cangshan burrowing fly discovered in Dali, Yunnan

Figure 1: A. male; B. female

Recently, the animal ecology team of the College of Agriculture and Biological Sciences of Dali University in Yunnan discovered a new insect species – the Cangshan burrowing fly – in Cangshan Mountain in Dali.

Figure 2: Habitat and ecology of Cangshan burrowing flies. A. Model locality – Cangshan, Dali; B, C. Larval habitat; D. Larvae

Burrow flies are a general term for insects of the order Diptera, suborder Brachycera, and family Burrow flies. Previously, 12 genera and 64 species of Burrow flies were recorded worldwide, and only two genera (Aglais and Anopheles) were reported in my country. The feeding habits of burrow fly larvae are very similar to those of some larvae (antlions) of the family Myrmecophaga of the order Neuroptera, that is, they dig funnel-shaped traps/holes in dry fine sand, lie at the bottom of the pit, and hunt small invertebrates that fall into the pit. Therefore, in his work (1930), Wheeler called burrow flies “devil in the dust.”

It is reported that the relevant results were published in the international animal taxonomy journal “Zootaxa” in August 2024.

Source: Yunnan Channel of People’s Daily Client

Yunnan Daily-Yunnan News Editor: Zhao Tingting

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