Phaonia pallida

Phaonia pallida, the muscid fly or orange muscid fly, is a species of fly in the family Muscidae.[1]

Phaonia pallida
Phaonia pallida. Female
Scientific classification
Kingdom:
Animalia
Phylum:
Arthropoda
Class:
Insecta
Order:
Diptera
Family:
Muscidae
Genus:
Phaonia
Species:
P. pallida
Binomial name
Phaonia pallida
(Fabricius, 1787)
Synonyms
  • Musca pallida Fabricius, 1787
  • Aricia dorsalis Schnabl, 1888
  • Rohrella dorsalis Robineau-Desvoidy, 1830
  • Rohrella fragili s Robineau-Desvoidy, 1830

Distribution and habitat

This species is distributed across parts the Palaearctic ecozone (Europe: (incl. Sicily), Russia: Asia: Israel, Turkey, Iran; Azores).[2][3] These flies mainly inhabit deciduous forests and woodland, especially spruce forest edge.[4][5]

Description
Male

Phaonia pallida can reach a length of about 5.5–7.9 millimetres (0.22–0.31 in). These flies have an orange body with a very hairy thorax.[4][5] The antennae are composed by three articles and bear a feathery arista. The legs and the balancers are yellow, while the tarsi are black. The eyes are dark red, separated by a yellow marking in the females, while in males they are very close to each other.[6]

Biology

Adults fly from May to September, feeding on nectar of flowers (especially of Heracleum sphondylium).[4][5][6] Its larvae have been found growing in various fungi (Amanita rubescens, Clitocybe nebularis, Paralepista flaccida, Xerula radicata, Hymenopellis radicata, Amanita muscaria) [6] but also in rotten wood and under tree bark.[5][7] The last larval instar of Phaonia pallida is carnivorous, feeding on small insects.[5][8]

Bibliography
  • Chandler, Peter J. (2010). A Dipterist's Handbook (2nd Edition). The Amateur Entomologist. 15. Orpington, Kent, England: Amateur Entomologists' Society. pp. 525pp
  • D'Assis Fonseca, E.C.M (1968). Diptera Cyclorrhapha Calyptrata: Muscidae. Handbooks for the Identification of British Insects. 10. London.: Royal Entomological Society of London. pp. 118pp.
  • Gregor, F.; Rozkosny, R.; Bartak, M.; Vanhara, J. (2002). The Muscidae (Diptera) of Central Europe. Scientiarum Naturalium Universitatis Masarykianae Brunensis. 107. Masaryk.: Masaryk University. pp. 280pp.
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References
  1. BioLib
  2. Catalogue of life
  3. Fauna europaea
  4. Nature Spot
  5. J.K. Lindsey Commanster
  6. Un monde dans mon jardin
  7. Chandler, Peter J. (2010). A Dipterist's Handbook (2nd Edition). The Amateur Entomologist. 15. Orpington, Kent, England: Amateur Entomologists' Society. pp. 525pp.
  8. Jan Sevck Diptera (excluding Mycetophilidae S. str.) associated with fungi in Czech and Slovak Republics: a survey of rearing records from 1998-2000


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