Flies, gnats, mosquitoes...everyone hates them. Well, almost everyone. However, these insects which belong to the order Diptera, are quite fascinating. As some Greek scholars would know, Diptera literally means 'two wings' owing to the fact that these insects only have one pair of wings, whereas other true winged insects have two pairs.
The order Diptera is a large order that occupies various habitats and trophic levels. There are the carnivorous flies, such as the vicious Asilidae, the robber flies, the common flies that feed on nectar, carcass, rotting food, etc, and the most hated kinds, the external parasitic flies, such as mosquitoes. Some flies are very important to the economy, as some of them are pollinators.
The life cycle of a fly is similar to many other insects in that they go through a stage of egg to larva to pupae to adult. The larvae are often referred to as 'maggots' and they usually do not have any legs, and thus, feed internally on plants. Because of this, maggots of many species of flies are considered to be pests in agricultural areas.
As the name Diptera suggests, true flies have only one pair of wings, with the second pair evolved into a pair of haltere, which is basically a small stub of a wing. Although the haltere does not directly aid in the flight of a fly, it maintains stability. If you find this interesting, here is what you can do to see how important the haltere are to the flies. First, capture a common housefly, then observe it under a microscope, and you should see a small, white speck near its pair of wings. Using a pair of tweezers, carefully rip off the haltere and let the fly go. What you should see is that the fly would try to fly and then crash back down. It's similar to a human trying to walk without his inner ear. I know it sounds cruel, but if you are going to kill a fly, which is probably what most people would do, why not perform an experiment on it first?
Tipulidae - Tipula - Tipula furca:
