Ladybird Fly

Gymnosoma rotundatum flies are parasitic, laying their eggs on shieldbugs.

Species introduction

At a glance
Latin name: 
Gymnosoma rotundatum
Family: 
Tachinid flies
Family Latin name: 
TACHINIDAE
Category: 
Insects other

Species description

Species description

The Ladybird Fly is the colloquial name given to Gymnosoma rotundatum for fairly obvious reasons. This 5 -6 millimetre long fly has a round abdomen with obvious dark spots. These flies are parasitic, laying their eggs on shieldbugs. Larvae that hatch work their way into the shieldbug, feeding off their innards. As they pupate, they bore their way through the insect's outer wall to begin life as an adult.

Species photographs

Larger photograph(s) (click to magnify)

Details

Species family information

Tachinid flies have perhaps 8,000 or more different species. In general, they parasitise other insects.

Category information

Insects evolved in the Ordovician from a crustacean ancestral lineage as terrestrial invertebrates with six legs (the Hexapoda). This was the time when terrestrial plants first appeared. In the Devonian some insects developed wings and flight, the first animals to do so. An early flying group was the Odonata from the Carboniferous, the damselflies and dragonflies, which have densely-veined wings and long, ten-segmented bodies. They are day-flying carnivores, with an aquatic larval stage, so are commonly seen flying near water. The carnivorous larvae are called nymphs. Odonata species are short-lived, damselflies surviving for 2-4 weeks, dragonflies for up to 2 months.

Some insect groups in the Cretaceous co-evolved with the flowering plants, and they have had a close association ever since. These groups are the Hymenoptera (bees, wasps, and ants), the Lepidoptera (butterflies and moths), the Diptera (flies), and the Coleoptera (beetles). The diversity of beetles is astonishing. Of all the known animal species on the planet, one in five is a beetle!