Midge
| Midges | |
|---|---|
| |
| Abiting midgefeeding on blood through an artificial membrane for insect rearing | |
Scientific classification
| |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Diptera |
| Suborder: | Nematocera |
| Families | |
|
See text | |
Amidgeis any smallfly,including species in severalfamiliesof non-mosquitonematoceranDiptera.Midges are found (seasonally or otherwise) on practically every land area outside permanently arid deserts and the frigid zones. Some midges, such as manyPhlebotominae(sand fly) andSimuliidae(black fly), are vectors of various diseases. Many others play useful roles as prey forinsectivores,such as variousfrogsandswallows.Others are important asdetritivores,and form part of variousnutrient cycles.The habits of midges vary greatly from species to species, though within any particular family, midges commonly have similar ecological roles.
Examples of families that include species of midges include:[1]
- Blephariceridae,net-winged midges
- Cecidomyiidae,gall midges
- Ceratopogonidae,biting midges (also known as no-see-ums or punkies inNorth America[2]and sandflies[3]in Australia)
- Chaoboridae,phantom midges
- Chironomidae,non-biting midges[4](also known as muckleheads,[5]muffleheads[6]or lake flies[7]in theGreat Lakesregion ofNorth America)
- Deuterophlebiidae,mountain midges
- Dixidae,meniscus midges
- Scatopsidae,dung midges
- Thaumaleidae,solitary midges
Examples
[edit]TheCeratopogonidae(biting midges) include serious blood-sucking pests, feeding both on humans and other mammals. Some of them spread the livestock diseases known asblue tongueandAfrican horse sickness– other species though, are at least partly nectar feeders, and some even suck insect bodily fluids.[8]
Many midges are known for having symbiotic relationships with many other organisms. These can be commensal, parasitic or mutualistic relationships. Many of the commensal relationships are found within the familyChironomidae.[9]
Other ceratopogonid midges are major pollinators ofTheobroma cacao(cocoa tree). Having natural pollinators has beneficial effects in both agricultural and biological products because it increases crop yield and also density of predators of the midges (still beneficial to all parties).[10]
The term "midge" is a vague term that refers to a large and diverse group of organisms. Although many are known as "bloodsuckers," there are many different roles that they play in their respective ecosystems.[9]There is, for example, no objective basis for excluding thePsychodidaefrom the list, and some of them (or midge-like taxa commonly included in the family, such asPhlebotomus) are blood-sucking pests and disease vectors.
Most midges, apart from the gall midges (Cecidomyiidae), are aquatic during the larval stage. Some Cecidomyiidae (e.g., theHessian fly) are considered significant pests of some plant species. The larvae of some Chironomidae containhemoglobinand are sometimes referred to asbloodworms.[11]
Non-biting midge flies are commonly considered a minor nuisance around artificially-created bodies of water.[12]
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^Merritt, R. W.; Cummins, K. W., eds. (1996).An Introduction to the Aquatic Insects of North America.Kendall/Hunt Publishing Company.
- ^BugGuide
- ^"BITING MIDGES OR" SANDFLIES "IN THE NT"(PDF).Archived fromthe original(PDF)on 2015-01-22.Retrieved2015-01-22.
- ^"The Complete Guide to Midges".5 July 2021.Retrieved2023-06-21.
- ^"Bug invasion! Muckleheads caught on radar swarming back to NE Ohio".fox8.2018-06-04.Retrieved2018-06-05.
- ^"What exactly are all these pesky midges? Entertaining video on the insects that swarm Lake Erie".cleveland.Retrieved2018-06-05.
- ^"Why you should never smash lake flies and other facts about the annual Lake Winnebago insect hatch".Appleton Post Crescent.Retrieved2020-07-15.
- ^Weaving, Alan; Picker, Mike; Griffiths, Charles Llewellyn (2003).Field Guide to Insects of South Africa.New Holland Publishers, Ltd.ISBN1-86872-713-0.
- ^abTOKESHI, MUTSUNORI (June 1993)."On the evolution of commensalism in the Chironomidae".Freshwater Biology.29(3): 481–489.Bibcode:1993FrBio..29..481T.doi:10.1111/j.1365-2427.1993.tb00782.x.ISSN0046-5070.
- ^Forbes, Samantha J.; Northfield, Tobin D. (2016-12-26). "Increased pollinator habitat enhances cacao fruit set and predator conservation".Ecological Applications.27(3). Ecological Society of America: 887–899.doi:10.1002/eap.1491.ISSN1051-0761.PMID28019052.
- ^Walker, Ian R. (2001). "Midges: Chironomidae and related Diptera". In Smol, J. P.; Birks, H. J. B.; Last, W. M. (eds.).Tracking Environmental Change Using Lake Sediments.Developments in Paleoenvironmental Research. Vol. 4: Zoological Indicators. Dordrecht, The Netherlands: Kluwer Academic Publishers. pp. 43–66.doi:10.1007/0-306-47671-1_3.ISBN978-0-306-47671-6.
- ^Apperson, Charles;Waldvogel, Michael; Bambara, Stephen (2006)."Biology and Control of Non-biting Aquatic Midges".Department of Entomology, North Carolina Cooperative Extension.
Further reading
[edit]Schröder, Oskar; Cavanaugh, Kirstin K.; Schneider, Julio V.; Schell, Tilman; Bonada, Núria; Seifert, Linda; Pauls, Steffen U. (2021)."Genetic data support local persistence in multiple glacial refugia in the montane net-winged midge Liponeura cinerascens cinerascens (Diptera, blephariceridae)".Freshwater Biology.66(5): 859–868.Bibcode:2021FrBio..66..859S.doi:10.1111/fwb.13682.
Huerta, Heron; Grogan, William L. JR (2021). "A new species of predaceous midge in the genusStilobezziaKieffer from Mexico (Diptera: Ceratopogonidae) ".Zootaxa.4908(2): 297–300.doi:10.11646/zootaxa.4908.2.11.PMID33756629.S2CID232340155.
Pinto, Thandy Junio da Silva; Moreira, Raquel Aparecida; Silva, Laís Conceição Menezes da; Yoshii, Maria Paula Cardoso; Goulart, Bianca Veloso; Fraga, Priscille Dreux; Montagner, Cassiana Carolina; Daam, Michiel Adriaan; Espindola, Evaldo Luiz Gaeta (2021)."Impact of 2,4-D and fipronil on the tropical midge Chironomus sancticaroli (Diptera: Chironomidae)".Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety.209:111778.Bibcode:2021EcoES.20911778P.doi:10.1016/j.ecoenv.2020.111778.hdl:10362/126069.PMID33338803.