Chrysomya marginalis

Chrysomya marginalis, the regal blowfly, also referred to as the regal bluebottle or the bordered blowfly is an uncommon and relatively large species of fly that was described by Weidemann in 1830.[1] It is found in Africa to the south of the Sahara,[2] and is also found in various Middle-Eastern countries.[3]

Chrysomya marginalis
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Diptera
Family: Calliphoridae
Genus: Chrysomya
Species:
C. marginalis
Binomial name
Chrysomya marginalis
(Wiedemann, 1830)
Synonyms

Description

The regal blowfly is a large fly, whose body reaches a length of 18 mm. The body of the fly is cylindrical in shape and robust indeed. It is highly iridescent, reflecting light in a rich blue, a greenish-cyan, or a blueish-violet depending on the angle of which the creature is observed. The abdomen is divided into a few segments, marked with darkened bands with relative thickness.[4] It is short and compacted, almost cubic and geometrical. The thorax of the fly is shield-like and broad, split into three distinctive segments, and like the abdomen highlighted with darkened bands to mark said segments. The head of the fly is pale yellow bearing large, red, and faceted compound eyes. The male’s compound eyes are holoptic. Three ocelli are arranged in a triangular formation atop the fly’s head. Perhaps the most remarkable feature of the fly is its pair of wings. They are windowlike and hyaline, and possessing a darkened anterior wing margin which is the main defining feature used to identify the species, as it has been often confused with a similar species, Chrysomya megacephala.

References

  1. Lutz, Lena; Williams, Kirstin A.; Villet, Martin H.; Ekanem, Mfon; Szpila, Krzysztof (2018). "Species identification of adult African blowflies (Diptera: Calliphoridae) of forensic importance". International Journal of Legal Medicine. 132 (3): 831–842. doi:10.1007/s00414-017-1654-y. ISSN 0937-9827. PMC 5919996. PMID 28849264.
  2. ""Smooth maggot" Chrysomya species". Veterinary and Forensic Entomology at the NHM London. Retrieved 14 February 2021.
  3. "Observations".
  4. Irish, S.; Lindsay, T.; Wyatt, N. (2014). "Key to Adults of Afrotropical Species of the Genus Chrysomya Robineau-Desvoidy (Diptera: Calliphoridae)". African Entomology. 22 (2): 297–306. doi:10.4001/003.022.0210. S2CID 86184922.


This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.