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Home » Guide » Arthropods (Arthropoda) » BugGuide gatherings and events » Smoky Mountains, Tennessee, August 8-10, 2008
Photo#219657
Stinkhorn before coating eaten away - male - female
Copyright © 2008 Wisconsin Oecanthinancy

Stinkhorn before coating eaten away - Male Female
Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Tennessee, USA
August 9, 2008
Question: Do these flies gorge themselves on the coating (which was entirely eaten off)...or do they transport it elsewhere and come back for more?
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Contributed by Wisconsin Oecanthinancy on 29 August, 2008 - 11:27pm
Last updated 24 October, 2012 - 4:01pm

Flies on stinkhorns
Flies actually do slurp the sticky, stinky coating on stinkhorn caps, according to this, though it does look like the white part here has been exposed by chewing.

The little fly might be one of these:
… Charley Eiseman, 1 October, 2011 - 12:29pm login or register to post comments

?
Flies don't have chewing mouth parts. They can only slurp fluids. I can't imagine them eating the coating of a stinkhorn.
In fact it is possible that they don't find anything edible here; the stinkhorn may be fooling them into thinking that there is some delicious rotting meat or fecal matter, which is what these flies search for to lay their eggs. The larvae can chew and eat solid matter.
… Beatriz Moisset, 1 February, 2010 - 5:40pm login or register to post comments

 
I'm not sure how the coating was removed, but....
...from the time I took this photo,

until the time Tim took his photo


only 15-30 minutes had elapsed. Maybe just camera angle or an optical illusion?
… Wisconsin Oecanthinancy, 1 February, 2010 - 7:36pm login or register to post comments

 
Different angle
Notice that the foliage is on front of the mushroom here and behind it on the other image.
… Beatriz Moisset, 2 February, 2010 - 10:25am login or register to post comments

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