Family Milichiidae - Freeloader flies

Classification · Numbers · Size · Identification · Range · Habitat · Food · Remarks · Works Cited

Fly on cactus, associated with cochineal

Classification

Kingdom Animalia (Animals)

Phylum Arthropoda (Arthropods)

Class Insecta (Insects)

Order Diptera (Flies)

No Taxon (Acalyptratae)

Family Milichiidae (Freeloader flies)

Numbers

36 spp. in 12 genera in our area(1), about 340 spp. worldwide(2)

Size

1-5 mm(1)

Identification

Small, usually black or silvery.

Range

worldwide(2)

Habitat

open landscapes, forests & forest edges, forest canopy, stables/houses, caves(2)

Food

Larvae are generally saprophagous and live in decaying plants, but several are copro-/necrophagous(2); some are commensals of predatory insects, riding on them and feeding on exudates of the victims; often attend predators with Stink Bug prey

Remarks

may be common in open areas

Works Cited

1.	American Insects: A Handbook of the Insects of America North of Mexico By Ross H. Arnett

2.	Milichiidae Online, by Irina Brake

Contributed by Lynette Schimming on 6 July, 2005 - 6:35am
Additional contributions by cotinis, Beatriz Moisset, xylo, v belov
Last updated 19 December, 2010 - 1:18pm

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