Home » Guide » Arthropods (Arthropoda) » Hexapods (Hexapoda) » Insects (Insecta) » Flies (Diptera) » "Nematocera" (Non-Brachycera) » Mosquitoes and Midges (Culicomorpha) » Phantom Midges (Chaoboridae)

Family Chaoboridae - Phantom Midges

Phantom Midge IMG_5154 - Chaoborus punctipennis - female

Spotted phantom midge - Chaoborus punctipennis - female

spot-winged midge - Chaoborus punctipennis

Phantom Midge Larva - Chaoborus sp. - Chaoborus

Chaoborus punctipennis? - Chaoborus punctipennis - female

Classification

Kingdom Animalia (Animals)

Phylum Arthropoda (Arthropods)

Subphylum Hexapoda (Hexapods)

Class Insecta (Insects)

Order Diptera (Flies)

No Taxon ("Nematocera" (Non-Brachycera))

Infraorder Culicomorpha (Mosquitoes and Midges)

Family Chaoboridae (Phantom Midges)

Synonyms and other taxonomic changes

Sometimes treated as part of Culicidae(1)

Explanation of Names

Chaoboridae Newman 1834

"Phantom" refers to the transparent aquatic larvae(2)

Numbers

19 spp. in 5 genera in our area(2), ~90 spp. in 33 genera total(3)

Size

1.5-10 mm

Identification

Resemble mosquitoes but lack a prominent proboscis. Other characters:

body and wing veins with elongated setae, not flat scales (mosquitoes have prominent scales); or perhaps a few scales along margin of wing(2)

lack ocelli

antenna setae in distinct whorls(2)

Food

Larvae predatory, adults of most species (perhaps) do not feed. Adults of a few exotic spp. are said to take blood(1)

Life Cycle

Larvae are filter feeders or predators (using modified prehensile antennae) in shallow stagnant waters. Larvae of Chaoborus, at least, are nearly transparent and planktonic (living in water column), not associated with a substrate like most fly larvae(4). Mochlonyx larva:

See Also

Chironomidae, Culicidae

Print References

Cook E.F. (1956). The Nearctic Chaoborinae (Diptera: Culicidae). Technical Bulletin of the Agriculture Experiment Station, University of Minnesota 218: 1-102.

Saether O.A. (1970) Nearctic and Palearctic Chaoborus (Diptera: Chaoborida). Bull. Fish. Res. Board Can. 174: 1-57 (Full text)

Works Cited

1.	A Dictionary of Entomology George Gordh, David H. Headrick. 2003. CABI Publishing.

2.	American Insects: A Handbook of the Insects of America North of Mexico Ross H. Arnett. 2000. CRC Press.

3.	Order Diptera Linnaeus, 1758. In: Zhang Z.-Q. (ed.) Animal biodiversity: An outline of higher-level classification... Pape T., Blagoderov V., Mostovski M.B. 2011. Zootaxa 3148: 222–229.

4.	Insects: Their Natural History And Diversity: With a Photographic Guide to Insects of Eastern North America Stephen A. Marshall. 2006. Firefly Books Ltd.

Contributed by tom murray on 19 January, 2006 - 1:47pm
Additional contributions by cotinis, Aaron Schusteff, Vox Sciurorum, v belov
Last updated 27 August, 2021 - 5:54am

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