Genus Pseudacteon - Fire Ant Decapitating Flies

Classification · Explanation of Names · Numbers · Size · Identification · Range · Food · Remarks · Internet References · Works Cited

Pseudacteon attack on Solenopsis geminata - Pseudacteon - male

Pseudacteon attack on Solenopsis geminata - Pseudacteon

Pseudacteon attacking Solenopsis geminata colony - Pseudacteon - female

Pseudacteon attacking Solenopsis geminata colony - Pseudacteon

Classification

Kingdom Animalia (Animals)

Phylum Arthropoda (Arthropods)

Subphylum Hexapoda (Hexapods)

Class Insecta (Insects)

Order Diptera (Flies)

No Taxon ("Aschiza")

Superfamily Platypezoidea

Family Phoridae (Scuttle Flies)

Subfamily Metopininae

Genus Pseudacteon (Fire Ant Decapitating Flies)

Explanation of Names

Pseudacteon Coquillett 1907

Numbers

8 spp. in our area, >20 spp. total(1)

Size

About the size of the heads of their hosts

Identification

review in(1); key to spp. (based on ♀♀) on p. 956

Range

primarily neotropical, ranging into so. US; in our area, by far most diverse in TX (only P. crawfordi is also known from OK & AZ)(1)

Food

some are endoparasitoids of fire ants (Solenopsis geminata complex)(1)

Remarks

In 1997, Pseudacteon tricuspis Borgmeier was the first species of Pseudacteon fly successfully released as a biocontrol agent for imported fire ants in the U.S. (Callcott et al. 2011). Five other species, Pseudacteon curvatus Borgmeier, Pseudacteon litoralis Borgmeier, Pseudacteon obtusus Borgmeier, Pseudacteon nocens Borgmeier, and Pseudacteon cultellatus Borgmeier have since been released (Porter and Calcaterra 2013).

Internet References

Cornell U.

USDA. Illustrated Key to Pseudacteon Decapitating Flies that Attack Solenopsis saevissima complex Fire Ants.

U. Florida. Pseudacteon spp.

U. Texas. Fire Ant Project. Use of phorid flies for biocontrol

Works Cited

1.	A review of Pseudacteon (Diptera: Phoridae) that parasitize ants of the Solenopsis geminata complex (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) Plowes R.M., LeBrun E.G., Brown B.V., Gilbert L.E. 2009. Ann. Ent. Soc. Am. 102: 937-958.

Contributed by John F. Carr on 14 May, 2012 - 9:16pm
Additional contributions by Beatriz Moisset, v belov
Last updated 26 December, 2017 - 11:44am

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