シマシマの目のハエ

野鶏頭の花が盛りです。毎年この花に好んで吸蜜する昆虫の1つがツマグロキンバエです。このはえの特徴はなんと言ってもそのシマシマ模様の眼。どの角度から見ても縞が入っています。それと長い舌。これで蜜をなめ取っています。鶏頭に取ってみれば、花粉を媒介する大切なお客様です。

The nogeitou, a wild feather cockscomb (Celosia argentea) flowers are in full bloom. One of the insects that likes to feed on these flowers every year is the tumaguro kinbae (Stomorhina obsoleta), . The distinctive feature of this fly is its striped eyes. No matter what angle you look at it from, you can see the stripes. It also has a long tongue, mouthpart. It uses this tongue to lick off the honey. They are an important pollinator for the cockscomb .

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Photo 2021-09-21