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Dinesh

Dinesh club

Posted: 27 May 2021

Taken: 26 Apr 2021

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Crane fly

Crane fly
The common name “mosquito hawk” is sometimes given to these flies; however the name usually comes with the belief that these clumsy, long-legged insects are predators, perhaps on mosquitoes. Nothing could be further from the truth. Crane flies are among the gentlest of insects. Some are nectar feeders, sipping sweet sugars from plants and possibly helping out a little with pollination in the process. Other species lack mouth parts entirely. Instead, the adults live out their short lives relying on fat reserves built up during their underground larval stage.

Keith Burton has particularly liked this photo

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 Dinesh
Dinesh club
Crane flies are typically associated with moist vegetative habitats. Crane fly larvae can be found in moist soil feeding on decomposing vegetation and various plant roots. Some species may be found in streams feeding on small aquatic insects, invertebrates, and any decaying plant life found near the surface. They survive best in mild winters and cool summers, with adults emerging in late spring from lawns and pastures.

Diet
Adult crane flies do not feed. The larvae are the only feeding forms. They feed on roots of grasses and decaying organic matter. The food sources for the larvae remain abundant due to the regions the insects inhabit, including parts of Atlantic Canada and western provinces like British Columbia near the rainforests of the Pacific Northwest in the U.S.

Life Cycle
Like other true flies, the crane fly undergoes complete metamorphosis with four distinct stages, eggs, larva, pupa and adult. A female crane fly lays up to 300 eggs in the ground. The eggs hatch within two weeks of being deposited. The hatched larvae feed on decaying wood, vegetation, and turf, and may cause damage to plant roots in large concentrations. Typically, the crane fly larvae goes through four instars and overwinters under the ground before pupating in mid-to-late spring, just below the soil surface. When the adult crane flies emerge, they leave behind pupal cases (puparia) which appear to be small, grey sticks. Crane flies adults live for several days, typically just long enough to mate and reproduce.

Larvae
Crane fly larvae are sometimes called “leatherjackets” for the tough skin these insects exhibit during their third and fourth instars. Crane fly larvae feed on the roots of the grasses. Light grey to greenish-brown in colour, the larvae also exhibit irregular black specks on the body. They are cylindrical in shape and taper slightly at both ends. The larvae do not have legs and appear similar to worms. Crane fly larvae range in size from 5 mm in the first instar up to 4 cm in the final instar before pupation.
3 years ago.
 Keith Burton
Keith Burton club
A lovely shot and an interesting narrative. In my part of the world we call them "Daddy Long Legs".
3 years ago.

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