Moshki [1] [2] [3] ( lat. Simuliidae ) is a family of dipterans insects , whose adult females in most cases are a component of the gnat complex. Currently, there are about 2,000 species of midges in the world fauna. The closest living relatives of midges are mosquito-jerking . Frogs are carriers of several diseases, including onchocerciasis in Africa ( Simulium damnosum and S. neavei ) and America ( S. callidum and S. metallicum in Central America, S. ochraceum in Central and South America). Fossils are known from the Middle Jurassic .
| Cats |
 |
| Scientific classification |
|---|
| No rank : | Bilateral symmetrical |
| Subtype : | Tracheo-breathing |
| Infraclass : | Winged insects |
| Treasure : | Fully Transformed Insects |
| Suborder : | Long-winged Diptera |
| Infrastructure : | Culicomorpha |
|
| International scientific name |
|---|
Simuliidae Newman, 1834 |
|
Content
Pugs are dark stocky insects, 2-4 millimeters long. The oral apparatus of their piercing-sucking type. The eyes are large, faceted. Short, thick tendrils consist of 22 segments. The chest is hunchbacked. Three pairs of short legs and one pair of wide, large wings are attached to the chest. In appearance, midges are similar to small flies. [four]
Frogs inhabit all continents except Antarctica . On the remaining parts of the land, they are widespread everywhere, except for separate remote islands and deserts without rivers.
Head of
Simulium yahense , representative of the
type family genus , close-up
Like all other dipteran insects , midges have four phases of development: egg , larva , pupa , and imago . Moreover, all phases, except adults, live in reservoirs, mainly flowing ones. Larvae of midges - filtrators or scrapers - feed on aquatic microorganisms . Symbiotic bacteria live in the intestines of midge larvae, helping them absorb cellulose. Moreover, most of the time, the larvae are attached to the substrate (stones, aquatic plants, debris) with a special formation - the rear attachment organ, consisting of many rows of hooks. The second such formation is located on the chest "leg" and serves to crawl along the substrate. Larvae and pupae of some species of midges are used as a substrate of other aquatic arthropods - crabs and mayfly larvae. Pupation takes place in a cocoon, the structure of which differs in different species.
Anthropogenic debris is also used by midge larvae as a substrate, and the population density is higher than on natural substrates. [5]
The nutrition of adults is twofold: males of all species of midges, on the other hand, feed on the nectar of flowering plants , females of most species of midges feed on nectar and drink the blood of warm-blooded animals: mammals and birds — they need blood as a source of protein for laying eggs. Some species of midges make the first clutch using a supply of imago proteins. Such species are common in polar and mountainous areas, where there are few "donors"; this mechanism allows midges to survive without bloodsucking. Also known are 37 species that do not feed on blood at all. [5]
When searching for victims, females use the sense of smell (at large distances), vision and thermoreception (at small distances) [5] .
Adult male midges live on average several days, adult females - from 3-4 weeks, up to (less often) 2-3 months [5] .
It includes two subfamilies, 33 genera and 2351 species [6] :
- Subfamily Parasimuliinae Smart, 1945
- Parasimulium Malloch, 1914
- Subfamily Simuliinae Newman , 1834
- Tribe Prosimuliini Enderlein , 1921
- † Gydarina Kalugina , 1991
- Gymnopais Stone, 1949
- Helodon Enderlein, 1921
- † Kovalevimyia Kalugina, 1991
- Levitinia Chubareva & Petrova, 1981
- Prosimulium Roubaud , 1906
- † Simulimima Kalugina, 1985
- Twinnia Stone & Jamnback, 1955
- Urosimulium Contini, 1963
- Tribe Simuliini Newman, 1834
- Araucnephia Wygodzinsky & Coscarón, 1973
- Araucnephioides Wygodzinsky & Coscarón, 1973
- † Archicnephia Currie & Grimaldi, 2000
- Austrosimulium Tonnoir, 1925
- † Baisomyia Kalugina, 1991
- Cnephia Enderlein, 1921
- Cnesia Enderlein, 1934
- Cnesiamima Wygodzinsky & Coscarón, 1973
- Crozetia Davies, 1965
- Ectemnia Enderlein, 1930
- Gigantodax Enderlein, 1925
- Greniera Doby & David, 1959
- Lutzsimulium d'Andretta & d'Andretta, 1947
- Metacnephia Crosskey , 1969
- Paracnephia Rubtsov , 1962
- Paraustrosimulium Wygodzinsky & Coscarón, 1962
- Pedrowygomyia Coscarón & Miranda-Esquivel, 1998
- Simulium Latreille , 1802
- Stegopterna Enderlein, 1930
- Sulcicnephia Rubtsov, 1971
- Tlalocomyia Wygodzinsky & Díaz Nájera, 1970
- † Ugolyakia Perkovsky et Sukhomlin, 2018
- Unplaced fossil genera
- † Cretaceosimulium Vulcano, 1985
- † Simuliites Kalugina, 1986
In nature
Cats are an integral component of natural communities . The number of groups of animals for which they are food is tens. In addition, midges, like other insects whose larvae actively feed in the aquatic environment, are one of the main causes of soil depletion . Larvae of midges feed on predatory larvae of other insects and fish; some birds, such as wagtails, feed on adult insects [5] . Adult insects, feeding on flower nectar, pollinate plants [5] . Larvae of midges can serve as an indicator of the cleanliness of a reservoir [5] .
In human life
Edema from a bite of midges is much greater than from a bite of a mosquito, respectively, and pain, too. This is due to the fact that during an attack, the midge cuts the flesh and injects saliva, causing bleeding, while mosquitoes pierce the skin with a thin long proboscis and suck blood from the capillary [5] . Frogs are carriers of dangerous diseases: parasitic onchocerciasis of cattle and humans, leukocytozoonosis of birds, as well as viral diseases. Enzymes of saliva of midges injected into the wound during a bite can cause a severe allergic reaction - simulidotoxicosis [5] [7] .
Conditions for the activity of midges and protection against them
Pups attack at temperatures from 8 to 30 ° C, with winds up to 2 m / s [5] . You can protect yourself from midges by tight clothing and a headgear with a mosquito net (mosquito net) soaked in repellent. In case of a bite, treat it with ammonia to reduce itching [5] .
Canadian cartographer, draftsman and bard Wade Hemsworth wrote the song The Black Fly in 1949 after lengthy work in northern Ontario [8] . In 1991, animator Christopher Hinton created a cartoon of the same name for this song ( YouTube video ).
