Common Drone Fly

Fascinating facts about the Common Drone Fly

• The common drone fly holds the title of the most widely distributed syrphid species, occurring on every continent except Antarctica. It thrives in a remarkable range of habitats, from gardens and fields in Europe and Australia to the high latitudes of the North and even the Himalayas. Its presence in the United States stretches from Alaska in the far north down to California and Florida in the south, showing its ability to colonise diverse climates.
• The larval stage of the common drone fly, known as the rat-tailed maggot, possesses a posterior breathing tube that can be several times longer than its own body, giving it a distinctive tail-like look. This siphon extends to the water surface while the larva moves beneath, allowing it to breathe without surfacing.
• With age, common drone flies develop an extraordinary toughness; their skin remains insoluble even when exposed to strong alkaline solutions. Experiments have shown that decapitated individuals can survive for days, and flies without wings continue to feed normally on flowers.
• Decapitated common drone flies have been observed surviving for three days and nights while mounted on a microscope stage, remaining alive despite the loss of their heads. Their resilience is further shown by individuals that, after having their abdomen removed, continued to buzz for over an hour.
• Human intestinal myiasis caused by the rat-tailed maggot of Eristalis tenax is extremely rare, occurring when the larva enters the human intestine. Zumpt suggested a "rectal myiasis" hypothesis, where flies attracted to feces deposit eggs or larvae near the anus and the larvae penetrate the rectum, surviving by feeding on feces as long as their breathing tube reaches out.

Sources

Every fact above was checked against these pages, and kept only where one of them states it.

• Wikipedia

At a glance

About the Common Drone Fly

As the common drone fly dances through the air, its iridescent body glimmering in the sunlight, it embodies a carefree spirit, its agile form weaving effortlessly between blades of grass and colorful blooms. With a mesmerizing flutter of its wings, it hovers, pauses, and darts forward once more, driven by an insatiable quest for sweet nectar and warm sunlight. In its whirling, erratic flight, the drone fly is a master of unpredictability, a whimsical embodiment of the unbridled joy that permeates the natural world.

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