Kleptoparasitic interactions among animals
Diptera: Anthomyiidae
Diptera: Anthomyiidae
| Nederlands | : | Bloemvliegen |
| Deutsch | : | Blumenfliegen |
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| The bee, Andrena barbilabris, returning to its nest from a foraging flight, carefully watched by a satellite fly, Leucophora spec. |
Anthomyiidae is a family of rather drably colored flies. In their larval feeding they show a wide range of habits, including saprophagy, predation, parasitism and kleptoparasitism. Species of the genus Leucophora are kleptoparasites of various bees. Female flies habitually follow foraging bees at a fairly constant distance, as if tethered to the bee, whence these flies are called satellite flies (but the name also applies to some other kleptoparasitic flies with the same habit, such as the Miltogramminae.) Flies of the genus Eustalomyia are kleptoparasites of various Crabronidae, or digger wasps. Knowledge of the hosts of various Anthomyids is still limited. The photos below show a few anthomyiid kleptoparasites with possible hosts. |
Anthomyiid (Possible) hosts |
| Leucophora cinerea |
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| Amstelveen, the Netherlands; 15 May 2011. |
| Andrena flavipes |
| Authority | : | Panzer, 1799 |
| Nederlands | : | Grasbij |
| English | : | Yellow-legged mining bee |
| Deutsch | : | Gewöhnliche Bindensandbiene |
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| Amstelveen, the Netherlands; 31 March 2007. |
| Colletes succinctus |
| Authority | : | (Linnaeus, 1758) |
| Nederlands | : | Heizijdebij |
| English | : | Heather colletes |
| Deutsch | : | Heidekraut-Seidenbiene |
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| Aekingerzand, the Netherlands; 2 August 2008. |
| Leucophora cf. obtusa |
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| Amstelveen, the Netherlands; 8 April 2010. |
| Andrena fulva |
| Authority | : | (Müller, 1766) |
| Nederlands | : | Vosje |
| English | : | Tawny mining bee |
| Deutsch | : | Fuchsrote Lockensandbiene |
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| Amstelveen, the Netherlands; 20 April 2008. |
| Andrena nitida |
| Authority | : | (Müller, 1776) |
| Nederlands | : | Viltvlekzandbij |
| English | : | Scarce black mining bee |
| Deutsch | : | Glänzende Düstersandbiene |
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| Amstelveen, the Netherlands; 8 April 2012. |
| Leucophora cf. personata |
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| Amstelveen, the Netherlands; 15 April 2010. |
| Andrena barbilabris |
| Authority | : | (Kirby, 1802) |
| Nederlands | : | Witbaardzandbij |
| English | : | Sandpit mining bee |
| Deutsch | : | Bärtige Sandbiene |
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| AW duinen, the Netherlands; 3 May 2008. |
Blaricum, the Netherlands; 26 April 2008. |
| Eustalomyia hilaris |
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| Amstelveen, the Netherlands; 2 June 2007. |
| Ectemnius spec |
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| Amstelveen, the Netherlands; 2 June 2007. |
| Eustalomyia histrio |
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| AW duinen, the Netherlands; 2 June 2011. |
| Ectemnius spec |
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| Amstelveen, the Netherlands; 17 May 2007. |
| Eustalomyia vittipes |
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| AW duinen, the Netherlands; 7 May 2011. |
| Ectemnius spec |
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| Amstelveen, the Netherlands; 7 July 2007. |