Biology and Reproductive Behavior of Dilophus Sayi (Diptera: Bibionidae)
Abstract
The eggs of Dilophus sayi (Hardy) are laid in the soil and require 16-22 days to hatch. Aggregates of up to 300 larvae are found on or near the surface of the soil among the roots of grasses. Pupation occurs in the soil. Males hover over emergence areas in the morning and afternoon. Females are intercepted immediately upon emergence as they fly through swarms of hovering males. Copulation takes place on the grass and is accomplished in a mean of 30 min. At the termination of a copulation males rejoin the hovering swarm; females disperse from the emergence area. Both males and females may mate more than once. Under laboratory conditions, females live about 72 hr and males about 92 hr. The behavior of D. sayi adults is somewhat similar to that of the lovebug, Plecia nearctica Hardy.Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright for any article published in Florida Entomologist is held by the author(s) of the article. Florida Entomologist is an open access journal. Florida Entomologist follows terms of the Creative Commons, Attribution Non-Commercial License (cc by-nc). By submitting and publishing articles in Florida Entomologist, authors grant the FOJ and Florida Entomologist's host institutions permission to make the article available through Internet posting and electronic dissemination, and to otherwise archive the information contained both electronically and in a hard printed version. When used, information and images obtained from articles must be referenced and cited appropriately. Articles may be reproduced for personal, educational, or archival purposes, or any non-commercial use. Permission should be sought from the author(s) for multiple, non-commercial reproduction. Written permission from the author(s) is required for any commercial reproduction.
