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Crane
Fly - Tipula dorsimacula Live adult female crane fly photographed at northern Illinois. Order Diptera / Suborder Nematocera / Infraorder Tipulomorpha / Family Tipulidae / Subfamily Tipulinae Tipulidae is the largest family of Diptera with about 1,500 species in North America and 12,000 species worldwide. |
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| Live adult female fly photographed at Winfield IL USA April 23,
2004. Size: 25mm not including legs.
I
believe this giant crane fly had recently been laying eggs when I stumbled
upon it - the tip of the abdomen is wet as if it had been in the water or
mud. Thanks to Dr. Chen Young of Carnegie Museum of Natural History for identification of this specimen. |
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The small, bulbous structures are called halteres. They are used for balance and vibration damping during flight.
All true flies have these organs; they evolved from the (absent in flies) second set of wings present in many other insects.
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| More Flies at Flies of North America Main Page Graphics or Alphabetic Table of Contents |
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