Hippobosca equina
| Hippobosca equina | |
|---|---|
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Diptera |
| Family: | Hippoboscidae |
| Tribe: | Hippoboscini |
| Genus: | Hippobosca |
| Species: | H. equina
|
| Binomial name | |
| Hippobosca equina | |
| Synonyms | |
Hippobosca equina, also known as the forest fly or New Forest fly, is a biting fly from the family Hippoboscidae. They are blood-feeding ectoparasites of primarily horses and other large mammals including cattle.[5][6] It is a permanently fully winged fly, not shedding its wings on finding its host, as in some other Hippoboscidae. With its wings retained, it may thus fly away from its host to deposit its larvae.[7] They are good fliers.[4]
Description
Wing length 6.0–8.5 millimetres (0.24–0.33 in).[4] Generally pale reddish brown with yellow spots on the indistinctly segmented abdomen. They have one pair of sub-triangular wings and the wing veins are crowded together towards the anterior border. The characteristic feature of these flies is that they move sidewards and they feed preferably between the hind legs and on the perineum region.
Life cycle
The New Forest fly lays larvae singly[8] in late instar (stage III). They rapidly pupate over one hour[9] and exhibit varying duration as pupae, depending on temperature.[10]
Distribution
The primary distribution is in Europe and parts of Asia and Africa. It has been introduced to other locations, though in some cases latter eradicated by modern husbandry practices.[11] In the United Kingdom they are known primarily from the New Forest and increasingly from South Devon. There are occasionally recorded from other part of the UK, though some reports as far north as the Scottish borders are considered dubious.[6] In the United Kingdom, their flight period is from May to October, but peaking August and early September.[7] Within Egypt, the fly is most prevalent in Lower Egypt and appears to be responsive to temperature and humidity, being most common in June, July and August.[12]
Hosts
Their primary host are equines; they are often also frequently found on cattle on which they are able to maintain a population.[8] They have been known to bite a number of other mammals, including humans, in whom this may lead to anaphylactic reactions.[9] Other mammals it may also live on are red deer, camel and rabbit. Also on birds: the grey heron, and the northern goshawk. They have been fed and bred on guinea pigs in the laboratory.[7]
As a disease vector
Hippobosca equina has been implicated in transmission of Corynebacterium pseudotuberculosis between water buffalo in Egypt, causing edematous skin disease.[12] The transmission has been reported to be biological with transovarial transmission.[13]
References
- ^ Linnaeus, C. (1758). Systema naturae... Ed. 10, Vol. 1. Holmiae [= Stockholm]: L. Salvii. pp. 824 pp. Retrieved 14 November 2022.
- ^ Macquart, P.J.M. (1835). Histoire Naturelle des insectes. Diptères. Tome deuxieme. Paris: Roret. pp. 703 or 710 pp., 12 pls. Retrieved 27 January 2021.
- ^ Rondani, C. (1879). "Hippoboscita Italica in familias et genera distributa". Bullettino della Società Entomologica Italiana. 11: 3–28. Retrieved 19 January 2022.
- ^ a b c J. Beguaert (1930). "Notes on Hippoboscidæ" (PDF). Psyche: A Journal of Entomology. 32 (6). Cambridge, Massachusetts: Cambridge Entomological Club: 266–277. doi:10.1155/1925/29374.
- ^ Colyer, C. N.; Hamond, C. O. (1951). Flies of the British Isles. The Wayside and Woodland Series (2nd ed.). London: Frederick Warne & Co. Ltd. p. 384. OCLC 558450479.
- ^ a b Turner, C. R.; Mann, D. J. (2005). "Recent Observations on Hippobosca equina L. (Dipter:Hippoboscidae) in South Devon". British Journal of Entomology and Natural History. 18 (1). British Entomological and Natural History Society: 37–40. ISSN 0952-7583.
- ^ a b c Hutson, A. M. (1984). Diptera: Keds, flat-flies & bat-flies (Hippoboscidae & Nycteribiidae). Handbooks for the Identification of British Insects. Vol. 10 pt 7. Royal Entomological Society of London. pp. 84 pp.
- ^ a b Richard Wall; David Shearer (1997). Veterinary Entomology: Arthropod Ectoparasites of Veterinary Importance. Springer. p. 439. ISBN 0-412-61510-X.
- ^ a b Maślanko, Weronika; Szwaj, Ewelina; Gazda, Michał; Bartosik, Katarzyna (2022). Efird, Jimmy T. (ed.). "Hippobosca equina L. (Hippoboscidae: Hippobosca)—An Old Enemy as an Emerging Threat in the Palearctic Zone". International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. 19 (24) 16978. doi:10.3390/ijerph192416978. PMC 9779546.
- ^ Hafez, Mahmoud; Hilali, M.; Fouda, M. (1977). "Biological studies on Hippobosca equina (L.) (Diptera: Hippoboscidae) infesting domestic animals in Egypt". Journal of Applied Entomology. 83 (1–4): 426–441. doi:10.1111/j.1439-0418.1977.tb02420.x.
- ^ "Hippobosca equina Linnaeus". CSIRO Entomology. 2004.
- ^ a b Selim, S.A. (2001). "Oedematous Skin Disease of Buffalo in Egypt". Journal of Veterinary Medicine, Series B. 48 (4): 241–258. doi:10.1046/j.1439-0450.2001.00451.x.
- ^ Arafa, M.I.; Hamouda, S.M.; Rateb, H.Z.; Abdel-Hafeez, M.M.; Aamer, A.A. (2019). "Oedematous Skin Disease (OSD) Transmission among Buffaloes" (PDF). Global Journal of Medical Research: G. 19 (1): 15–19. Retrieved 19 February 2026.