Limonia hardyana
| Limonia hardyana | |
|---|---|
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Diptera |
| Family: | Limoniidae |
| Genus: | Limonia |
| Species: | L. hardyana
|
| Binomial name | |
| Limonia hardyana Byers, 1985
| |
Limonia hardyana, also known as the flightless cranefly, is a species of fly in the family Limoniidae. It inhabits leaf litter on Oʻahu.[1]
Description
Limonia hardyana has six elongated legs, a tri-segmented body, and no wingless.[2] Sometimes mistaken for a mosquito.[3]
Habitat
Limonia hardyana was discovered on or near the summit of Koolau Mountains on O'ahu in Hawaii.[4] This mountain range is 3,130 ft (960 meters) in elevation and is a dormant volcano,[5]; L. hardyana lives in bogs and leaf litter at high elevations.[6] L. hardyana is believed have evolved flightlessness due to the strong mountain winds.[7]
L. hardyana larvae are benthic and take approximately two weeks to hatch.[8]
Discovery
Limonia hardyana was discovered by George William Byers, an entomology professor at the University of Kansas, in 1985. Byers was the curator of the Snow Entomology Division of the Biodiversity Institute of the University. He continued to study craneflies until his passing in 2018.[9]
Conservation
Possible threats to Limonia hardyana include diverting waterways away from the species' habitat, thus eliminating its breeding grounds. Habitat destruction caused by wild boars and predation from other insects are also threats.[10]
References
- ^ "Flightless Cranefly". hbs.bishopmuseum.org. Retrieved 2021-09-22.
- ^ Byers, George (1969). "Evolution of Wing Reduction in Crane Flies". Evolution. 23 (2) – via Evolution.
- ^ "Crane Flies (Various spp.)". www.insectidentification.org. Retrieved 2022-04-17.
- ^ "Flightless Cranefly". hbs.bishopmuseum.org. Retrieved 2022-04-17.
- ^ "Koolau Range | mountains, Hawaii, United States | Britannica". www.britannica.com. Retrieved 2022-04-17.
- ^ "Flightless Cranefly". hbs.bishopmuseum.org. Retrieved 2022-04-17.
- ^ Roff, Derek A. (1990). "The Evolution of Flightlessness in Insects". Ecological Monographs. 60 (4): 389–421. doi:10.2307/1943013. ISSN 0012-9615.
- ^ "Flightless Cranefly". hbs.bishopmuseum.org. Retrieved 2022-03-06.
- ^ "Rumsey-Yost Obituary for George W Byers". September 2018.
- ^ Nix Illustration (September 2019). "Island Weirdness #43: Flightless Flies". Nix Illustration. Retrieved 27 February 2022.