Ceratopogonidae
Encyclopedia
Ceratopogonidae, or biting midges (including what are called, in the United States
and Canada
, no-see-ums, midgies, sand flies, punkies, and others), are a family of small flies (1–4 mm long) in the order Diptera
. They are closely related to the Chironomidae
, Simuliidae (or black flies
), and Thaumaleidae
.
They are found in almost any aquatic or semiaquatic habitat throughout the world. Females of most species
are adapted to suck blood
from some kind of host
animal. Culicoides
, Forcipomyia (Lasiohelea), and Leptoconops
suck vertebrate
blood
. Some Atrichopogon and Forcipomyia are ectoparasites on larger insects. Dasyhelea
feed exclusively on nectar. Species
in other genera
are predatory on other small insects. Larva
e are always found in some damp location, such as under bark
, in rotten wood, compost
, mud, stream margins, tree holes
, or water-holding plants (i.e., phytotelmata
).
Many of the hematophagic
(blood-eating) species
are pests in beach
or mountain
habitats
. Some other species
are important pollinators of tropical crops
such as cacao. The blood-sucking species may be vectors of disease
-causing viruses, protozoa
, and filarial worms. The bite of midges in the genus Culicoides causes an allergic response in equines known as sweet itch
. In humans, their bite can cause intensely itchy, red welts that can persist for more than a week. The discomfort arises from a localized allergic reaction to the proteins in their saliva
, which can be somewhat alleviated by topical antihistamines
.
The smaller members of the family are tiny enough to pass through the apertures in typical window screen
s. Camping tent
s are often equipped with extra-fine mesh netting, called no-see-um nets, to keep the pests out.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, no-see-ums, midgies, sand flies, punkies, and others), are a family of small flies (1–4 mm long) in the order Diptera
Diptera
Diptera , or true flies, is the order of insects possessing only a single pair of wings on the mesothorax; the metathorax bears a pair of drumstick like structures called the halteres, the remnants of the hind wings. It is a large order, containing an estimated 240,000 species, although under half...
. They are closely related to the Chironomidae
Chironomidae
Chironomidae are a family of nematoceran flies with a global distribution. They are closely related to the Ceratopogonidae, Simuliidae, and Thaumaleidae...
, Simuliidae (or black flies
Black fly
A black fly is any member of the family Simuliidae of the Culicomorpha infraorder. They are related to the Ceratopogonidae, Chironomidae, and Thaumaleidae. There are over 1,800 known species of black flies . Most species belong to the immense genus Simulium...
), and Thaumaleidae
Thaumaleidae
Thaumaleidae, the solitary midges or trickle midges, are a group of nematoceran flies related to the Ceratopogonidae, Chironomidae, and the Simuliidae. They are small, stocky, yellow to brown flies . There are very few species known for this family...
.
They are found in almost any aquatic or semiaquatic habitat throughout the world. Females of most species
Species
In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring. While in many cases this definition is adequate, more precise or differing measures are...
are adapted to suck blood
Blood
Blood is a specialized bodily fluid in animals that delivers necessary substances such as nutrients and oxygen to the cells and transports metabolic waste products away from those same cells....
from some kind of host
Host (biology)
In biology, a host is an organism that harbors a parasite, or a mutual or commensal symbiont, typically providing nourishment and shelter. In botany, a host plant is one that supplies food resources and substrate for certain insects or other fauna...
animal. Culicoides
Culicoides
Culicoides is a genus of biting midges in the subfamily Ceratopogonidae. Around 500 species of Ceratopogonidae are at present placed in the genus and this is split into many subgenera. Several species are known to be vectors of various diseases and parasites which can affect animals.-Notable...
, Forcipomyia (Lasiohelea), and Leptoconops
Leptoconops
Leptoconops is a midge genus in the family Ceratopogonidae.Leptoconops sucks vertebrate blood....
suck vertebrate
Vertebrate
Vertebrates are animals that are members of the subphylum Vertebrata . Vertebrates are the largest group of chordates, with currently about 58,000 species described. Vertebrates include the jawless fishes, bony fishes, sharks and rays, amphibians, reptiles, mammals, and birds...
blood
Blood
Blood is a specialized bodily fluid in animals that delivers necessary substances such as nutrients and oxygen to the cells and transports metabolic waste products away from those same cells....
. Some Atrichopogon and Forcipomyia are ectoparasites on larger insects. Dasyhelea
Dasyhelea
Dasyhelea is a genus of biting midges and the only genus of its subfamily, the Dasyheleinae. Larvae of species in this genus are characterized by an anal segment with retractile posterior prolegs. Larvae are aquatic and adults do not feed on vertebrate blood, nor do they prey on other insects...
feed exclusively on nectar. Species
Species
In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring. While in many cases this definition is adequate, more precise or differing measures are...
in other genera
Genus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...
are predatory on other small insects. Larva
Larva
A larva is a distinct juvenile form many animals undergo before metamorphosis into adults. Animals with indirect development such as insects, amphibians, or cnidarians typically have a larval phase of their life cycle...
e are always found in some damp location, such as under bark
Bark
Bark is the outermost layers of stems and roots of woody plants. Plants with bark include trees, woody vines and shrubs. Bark refers to all the tissues outside of the vascular cambium and is a nontechnical term. It overlays the wood and consists of the inner bark and the outer bark. The inner...
, in rotten wood, compost
Compost
Compost is organic matter that has been decomposed and recycled as a fertilizer and soil amendment. Compost is a key ingredient in organic farming. At its most essential, the process of composting requires simply piling up waste outdoors and waiting for the materials to break down from anywhere...
, mud, stream margins, tree holes
Tree hollow
A tree hollow or tree hole is a semi-enclosed cavity which has naturally formed in the trunk or branch of a tree. These are predominantly found in old trees, whether living or not...
, or water-holding plants (i.e., phytotelmata
Phytotelmata
Phytotelma is a term for water bodies held by plants. The water accumulated on these plants may serve as substratum for associated fauna, and often the fauna associated with phytotelmata is unique....
).
Many of the hematophagic
Hematophagy
Hematophagy is the practice of certain animals of feeding on blood...
(blood-eating) species
Species
In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring. While in many cases this definition is adequate, more precise or differing measures are...
are pests in beach
Beach
A beach is a geological landform along the shoreline of an ocean, sea, lake or river. It usually consists of loose particles which are often composed of rock, such as sand, gravel, shingle, pebbles or cobblestones...
or mountain
Mountain
Image:Himalaya_annotated.jpg|thumb|right|The Himalayan mountain range with Mount Everestrect 58 14 160 49 Chomo Lonzorect 200 28 335 52 Makalurect 378 24 566 45 Mount Everestrect 188 581 920 656 Tibetan Plateaurect 250 406 340 427 Rong River...
habitats
Habitat (ecology)
A habitat is an ecological or environmental area that is inhabited by a particular species of animal, plant or other type of organism...
. Some other species
Species
In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring. While in many cases this definition is adequate, more precise or differing measures are...
are important pollinators of tropical crops
Crop (agriculture)
A crop is a non-animal species or variety that is grown to be harvested as food, livestock fodder, fuel or for any other economic purpose. Major world crops include maize , wheat, rice, soybeans, hay, potatoes and cotton. While the term "crop" most commonly refers to plants, it can also include...
such as cacao. The blood-sucking species may be vectors of disease
Disease
A disease is an abnormal condition affecting the body of an organism. It is often construed to be a medical condition associated with specific symptoms and signs. It may be caused by external factors, such as infectious disease, or it may be caused by internal dysfunctions, such as autoimmune...
-causing viruses, protozoa
Protozoa
Protozoa are a diverse group of single-cells eukaryotic organisms, many of which are motile. Throughout history, protozoa have been defined as single-cell protists with animal-like behavior, e.g., movement...
, and filarial worms. The bite of midges in the genus Culicoides causes an allergic response in equines known as sweet itch
Sweet itch
Also known as Queensland Itch, Summer Itch or more technically, Culicoides Hypersensitivity.Sweet Itch is a medical condition in equines caused by an allergic response to the bites of Culicoides midges. It may be found in any horses and ponies, especially in the warmer regions. It may also occur,...
. In humans, their bite can cause intensely itchy, red welts that can persist for more than a week. The discomfort arises from a localized allergic reaction to the proteins in their saliva
Saliva
Saliva , referred to in various contexts as spit, spittle, drivel, drool, or slobber, is the watery substance produced in the mouths of humans and most other animals. Saliva is a component of oral fluid. In mammals, saliva is produced in and secreted from the three pairs of major salivary glands,...
, which can be somewhat alleviated by topical antihistamines
Histamine antagonist
A histamine antagonist, commonly referred to as antihistamine, is a pharmaceutical drug that inhibits action of histamine by blocking it from attaching to histamine receptors.- Clinical effects :...
.
The smaller members of the family are tiny enough to pass through the apertures in typical window screen
Window screen
A window screen, insect screen or bug screen is a metal wire, fiberglass, or other synthetic fiber mesh, stretched in a frame of wood or metal, designed to cover the opening of an open window. Its primary purpose is to keep leaves, debris, insects, birds, and other animals from entering a building...
s. Camping tent
Tent
A tent is a shelter consisting of sheets of fabric or other material draped over or attached to a frame of poles or attached to a supporting rope. While smaller tents may be free-standing or attached to the ground, large tents are usually anchored using guy ropes tied to stakes or tent pegs...
s are often equipped with extra-fine mesh netting, called no-see-um nets, to keep the pests out.
See also
- Culicoides impunctatusHighland midgeThe Highland midge is a species of small flying insect, found in upland and lowland areas especially in the north west of Scotland from late spring to late summer...
—known as the Scottish Midge, or Highland Midge. - Culicoides imicolaCulicoides imicolaCulicoides imicola is a midge which transmits the bluetongue virus. Other suspected BTV vectors areCulicoides pulicaris and species in the Culicoides obsoletus complex....
External links
- British insects: the families of Diptera – Delta guides, Biodiversity and Biological Collections
- Ceratopogonidae – AAFC, Government of Canada
- The Ceratopogonidae – Inbio Site, Instituto Nacional de Biodiversidad
- Ceratopogonid Web Page – Belmont University
- Biting midges on the UFUniversity of FloridaThe University of Florida is an American public land-grant, sea-grant, and space-grant research university located on a campus in Gainesville, Florida. The university traces its historical origins to 1853, and has operated continuously on its present Gainesville campus since September 1906...
/ IFASInstitute of Food and Agricultural SciencesThe University of Florida’s Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences is a federal-state-county partnership dedicated to developing knowledge in agriculture, human and natural resources, and the life sciences, and enhancing and sustaining the quality of human life by making that information...
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