''Tabanus bovinus'', sometimes called the pale giant horse-fly, is a species of biting

horse-fly Horse-flies or horseflies are true flies in the family Tabanidae in the insect order Diptera. They are often large and agile in flight, and only the female horseflies bite animals, including humans, to obtain blood. They prefer to fly in su ...

. As the scientific name suggests, it prefers

bovine Bovines (subfamily Bovinae) comprise a diverse group of 10 genera of medium to large-sized ungulates, including cattle, bison, African buffalo, water buffalos, and the four-horned and spiral-horned antelopes. The evolutionary relationship betwe ...

animals as the source of blood, although it may bite other kind of mammals as well. The insect is relatively large for a horse-fly, adults usually being 25–30 mm long. Like most other horseflies, its compound eyes are very colorful with stripe-like patterns. Its body and wings are mostly colored brownish gray. It is quite fast and an able flier, being capable of evading most attempts to swat it with ease. It bites humans infrequently, because of its preference of bovine animals. This loud-buzzing horse-fly can be a nuisance, as it circles around its target and occasionally lands to deliver a bite (in the case of humans, the fly usually takes off again instead). However, to humans it is considerably less harmful than

deer flies Deer flies (also known in some parts of the mid-Atlantic United States as sheep flies) are Hematophagy, bloodsucking insects considered Pest (organism), pests to humans and cattle. They are large flies with large brightly-coloured compound eyes, ...

(''Chrysops''), which bite much more vigorously. There are no commercially available insect repellents that fully work against this horse-fly, however it usually avoids smoke and exhaust gases. Weather has a great effect on the horse-flies' behavior, as they only fly on sunny and hot weather. Like all horse-fly species, it is only the females that require a

blood Blood is a body fluid in the circulatory system of humans and other vertebrates that delivers necessary substances such as nutrients and oxygen to the cells, and transports metabolic waste products away from those same cells. Blood in the cir ...

meal, this is in order to provide sufficient

protein Proteins are large biomolecules and macromolecules that comprise one or more long chains of amino acid residues. Proteins perform a vast array of functions within organisms, including catalysing metabolic reactions, DNA replication, res ...

to produce eggs. Males do not bite and tend to prefer the cover of woodland, where they are

territorial A territory is an area of land, sea, or space, particularly belonging or connected to a country, person, or animal. In international politics, a territory is usually either the total area from which a state may extract power resources or a ...

References

Insects described in 1758 Tabanidae Diptera of Europe Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus {{tabanoidea-stub