''Carnus'' is a
genus
Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial nom ...
of
flies
Flies are insects of the order Diptera, the name being derived from the Greek δι- ''di-'' "two", and πτερόν ''pteron'' "wing". Insects of this order use only a single pair of wings to fly, the hindwings having evolved into advanced m ...
(
Diptera) with 5 described
species
In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...
, all of which are
parasites
Parasitism is a close relationship between species, where one organism, the parasite, lives on or inside another organism, the host, causing it some harm, and is adapted structurally to this way of life. The entomologist E. O. Wilson ha ...
of
bird
Birds are a group of warm-blooded vertebrates constituting the class Aves (), characterised by feathers, toothless beaked jaws, the laying of hard-shelled eggs, a high metabolic rate, a four-chambered heart, and a strong yet lightweig ...
s.
The adult flies locate a suitable host
nest
A nest is a structure built for certain animals to hold eggs or young. Although nests are most closely associated with birds, members of all classes of vertebrates and some invertebrates construct nests. They may be composed of organic materi ...
, then shed their wings and feed on the blood of the developing
nestling
Birds are a group of warm-blooded vertebrates constituting the class Aves (), characterised by feathers, toothless beaked jaws, the laying of hard-shelled eggs, a high metabolic rate, a four-chambered heart, and a strong yet lightweight s ...
s.
[Peter C. Barnard. 2011. ''The Royal Entomological Society Book of British Insects''. John Wiley & Sons, 2011, https://books.google.com/books?id=xLntEIQ4b-0C&pg=PT668&lpg=PT668&dq=%22carnus%22+detritus&source=bl&ots=NeDttT4_XF&sig=fuGeCnCf-91z0XdD9rvHotkjVA4&hl=en&sa=X&ei=17wVU-GCE4u00AHXz4C4CQ&ved=0CC8Q6AEwAg#v=onepage&q=%22carnus%22%20detritus&f=false.] Mature female flies lay their eggs in the nest, where their
larvae develop on organic detritus.
Species
*''
C. floridensis''
Grimaldi, 1997
*''
C. hemapterus''
Nitzsch, 1818
*''
C. mexicana''
Grimaldi, 1997
*''
C. occidentalis''
Grimaldi, 1997
*''
C. orientalis''
Maa, 1968
In 2014, ''
C. orientalis'' was reported for the first time in Japan, parasitizing nestlings of the
Ryūkyū scops owl, ''
Otus elegans
Otus may refer to:
* Otus (education), a K-12 educational technology company
* HMS ''Otus'', two ships in the Royal Navy
* ''Otus'' (bird), genus of owls
* Otus (mythology), giant in Greek mythology, brother of Ephialtes, one of Aloadae
* Otus o ...
'', a new host species record.
[Mitsuhiro Iwasa, Hironori Sakamoto, & Kento Asahi. 2014. Discovery of a Bird-Parasitic Fly, ''Carnus orientalis'' (Diptera: Carnidae), in Japan, With Bionomic Remarks and a Key to ''Carnus'' Species. ''Journal of Medical Entomology'', 51(2): 484-488, abstract at http://www.ingentaconnect.com/content/esa/jme/2014/00000051/00000002/art00023.]
References
Carnidae
Carnoidea genera
Taxa named by Christian Ludwig Nitzsch
{{Carnoidea-stub