Sandfly (or sand fly) is a colloquial name for any species or

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus com ...

of flying, biting,

blood-sucking Hematophagy (sometimes spelled haematophagy or hematophagia) is the practice by certain animals of feeding on blood (from the Greek words αἷμα ' "blood" and φαγεῖν ' "to eat"). Since blood is a fluid tissue rich in nutritious pr ...

diptera 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 ...

n (fly) encountered in sandy areas. In the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

, ''sandfly'' may refer to certain horse flies that are also known as "greenheads" (family

Tabanidae 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 s ...

), or to members of the family

Ceratopogonidae Ceratopogonidae is a family of flies commonly known as no-see-ums, or biting midges, generally in length. The family includes more than 5,000 species, distributed worldwide, apart from the Antarctic and the Arctic. Ceratopogonidae are holomet ...

. The bites usually result in a small, intensely itchy bump or welt, the strength of which intensifies over a period of 5-7 days before dissipating. Moderate relief is achieved with varying success through the application of over the counter products such as

Benadryl Benadryl is a brand of various antihistamine medications used to stop allergies, whose content varies in different countries, but which includes some combination of diphenhydramine, acrivastine, and/or cetirizine. It is sold by Johnson & Johnso ...

(ingested) or an

analgesic An analgesic drug, also called simply an analgesic (American English), analgaesic (British English), pain reliever, or painkiller, is any member of the group of drugs used to achieve relief from pain (that is, analgesia or pain management). It ...

cream such as

After Bite After may refer to: Literature * ''After'' (Elgar), an 1895 poem by Philip Bourke Marston set to music by Edward Elgar * ''After'' (Prose novel), a 2003 novel by Francine Prose * ''After'' (book), a 2005 book by Canadian writer Francis Chalifour ...

(applied topically). Outside the United States, ''sandfly'' may refer to members of the subfamily

Phlebotominae The Phlebotominae are a subfamily of the family Psychodidae. In several countries, their common name is sandfly; but that name is also applied to other flies. The Phlebotominae include many genera of blood-feeding (hematophagous) flies, including ...

within the

Psychodidae Psychodidae, called drain flies, sink flies, filter flies, sewer flies, or sewer gnats, is a family of true flies. Some genera have short, hairy bodies and wings giving them a "furry" moth-like appearance, hence one of their common names, moth f ...

Biting midges Ceratopogonidae is a family of flies commonly known as no-see-ums, or biting midges, generally in length. The family includes more than 5,000 species, distributed worldwide, apart from the Antarctic and the Arctic. Ceratopogonidae are Holomet ...

(Ceratopogonidae) are sometimes called sandflies or no-see-ums (no-see-em, noseeum).

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

sandflies are in the genus ''

Austrosimulium ''Austrosimulium'' is a genus of 31 species of black flies that are distributed in Australia and New Zealand. There are 2 subgenera: '' Austrosimulium'' whose species are principally from New Zealand, and '' Novaustrosimulium'' which are exclus ...

'', a type of

black fly A black fly or blackfly (sometimes called a buffalo gnat, turkey gnat, or white socks) is any member of the family Simuliidae of the Culicomorpha infraorder. It is related to the Ceratopogonidae, Chironomidae, and Thaumaleidae. Over 2,200 spec ...

. In the various sorts of sandfly only the female is responsible for biting and sucking the blood of mammals, reptiles and birds; the protein in the blood is necessary for the production of eggs, making the sandfly an

anautogenous In entomology, anautogeny is a reproductive strategy in which an adult female insect must eat a particular sort of meal (generally vertebrate blood) before laying eggs in order for her eggs to mature. This behavior is most common among dipteran ...

reproducer. Some sandfly genera of the subfamily Phlebotominae are the primary vectors of

leishmaniasis Leishmaniasis is a wide array of clinical manifestations caused by parasites of the trypanosome genus ''Leishmania''. It is generally spread through the bite of phlebotomine sandflies, ''Phlebotomus'' and ''Lutzomyia'', and occurs most freq ...

and

pappataci fever Pappataci fever (also known as Phlebotomus fever and, somewhat confusingly, sandfly fever and three-day fever) is a vector-borne febrile arboviral infection caused by three serotypes of Phlebovirus. It occurs in subtropical regions of the Ea ...

; both diseases are confusingly referred to as sandfly fever. In Asia, Africa, and Europe, leishmaniasis is spread by sand flies of the genus ''

Phlebotomus ''Phlebotomus'' is a genus of " sand flies" in the Diptera family Psychodidae. In the past, they have sometimes been considered to belong in a separate family, Phlebotomidae, but this alternative classification has not gained wide acceptance. ...

''; in the Americas, the disease is spread by sandflies of the genus ''

Lutzomyia ''Lutzomyia'' is a genus of phlebotomine sand flies consisting of nearly 400 species, at least 33 of which have medical importance as vectors of human disease. Species of the genus ''Lutzomyia'' are found only in the New World, distributed in ...

''.

Belize Belize (; bzj, Bileez) is a Caribbean and Central American country on the northeastern coast of Central America. It is bordered by Mexico to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the east, and Guatemala to the west and south. It also shares a wate ...

and

Honduras Honduras, officially the Republic of Honduras, is a country in Central America. The republic of Honduras is bordered to the west by Guatemala, to the southwest by El Salvador, to the southeast by Nicaragua, to the south by the Pacific Oce ...

are notorious in the

Caribbean The Caribbean (, ) ( es, El Caribe; french: la Caraïbe; ht, Karayib; nl, De Caraïben) is a region of the Americas that consists of the Caribbean Sea, its islands (some surrounded by the Caribbean Sea and some bordering both the Caribbean Se ...

for their sandfly populations and travel pages frequently warn tourists to bring bug spray containing high concentrations of

DEET ''N'',''N''-Diethyl-''meta''-toluamide, also called DEET () or diethyltoluamide, is the most common active ingredient in insect repellents. It is a slightly yellow oil intended to be applied to the skin or to clothing and provides protection ag ...

Viruses

Among the viruses that sandflies can carry is the

Chandipura virus ''Chandipura vesiculovirus'' (CHPV) is a member of the ''Rhabdoviridae'' family that is associated with an encephalitic illness in humans. It was first identified in 1965 after isolation from the blood of two patients from Chandipura village in ...

, which, as a cousin of

rabies Rabies is a viral disease that causes encephalitis in humans and other mammals. Early symptoms can include fever and tingling at the site of exposure. These symptoms are followed by one or more of the following symptoms: nausea, vomiting, vi ...

, is very deadly. There was an outbreak in

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

in 2010.

Protozoa

Leishmaniasis Leishmaniasis is a wide array of clinical manifestations caused by parasites of the trypanosome genus ''Leishmania''. It is generally spread through the bite of phlebotomine sandflies, ''Phlebotomus'' and ''Lutzomyia'', and occurs most freq ...

, a disease caused by several species of the genus

Leishmania ''Leishmania'' is a parasitic protozoan, a single-celled organism of the genus '' Leishmania'' that are responsible for the disease leishmaniasis. They are spread by sandflies of the genus ''Phlebotomus'' in the Old World, and of the genus '' ...

, is transmitted by various sandflies. ''

Leishmania donovani ''Leishmania donovani'' is a species of intracellular parasites belonging to the genus ''Leishmania'', a group of haemoflagellate kinetoplastids that cause the disease leishmaniasis. It is a human blood parasite responsible for visceral leishmani ...

'' causes spiking fevers,

hepatosplenomegaly Hepatosplenomegaly (commonly abbreviated HSM) is the simultaneous enlargement of both the liver (hepatomegaly) and the spleen (splenomegaly). Hepatosplenomegaly can occur as the result of acute viral hepatitis, infectious mononucleosis, and hist ...

, and

pancytopenia Pancytopenia is a medical condition in which there is significant reduction in the number of almost all blood cells (red blood cells, white blood cells, platelets, monocytes, lymphocytes, etc.). If only two parameters from the complete blood coun ...

. It can be diagnosed through microscopic review by visualizing

amastigote An amastigote is a protist A protist () is any eukaryotic organism (that is, an organism whose cells contain a cell nucleus) that is not an animal, plant, or fungus. While it is likely that protists share a common ancestor (the last eukaryot ...

s in containing

macrophage Macrophages (abbreviated as M φ, MΦ or MP) ( el, large eaters, from Greek ''μακρός'' (') = large, ''φαγεῖν'' (') = to eat) are a type of white blood cell of the immune system that engulfs and digests pathogens, such as cancer cel ...

s, and is treatable with

sodium stibogluconate Sodium stibogluconate, sold under the brand name Pentostam among others, is a medication used to treat leishmaniasis. This includes leishmaniasis of the cutaneous, visceral, and mucosal types. Some combination of miltefosine, paramycin and lipo ...

Bacteria

Bartonella bacilliformis ''Bartonella bacilliformis'' is a bacterium, Gram negative aerobic, pleomorphic, flagellated, motile, coccobacillary, 2–3 μm long, 0.2–0.5 μm wide, and a facultative intracellular bacterium. History The bacterium was discovered by Peru ...

'', the causal agent of

Carrion's disease Carrion's disease is an infectious disease produced by ''Bartonella bacilliformis'' infection. It is named after Daniel Alcides Carrión. Signs and symptoms The clinical symptoms of bartonellosis are Pleomorphism (cytology), pleomorphic and so ...

, is transmitted by different members of the genus ''Lutzomyia''. This disease is restricted to Andean areas of Peru and Ecuador, with historical reports in Southern Colombia.

Prevention

Over-the-counter repellents with high concentrations of

picaridin Icaridin, also known as picaridin, is an insect repellent which can be used directly on skin or clothing. It has broad efficacy against various arthropods such as mosquitos, ticks, gnats, flies and fleas, and is almost colorless and odorless. A s ...

are proven to work; however effectiveness seems to differ among individuals with some people reporting better results with one product over another while other people finding neither product effective for them. This may be partially due to various species living in different areas. A particular extract of lemon eucalyptus oil (not the essential oil) has now been shown to be as effective as DEET in various studies. Most information on repellents focuses on mosquitoes, but mosquito repellents are effective for sandflies and

midges A midge is any small fly, including species in several families of non-mosquito Nematoceran Diptera. Midges are found (seasonally or otherwise) on practically every land area outside permanently arid deserts and the frigid zones. Some midg ...

as well.

Cultural views

sandflies (which are taxonomically blackflies—

Simulidae A black fly or blackfly (sometimes called a buffalo gnat, turkey gnat, or white socks) is any member of the family Simuliidae of the Culicomorpha infraorder. It is related to the Ceratopogonidae, Chironomidae, and Thaumaleidae. Over 2,200 speci ...

) have a native

Māori Māori or Maori can refer to: Relating to the Māori people * Māori people of New Zealand, or members of that group * Māori language, the language of the Māori people of New Zealand * Māori culture * Cook Islanders, the Māori people of the C ...

legend wherein "the god Tu-te-raki-whanoa had just finished creating the landscape of

Fiordland Fiordland is a geographical region of New Zealand in the south-western corner of the South Island, comprising the westernmost third of Southland. Most of Fiordland is dominated by the steep sides of the snow-capped Southern Alps, deep lakes, ...

, it was absolutely stunning... so stunning that it stopped people from working. They just stood around gazing at the beauty instead. The goddess

Hine-nui-te-pō Hine-nui-te-pō ("Great woman of night") in Māori legends, is a goddess of night and she receives the spirits of humans when they die. She is the daughter of Tāne Mahuta / Tāne Tuturi and Hine-ahuone. It is believed among Māori that the col ...

became angry at these unproductive people, so she created the sandfly to bite them and get them moving". These sand flies were able, according to another Māori legend, to revive the dead hero Ha-tupatu.Ha-tupatu and the sand flies
Maori.org.nz. Retrieved on 2011-06-15. File:Indonesian sandfly bites on leg.jpg, alt=Bites on thigh from sandfly, Indonesian sandfly bites on leg File:SandFlyBite.JPG, Sandfly bite File:Sandflies GeorgesRiverNationalPark.jpg, A swarm of sandflies at

Georges River National Park Georges River National Park is a protected Australian National Park, under the management of the NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service. The park falls in the regions of the Sutherland Shire Council and Canterbury-Bankstown Council. Located i ...

(

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

)

References

{{reflist, 2

External links

Sand Flies – Beaufort County Library (via Internet Archive)

Infectious skin disease found in Texas
September 15, 2007 Breaking News – Sandfly may carry parasites that will cause infectious skin disease called leishmaniasis.

Insect common names