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Stalk-eyed Fly
fam. Diopsidae
-26.1697, 31.8519
Field Notes
Description:
About 10 mm fly with the compound eyes on stalks. Also antennae are located on the stalk, rather than in the middle of the head as in all other flies.
Habitat:
Meadow and mixed forest, 200 meters from a river. Hlane National park, Bush camp
Notes:
The size of the stalk-eyed flies span up to a centimeter long, and they feed on both decaying plants and animals. Adult diopsids are typically found on low-lying vegetation in humid areas, often near streams and rivers, where they feed on fungi and bacteria that they scavenge from decaying vegetation. The larvae are saprophagic or phytophagous, eating decaying and fresh plant matter. I have managed to find three stalk eyed flies in Mozambique and Swaxiland, and two out of three was actually close to a river. (third one close to the Indian Ocean)
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