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Robber Fly

Efferia aestuans

Photo by Small Wonders
Published on Project Noah
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42.9634, -85.6681

Field Notes

Description:

Female spotted preying on a Syrphid fly (Eupeodes americanus).
Adults take their prey in mid-air, much like dragonflies. Prey is injected with saliva containing neurotoxic enzymes which paralyze & break down the insides so that they can be sucked out by the robber fly.

Habitat:

Pastures, open fields, forest clearings.

Species ID Suggestions

Comments (2)
kerrydonovanbrown
Fantastic. I took a picture of a robber with freshly caught prey recently. I love this ones hunch back. :)

Spotted for Missions

Mission
Great Lakes Monitoring
Mission
Interaction between different species of Arthropods

Tags

Photographed
PublishedNovember 16, 2011

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