Hunter flies and Shoreflies on Sticky Cards
Tuesday, 16 February 2010 14:46
Hunter flies are becoming more common on sticky cards in greenhouses. The Hunter fly (Coenosia attenuata) is a greyish, predatory fly in the same family as the housefly and similar in appearance, but smaller than the common housefly. Some growers confuse them with shore flies. Adult shoreflies also resemble small houseflies, with their short robust bodies, short legs and short antennae, but are smaller than the hunter fly, darker in color and have characteristic five clear spots on the wings.
The adult hunter fly preys on other flying insects, catching them in flight. It feeds on fungus gnats and shoreflies, but also on other flying insects such as leafminer and, to a lesser extent, whiteflies. The larvae live in the soil and are generalist predators on soil-dwelling organisms such as fungus gnat and shorefly larvae.
Hunter flies are originally from Europe. They were first found in the United States in October of 1999 at a commercial greenhouse in upstate New York. Adult females lay eggs in the soil that hatch in about 5 days. The hunter fly larvae seek other soil dwelling insects such as fungus gnat larvae as prey. Larvae grow for about two weeks and then pupate in the soil for two weeks.
Photos: Hunter fly adult, Hunter flies on sticky cards, Fungus gnat and shorefly on sticky card, Shoreflies and others on sticky cards
More Photos: Fact sheet on fungus gnats and shoreflies including photos of hunter flies, shore flies, fungus gnats and common parasitic wasps found on sticky cards. Need to scroll to figures 11-14
Leanne Pundt, University of Connecticut
Tina Smith, University of Massachusetts
