TERRITORIAL FLIES & GRASSHOPPERS UNDER THE TREE

avatar

On the 19th of July 2021, while walking along the line of shrubs and trees at the edge of the vast coastal meadow, I came across a bunch of small flies that I have never seen before.

(Enlargeable)

Today, after a long and exhaustive search through the meandering Internet, I still can't tell you the name of the species. I can only show you through photographs what I saw back then in the summer of 2021 and supplement the pictures with some of my thoughts. In this opening shot, you can see two flies fighting. On that occasion, I witnessed many short skirmishes on the lower branches of the elm tree. But, since the fights were incredibly fast and unpredictable, the action is sharp and frozen only in this one, single photograph. You can enlarge the picture by clicking on it to take a better look at the details.

(Enlargeable)

Here you can see one of those flies regurgitating a minuscule bubble. The droplet stayed there on the top of the fly's proboscis for less than a minute and then was reingested. Today, while preparing this post, I found out that sometimes flies do that to cool down. With the droplet exposed, the liquid evaporates and the fly gets a bit of refreshment. On other occasions, bubbling and regurgitation can be related to digestion. I'm not sure why were these particular flies bubbling back then in 2021.

img_8305_malo

Only after half an hour of following the flies through the macro lens, did I notice the place on the branch that was in the center of their attention.

img_8296_malo

The flies were here for the sap that was trickling through the bark and forming a nutrient wet spot for hungry insects.

img_8315_samomalo

At times they were feeding harmoniously together, but more often ...

img_8254_malo

... they were chasing each other up and down the branches.

img_8341_malo

At one point a bee entered the scene.

img_8349_malo

The Lasioglossum malachurum, a species from the Halictidae family, landed to get a bit of free sap.

(Enlargeable)

The flies didn't like that idea, so the bee was soon chased away.

img_8311_malo

With the bee out of the scene ...

(Enlargeable)

... the flies were quietly feeding for a minute or so, but then ...

(Enlargeable)

... after a short display of aggressive behavior, the bee chased the considerably smaller flies.

img_8260_samomalo

Meanwhile, this minuscule Scymnus apetzi ladybird was resting on one of the nearest leaves, undisturbed by the action.

img_8336_malo

Less than a minute later, while the bee was enjoying the sap, one fly came from behind ...

img_8331_malo

... and single-handedly chased it away.

img_8288_malo

For a while, that victorious fly had the sweet little pool all to herself.

img_8298_samomalo

On a hot summer afternoon, I was sweating and the flies were bubbling a lot.

img_8272_malo

At one point a giant entered the scene.

img_8325_samomalo

The flies tried to chase it, but this insect was too big. Their enormous self-confidence and courage weren't enough this time.

img_8308_malo

The Polistes gallicus paper wasp was feeding undisturbed ...

img_8276_malo

... while the flies were running up and down the branch, always keeping a safe distance from the aforementioned wasp.

img_8280_malo

Here you can see a small droplet in the wasp's jaws.

img_8279_samomalo

Soon the wasp flew away ...

img_8202_malo

... and I decided to take a look at what's going on in the tall grass under the tree.

img_8200_malo

Here you can see the nymph of the Aiolopus strepens ...

img_8206_malo

... a grasshopper from the Acrididae family.

img_8237_malo

Not far from there I found this Chorthippus bornhalmi. With the clear, blurred background the grasshopper is clearly visible ...

img_8234_malo

... but without the shallow depth of field provided by the macro lens, the Chorthippus maritimus is well - camouflaged among the stems of dried-out grass. This is the male of the species. In the following photograph ...

img_8232_malo

... you can take a look at the even better - camouflaged female. Chorthippus bornhalmi is a species from the Acrididae family.

img_8224_malo

This Calliptamus italicus, yet another locust from the same Acrididae family was photographed on the leaves of the Dittrichia viscosa plant. After taking this shot ...

img_8549_malo

... I found two spiders on that plant.

(Enlargeable)

Some species from the genus Xysticus of the Thomisidae family ...

(Enlargeable)

... and the minuscule Kochiura aulica from the Theridiidae family.

img_8693_malo

I took three more shots crouched in the green grass that grew in the shade of the Dittrichia viscosa. I photographed this trio of ants ...

img_8698_malo

... and a planthopper.

(Enlargeable)

The Agalmatium bilobum planthopper.

AND THAT'S IT. AS ALWAYS IN THESE POSTS ON HIVE, THE PHOTOGRAPHS ARE MY WORK - THE END.



0
0
0.000
17 comments
avatar

@borjan
I must say, I really love your consistency in posting daily 💯
It's really inspiring.
This is really an amazing shot 📸
But what do mean by territorial flies...
Also, does every animal have its own territory? (I'm asking based on my understanding of territorial animal)

0
0
0.000
avatar

Yes, many animals, big and small, have territories. Those territories can be related to food sources, living space, or areas to control in order to be successful at reproduction. Since I have never seen the flies in this post before, I don't know much about their territoriality, but they were displaying what looked like territorial behavior.

0
0
0.000
avatar

The first picture is very good, the insect seems to want to fight, you managed to take a picture at that time. Very impressive.

0
0
0.000
avatar

The flies are indeed quite unknown to our eyes, maybe someone with knowledge of entomology can answer.

The great thing is that each image shows tiniest parts of those insects, you camera must be a type of microscope.

!LUV

0
0
0.000
avatar

Very beautiful, have a nice day.
!LOLZ
!PIZZA
!PGM
!MEME

0
0
0.000
avatar

Sent 0.1 PGM - 0.1 LVL- 1 STARBITS - 0.05 DEC - 15 SBT tokens to @brianhuang, @borjan

remaining commands 9

BUY AND STAKE THE PGM TO SEND A LOT OF TOKENS!

The tokens that the command sends are: 0.1 PGM-0.1 LVL-2.5 BUDS-0.01 MOTA-0.05 DEC-15 SBT-1 STARBITS-[0.00000001 BTC (SWAP.BTC) only if you have 2500 PGM in stake or more ]

5000 PGM IN STAKE = 2x rewards!

image.png
Discord image.png

Support the curation account @ pgm-curator with a delegation 10 HP - 50 HP - 100 HP - 500 HP - 1000 HP

Get potential votes from @ pgm-curator by paying in PGM, here is a guide

I'm a bot, if you want a hand ask @ zottone444


0
0
0.000
avatar

Thank you 😊Nice day to you too.

0
0
0.000
avatar

You have captured some beautiful insect photography. All those are really amazing. Looks so beautiful

0
0
0.000
avatar

Amazing shots.
I love the planthopper and the giant black and yellow insect.

0
0
0.000
avatar

Amazing how well camoflaged female Chorthippus bornhalmi is.

0
0
0.000
avatar

Yes, those colors and markings are perfect for hiding in the dry grass.

0
0
0.000
avatar

The grasshopper has very beautiful eyes and it's clear when we look at it it's an amazing focus picture

0
0
0.000