Thread subject: Diptera.info :: Dipteran larva? - on curculionid beetle
Posted by Nikolai Morozov on 05-03-2020 20:39
#1
Hello!
This is
Hypera miles weevil sitting on
Vicia sp. leaf. As you can see, the beetle has something (marked with white arrow and further magnified) on his pronotum. At first sight, it appears to be a syrphid larva as it is green and translucent. Relying on the weevil species' average body length being equal to 6-7 mm it turns out that the larva's length is 0.5-1 mm. I just don't know if a syrphid larvas may have such a size and parasitize on curculionids. So what could it be?
The photos were taken in Moscow region on 23 May 2015.
Edited by Nikolai Morozov on 05-03-2020 20:45
Posted by Nikolai Morozov on 05-03-2020 20:47
#2
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Posted by Nikolai Morozov on 05-03-2020 20:48
#3
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Posted by Nikolai Morozov on 05-03-2020 20:50
#4
Larva
Posted by Tony Irwin on 06-03-2020 23:21
#5
I doubt that it is a parasite - much more likely to be an accidental passenger!:)
Posted by Nikolai Morozov on 09-03-2020 18:29
#6
Thank you, Tony! I hoped it could be parasitic/phoretic insect larva or nematode and even found some evidence of associations between beetles and flies/nematodes (
https://www.mdpi..../4/184/htm figures 18,30,31), although nematodes are whitish usually. So I think there is theoretical possibility of this type of interaction, though. Maybe, poorly known interaction:)