Red-footed Cannibalfly

Here's another Red-footed Cannibalfly. The picture might be a littler sharper than my previous cannibalfly post, but this one isn't eating anything. Still, I suspect that perching on a plant like this gives it a pretty good view of the area in the event that a meal flies by.

Similar to other aerial insect predators like dragonflies, cannibalflies are skilled at snagging meals out of the air in midflight. Unlike dragonflies/damselflies, cannibalflies are in the fly order. (The flies comprise a slightly higher taxonomical level than the family.) My impression is that they don't get their cannibal name from eating other types of flies; I think they will go after their own.

Fortunately for us, we're not on the menu. Unless you're handling them, it's extremely unlikely that you'll get bitten by one. I'm told the bite is painful but usually not harmful.

But if you're most New Jersey arthropods, these guys are no doubt among the scariest arthropods you'd meet. To a bumblebee, these guys would probably be lions or tigers.

August 17, 2020 at Duke Farms


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