Hybomitra caucasica

Hybomitra caucasica is a species of horse flies in the family Tabanidae.^[6][7]

Hybomitra caucasica
Hybomitra caucasica. Male
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Diptera
Family:	Tabanidae
Subfamily:	Tabaninae
Tribe:	Tabanini
Genus:	Hybomitra
Species:	H. caucasica
Binomial name
Hybomitra caucasica (Enderlein, 1925)[1]
Synonyms[2]
Hybomitra olsoufievina Philip, 1961 Hybomitra olsoufievi Philip, 1956[3] Sziladynus hariettae Muschamp, 1939 Sziladynus palpalis Kröber, 1939[4] Stonemyia caucasica Kröber, 1939[4] Therioplectes caucasica Enderlein, 1925[1] Therioplectes bimaculatus Enderlein, 1925[1] Tabanus tetricus Szilády, 1914[5]

Distribution and habitat

This species can be found in most of Europe (Austria, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Switzerland, Poland and Romania) and in the Near East.^[8] These horse flies prefer mountainous regions.

Description

Hybomitra caucasica can reach a length of 15 millimetres (0.59 in).The body is black and the wings are transparent. The compound eyes are well developed in both sexes.

Biology

Adults can be found from June to August. Males feed on nectar and plant juices, while females are bloodsuckers, feeding mainly on mammalian blood, as they require a blood meal before they are able to reproduce.

References

1. Enderlein, G. (1925). "Studien an blutsaugenden Insekten I. Grundlagen eines neuen Systems der Tabaniden". Mitteilungen aus dem Zoologische Museum. 11: 255–409.
2. Bisby F.A., Roskov Y.R., Orrell T.M., Nicolson D., Paglinawan L.E., Bailly N., Kirk P.M., Bourgoin T., Baillargeon G., Ouvrard D. Catalogue of Life
3. Philip, C.B. (1956). "Records of horseflies in Northeast Asia". Japanese Journal of Sanitary Zoology. 7: 221–230.
4. Kröber, O. (1921). "Die palaarktischen Arten der Gattung Pangonia Latr". Archiv für Naturgeschichte. Abt. A. 87 (1): 1–67. Retrieved 25 September 2022.
5. Szilády, Zoltán (1914). "Neue oder wenig bekannte paläarktische Tabaniden". Annales Historico-Naturales Musei Nationalis Hungarici. 12: 661–673. Retrieved 18 October 2022.
6. Moucha, J. (1976). "Horse-flies (Diptera: Tabanidae) of the World. Synoptic Catalogue" (PDF). Acta Entomologica Musei Nationalis Pragae Supplements. 7: 1–320. Retrieved 11 September 2022.
7. Chvála, Milan; Lyneborg, Leif; Moucha, Josef (1972). The Horse Flies of Europe (Diptera, Tabanidae). Copenhagen: Entomological Society of Copenhagen. pp. 598pp, 164figs. ISBN 978-09-00-84857-5.
8. Fauna Europaea