#milichiidae

[ichneumoniid]

Freeloader flies (yes, delightfully, that’s the common name) snacking on a bee snared by a mantis

(Desmometopa sp, 9/19/2025)

[razehider]

a real collection of shapes going on here, with a Tmarus sp., one of the weirdest cosmopolitan crab spider genera, having caught a Camponotus cruentatus ant that is practically only recognizable from its unusual coloring. the little bubblegum looking fly mooching off of her meal may or may not be one of the appropriately named freeloader flies, or milichiids, or some other mysterious acalyptrate that likes free stuff

(June 13rd, 2025)

[drhoz]

#3017 - Desmometopa sp.

A widespread genus of Milichiid, with more than 50 described species.

Milichiids are best known for stealing a meal from larger predatory invertebrates, and two of their common names names reflect that - freeloader fly and jackalfly. Quite often they'll be seen feeding on something the larger predator already has in its jaws, or even exploring the jaws themselves. The predators don't appear to mind, so it's possible they consider it a free cleaning service.

Their larvae feeding on rotting vergetation, ordure, and detris, leading to another common name - filth flies.

Goodale Sanctuary, West Coolup, WA.

[drhoz]

Freeloader Flies (Milichiidae) gathered around a spider’s larder in the Paganoni Reserve

[drhoz]

Ezt a viráglakó karolópókot (Misumena vatia) egy forró nyári nap végén vettem észre a József-hegy gyalogbodzával benőtt kis foltján. A lemenő nap a szemembe sütött, de azt láttam, hogy a vacsorának szánt háziméhen (Apis mellifera) hívatlan vendégekkel, ún. kleptoparazitákkal kénytelen osztozni. A pók emésztőnedvei által felpuhított/elfolyósított zsákmányra pákosztoslegyek (Milichiidae), feltehetően valamilyen Desmometopa faj egyedei gyűltek össze. Hogy pontosan melyik faj, azt sosem fogom megtudni, mert Paul Beuk javaslatát, miszerint fogjak el néhányat legközelebb, mert szívesen meghatározná őket, megfeledkeztem. Pedig a markomban voltak. Tudniillik, a videofelvétellel végezvén, szerettem volna egy kicsit elhajlítani a virágzatot, hogy ne kelljen fénnyel szemben fényképezni, mire a pók azonnal elengedte a méhet, bele egyenest a tenyerembe. A legyek rögtön ezután szétrebbentek, csak egy maradt a méhen. Ez viszont kitartott. Nyugodtan berakhattam volna méhestül egy dobozba. Na, majd legközelebb...

(2015.07.06. Törökbálint, Hungary, MVI 8809 Karolópók kellemetlenkedő kleptoparazitákkal)

[drhoz]

The Goldenrod Crab Spider (Misumena vatia) has caught a honey bee. Small flies are running all over the body of the spider, without being noticed by the spider. These flies are so called freeloader flies or jackal flies (Milichiidae). They are kleptoparasites of predatory invertebrates and feed on bodily fluids of the prey.

[drhoz]

#1133 - Fam. Milichiidae - Jackalflies

The thing that got me so excited over Rosie Benz’s photo at BowerBird wasn’t the rather plump assassin bug and the honeybee it had caught. It was the tiny dark flies crawling all over the body, feasting on the dissolving body of the bee.

Jackal-flies, also known as freeloader flies, are swift arrivals whenever a large spider or predatory bug has caught an insect, and feast on the leaking bodyfluids. Generally, the spider or bug doesn’t seem to mind - indeed, one behaviour described at Wikipedia states "Another activity observed in some species of Michiliidae shows them to be serving a function analogous to that of cleaner wrasse and cleaner shrimp; they literally scavenge around the chelicerae and anal openings of large spiders, such as species of Araneus and Nephila, that cooperatively spread their wet and sticky chelicerae thus allowing the flies to feed actively all over the bases, fangs and mouth."

Milichiids breed in decaying vegetable matter, manure, and human ordure, which earns them another common name - filth flies.

Sunshine Coast, QLD