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Fairyflies are very tiny insects, like most chalcidoid wasps, mostly ranging from 0.5 to 1.0 mm (0.020 to 0.039 in) long. They include the world's smallest known insect, with a body length of only 0.139 mm (0.0055 in), and the smallest known flying insect, only 0.15 mm (0.0059 in) long. They usually have nonmetallic black, brown, or yellow bodies.
With a body length averaging 186 μm (for 8 specimens measured, which ranged from 139 to 240 μm), males of D. echmepterygis have the shortest body length of all known insects (smaller than certain species of Paramecium, amoeba, and shorter than certain bacteria, Thiomargarita magnifica, all of which are single-celled organisms).
Megaphragma mymaripenne is a very small wasp.At 200 μm (1 ⁄ 5 mm; 1 ⁄ 125 inch) in length, it is the third-smallest extant insect, [1] comparable in size to some single-celled organisms.
True flies are insects of the order Diptera. The name is derived from the Greek di-= two, and ptera = wings. Most insects of this order have two wings (not counting the halteres, club-like limbs which are homologous to the second pair of wings found on insects of other orders). Wingless flies are found on some islands and other isolated places.
Insects have spiracles on their exoskeletons to allow air to enter the trachea. [1] [page needed] In insects, the tracheal tubes primarily deliver oxygen directly into the insects' tissues. The spiracles can be opened and closed in an efficient manner to reduce water loss. This is done by contracting closer muscles surrounding the spiracle.
The winged insects are nocturnal and provide food for night-flying birds, bats, small mammals, amphibians and arthropods. The larval stage lasts much longer, often for one or more years, and has a bigger impact on the environment. [20] They form an important part of the diet of fish such as the trout. The fish acquire them by two means, either ...
The Phoridae are a family of small, hump-backed flies resembling fruit flies. Phorid flies can often be identified by their escape habit of running rapidly across a surface rather than taking flight. This behaviour is a source of one of their alternate names, scuttle fly. Another vernacular name, coffin fly, refers to Conicera tibialis. [1]
[4] [5] Compared to other small hummingbirds, which often have a slender appearance, the bee hummingbird looks rounded and plump. [5] Female bee hummingbirds are bluish green with a pale gray underside. [5] The tips of their tail feathers have white spots. During the mating season, males have a reddish to pink head, chin, and throat.