BAT FLIES OF THE WORLD

Bat flies are about the weirdest creatures in the world. And of course the coolest. They are highly modified Diptera, and are ectoparasitic blood sucking insects on bats.

Bat flies evolved closely with two other groups of blood sucking flies, the Hippoboscidae (louse flies) , and the Glossinidae (Tsetse-flies). The latter are (in)famous for their role in the transmission of Trypanosoma parasites to vertebrates, thus causing Nagana in cattle, and sleeping sickness in humans.

Bat flies are traditionally divided into two families, the Streblidae and Nycteribiidae. From a morphological standpoint, both groups seemingly have distinct defining characteristics:

Streblidae have a peculiar wing morphology, which is different from other Diptera. Nycteribiidae completely lost their wings (although they still have halteres), have a backwardly folded head, and dorsally inserted legs, which make them move very much like spiders.

Left haltere of a streblid bat fly. [SEM, Michael Standing, BYU]

                                                                            Folded wings of a streblid. [SEM, Michael Standing, BYU]

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