the texas ( gray ) wolf ( † canis lupus monstrabilis ) is a possible extinct subspecies of gray wolf , distinct from the texas red wolf ( canis rufus var . " rufus " ) , whose range once included southern and western texas and northeastern mexico .

it is darker than its more northern cousins , and has a highly arched frontal bone .

as of 2005 , it is considered a valid subspecies by msw3 , though it is classed as either a synonym of c. l. nubilus or c. l. baileyi by the united states fish and wildlife service .

texas wolf

texas wolf <EOT> get instant insider access to exclusive texas history content and a free texas almanac .

america’s ‘other wolf’ was reintroduced to the wild after a last - ditch roundup in texas .

texas will have to watch the recovery from afar . wendy connally of tpwd’s wildlife diversity program says the agency considers the red wolf extirpated in texas with no plans for recovery here .

uploaded on june 15 , 2010 . published by the texas state historical association .

glynn riley , a government trapper who witnessed the red wolf’s final days in texas , sees something wild and majestic in the red wolf . he is known for saying that “a mountain with a wolf on it stands a little taller . ”

at one time , there were two species of wolves in texas : the southeastern red wolf ( canis rufus ) and the once more widespread gray wolf ( canis lupus ) . the favorite among southwest conservationists is a subspecies of the gray wolf called the mexican gray wolf ( canis lupus baileyi ) .

texas was wolf country and the wolf is as much a part of texas natural history as the armadillo . but while armadillos are thriving , the future of the mexican wolf in texas is not secure . in the late 90s , mexican wolves were released into the greater gila area into arizona and eventually new mexico . these wolves have struggled to survive for a variety of reasons - - most of them because of conflict or perceived conflict between humans and wolves .

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what did texas lose when the red wolves were carried away ? some might say good riddance .

the texas gray wolf was classified as subspecies canis lupus monstrabilis in 1937 by biologist edward a . goldman . it became extinct just 5 years later in 1942 .

our guide reminded us several times that the greatest enemy of the wolf is man . wolves have been hunted to extinction in many regions ( including texas ) . the destruction of the wolf population has been a huge conservation issue for decades .

wolf / wolfdog assistance : if you need assistance with a wolf or wolfdog , see our wolfdog help page . if you are thinking about a wolf or wolfdog as a pet , please read this page .

releasing wolves in texas will not be an easier sell than it was in new mexico and arizona . still , there are many reasons why wolves should be released in texas , and especially in big bend country . the first reason is that wolves belong in the lone star state . they are part of the natural heritage of texas , and should be returned to their rightful place .

status though the texas gray wolf is considered by many to be a distinct subspecies , other versions of wolf taxonomy recognized the subspecies as belonging to either canis lupus baileyi or canis lupus nubilus . as stated above , they became extinct just 5 years after first being recognized as a separate subspecies .

in the canid family , the red wolf seems to suffer from middle child syndrome .

some folks in southeast texas still report seeing red wolves or something like them roaming the prairies and marshes of the area . certainly , some red wolf genes would have been passed down through the years so that a little bit of the red wolf still lives on in the coyotes of the bayou country .

after the red wolf roundup , a captive breeding program was set up at the point defiance zoo in tacoma , wash . the breeding program was expanded to zoos across the country , and in texas , fossil rim wildlife center in glen rose , the texas zoo in victoria and the fort worth zoo have captive red wolves and participate in the program .

habitat it could once be found from southeastern new mexico throughout central texas , all the way down to the mexican border and into louisiana .

originally listed as endangered march 11 , 1967 . mexican gray wolf listed as an endangered subspecies april 28 , 1976 . reintroduced population of mexican gray wolf listed as experimental nonessential in portions of az and nm on jan . 12 , 1998 . minnesota population reclassified as threatened march 9 , 1978 . currently extirpated from texas .

why is there a dog at a wolf sanctuary ? evidently once the label “wolf” is slapped onto a canine it can be incredibly difficult to remove , even if it is incorrect .

so , of course , with less than two weeks left in texas , one of my main missions was to meet some wolves face to face .

distribution in texas . the gray wolf formerly ranged over the western two - thirds of the state , but now is extirpated over all of the west , including texas . the last authenticated reports of gray wolves in texas are of two males , the skulls of which were donated to sul ross state university . according to james scuddy , one wolf was shot december 5 , 1970 , on the cathedral mountain ranch , 27 km south of alpine , brewster county . the other was trapped several days before december 28 , 1970 , on the joe neal brown ranch located at about the point where brewster , pecos , and terrell counties meet .

in south central texas the wolf hunt survives as a living fragment of a wild past . dogs , pickup trucks , campfires and an occasional howl in the desolate night are the background for hunters ' tales of wily predators made even more clever by civilization

mexican wolves once roamed across west texas , new mexico , arizona and northern mexico . after a century of persecution , poisonings , trapping and a great deal of ignorance , the last wolves were recorded in arizona , new mexico and in texas in 1970 . all three of these remaining mexican lobos were killed .

every donation , no matter the size , helps tremendously . to financially support saint francis wolf sanctuary ,

saint francis wolf sanctuary is a 501 ( c ) ( 3 ) nonprofit charity in montgomery , texas , whose mission is to rescue and provide a loving , exceptional home to non - releasable wolves and wolfdogs , and to educate the public about these animals .

photo of captive mexican gray wolf m968 at sevilleta courtesy of the u . s . fish and wildlife service

in 1962 , an austin college professor named howard mccarley sounded the alarm about the red wolf and its unexpected spiral toward extinction . he pointed out that what people thought were wolves were actually coyotes or wolf - coyote hybrids .

the wolf’s howl helped reveal the dire situation . in the mid - 1960s , biologists went in search of the red wolf in places across the southeast where the wolf was thought to live . they drove back roads at night playing taped wolf howls — a sound the wolves can’t resist answering — and listened for a response . the choruses of answering howls came from both wolves and coyotes , and they focused in on the howls that were distinctly wolfish .

a mountain without a wolf on it , then , must stand a little shorter , and a state without a wolf , well , will have to settle for the long - faded howls of a misunderstood creature of the night .

the injustice of removing wolves with the desire of making this permanent has been a tragedy on many levels . that last wolf wandering across brewster county had to wonder what was happening . " where have all the others gone ? " it must have wondered . yet that was not the last wolf to die in texas . sul ross state university ( srsu ) in alpine , texas , picked the wolf ( also known as the lobo ) as their mascot as early as 1924 when there still had to be a number of wolves wandering across the borderlands . the first lobo mascot was given to the university in 1925 . it was kept in captivity and appeared at games . history does not record what happened to this individual .

the extirpation of the wolf over most of its former range released predator pressure on such big game as deer , which in part created a serious problem of overpopulation of this game animal in several localities in texas . that wolves play a valuable role in the economy of big game animals is frequently overlooked .

additionally , many of the wolfdogs who wind up in sanctuaries were once pets . the legality of owning a wolfdog varies from state to state ( and in texas , from county to county ) .

gray wolf . the gray wolf ( canis lupus ) , popularly called the " loafer " or the " lobo , " once flourished in texas but is now practically extinct there . the male of this large , doglike carnivore weighs some 130 pounds and reaches six feet from tail - tip to nose . the gray wolf is an intelligent social animal with powerful jaws and a distinctive mournful howl . its young are born in late winter in litters of five to fourteen , after a sixty - three - day gestation period . the lobo typically dens in a crevice of a rocky bluff ; the rugged eastern edge of the llano estacado afforded a favorite location . the geographical range of the gray wolf was confined to south and west texas , southeast new mexico , and northeast mexico . the lobo , styled the marathon runner of texas fauna , can reach speeds of twenty - two to twenty - eight miles an hour for the first two miles , and thereafter trot at eleven or twelve miles an hour for the next five to eight miles . thus it can outrun its prey in an extended chase .

the second and last lobo mascot arrived at srsu in 1966 . reports say this wolf arrived from tucson and was given the name sully . they later discovered that the wolf was a female and was thereafter referred to as miss sully . i remember seeing miss sully in a small cage on the main drive through the campus . the cage had virtually no shelter , and was small and confined . in my eyes , this was a terrible way to treat any animal . miss sully died in 1974 . some coward decided they didn’t even like this one captive wolf in texas and they threw poisoned meat into her cage . no doubt miss sully died a horrible death and the killer was never brought to justice . she deserved better , as did the thousands of wolves in west texas that went before her .

the fish and wildlife service considers the red wolf a distinct species , though its taxonomic status isn’t completely clear and debate is ongoing .

all of us at texas wolfdog project hope to provide current and potential new owners with the information and resources to better care for their wolfdog and / or wolfdogs they may share their life with in the future .

not far from the urban sprawl of houston , nestled among rural farms and untouched fields , lies what is known as the best kept secret of montgomery , texas : a safe haven for wolves and wolfdogs alike .

the coyote is the trickster in native american lore — clever and highly adaptable . the gray wolf is a cunning , fearsome creature . the red wolf is … what , exactly ? the problem was that red wolves had mostly died off before anyone could study them in the wild . the red wolf is somehow considered less “wolfy” than the gray wolf , yet it’s more than just a large coyote . like other wolves , red wolves live in small packs . they feed on rabbits , raccoons and nutria ; they are elusive and generally avoid humans .

the wild population now clocks in at 100 to 130 animals , with 175 more in captivity . reintroduction of the red wolf stands as a true conservation triumph — it was the first predator restored after being declared extinct in the wild and paved the way for future wolf reintroductions .

all copyrighted materials included within the handbook of texas online are in accordance with title 17 u . s . c . section 107 related to copyright and “fair use” for non - profit educational institutions , which permits the texas state historical association ( tsha ) , to utilize copyrighted materials to further scholarship , education , and inform the public . the tsha makes every effort to conform to the principles of fair use and to comply with copyright law .

for generations , wolves have evoked hatred and fear in people . it was government policy to eradicate red wolves until people realized there were hardly any left . passionately persecuted with gun , trap and poison , they almost disappeared . once , red wolves roamed as a top predator across the southeastern u . s . , from florida to texas and as far north as pennsylvania . by the 1960s , through predator control and habitat loss , they were reduced to a sliver of marginal habitat in the bayou country along the gulf coast . in texas , the red wolf had its last stand .

of course , it isn’t all bleak . while wolves have yet to be reintroduced into the wild in texas , other parts of the united states , such as yellowstone national park , have enjoyed huge successes in their programs .

they were dismayed by what they found . the red wolf no longer roamed its familiar territory . the biologists determined that the only red wolves remaining were hemmed in along a stretch of coast in southeastern texas and southwestern louisiana . it seemed to be an unlikely final redoubt for the forest - loving wolf — coastal prairies and marshes that are a stone’s throw from houston , galveston and beaumont , in the shadow of one of the most industrialized areas of the country , an area of rice farms , cattle ranches and oilfields .

our human woman - chasing wolves come well by their names . the male wolf has an exceptionally strong sex drive , and before his lifetime mate has arrived on the scene , he will sometimes go prospecting among the young ladies of the nearest domestic canine community . in red river county in northeast texas the offspring of one of these clandestine trysts had all the physical characteristics of a wolf but the head of a bulldog . wolves have been known to break into shacks housing female dogs in heat , spend long happy hours under the texas moon and leave their female friends with gaudy , purple memories . earl needham knows a man who mated a wolf with a black and tan , a hound dedicated with every fibre of its being to the slaughter of wolves . the offspring was a house divided . " he didn ' t know whether to hunt himself , " says needham , " or hunt himself ! "

a 1970 texas parks and wildlife department survey of red wolves , using a hand - cranked air - raid siren on the back of a pickup to elicit howls , found at least 100 wolves , mainly in jefferson , chambers and liberty counties .

it is this adaptability , this extrasensory survival instinct , that makes the red wolf so formidable a quarry . even when 40 or 50 hounds jump a wolf , the odds remain strongly in the wolf ' s favor . " some people say the dogs has the same chance the wolf has , " says needham , " but experience has showed that ' s just not true . " the wolves will sometimes relay the dogs . with the pack in hot pursuit , a second wolf will cut across the trail and take the whole pack of hounds with him . after an hour or so at a 15 - to 20 - mile - an - hour pace , the second wolf will hand the pack back to the first wolf , now well rested . after four or five hours of this , the hounds will be so exhausted that they will lose all chance of making a kill . sometimes three or four wolves will separate a hound from the pack and make a kill of their own , first nipping the dog ' s hamstring to immobilize him and then applying the coup to the dog ' s throat .

saint francis wolf sanctuary could always use an extra set of helping hands . if you want to help make a difference we have multiple positions available . see our

the gray wolf is a close relative of domestic dogs . its thick fur ranges in color from creamy white , reddish - brown , to shades of gray and black . gray wolves are the largest species of wolf and range between 50 - 90 pounds and 4 - 5 feet long . adult males are larger than adult females .

wolves bark , whimper and growl , too , but it’s the howl that fascinates us . in texas , the red wolf’s howl echoed for the last time across the forests and plains more than 30 years ago , when biologists rounded up the final ragtag group of wolves in a last - ditch effort to save the species . today , the howls of wild red wolves can be heard only on a marshy peninsula of eastern north carolina , where they were reintroduced after being declared extinct in the wild . this past summer i joined about 30 people there for a red wolf “howling safari” and heard their wild call .

the hero of this melodrama set to music is , of course , the noble wolf , and no one respects the tawny reddish animal more than earl needham . " he is the galliest critter and the smartest critter you ever seen , and it takes a mighty smart hound dog to keep up with him , " says needham , who speaks in a wondrously clear and simple texas twang that would have gladdened the ears of george bernard shaw . " you could live on a acre of land with a wolf family for years and years and you ' d never even know they was there . " one reason is that the wolf does not hunt near his den , lest he give away the whereabouts of his defenseless pups . says needham : " sometimes i ' ll get a call from some rancher that wolves is chewing up his turkeys or his sheep , and will i come out with my hounds and catch him . first thing i do is i don ' t even bother looking for the wolf within three , four miles of that ranch . if a wolf is killing on a ranch , that means his den is nowheres near . "

saint francis wolf sanctuary is growing thanks to the amazing support of people like you , and will need to relocate by 2019 . for more info and to help , visit our

gray wolves were once found throughout north america . historically , gray wolves were found over the western 2 / 3 of the state . today , none remain in texas . its status in mexico is unknown , and it may be extirpated ( no longer exists in mexico ) .

the saint francis wolf sanctuary is the only facility of its kind in the area , and houses fifteen gorgeous animals ( as of september 2015 ) , all with varying degrees of wolf and dog in them . it’s truly a unique haven for these animals : a place where they are given lives as close as possible to those they would have in the wild .

it’s been a rough journey for america’s “other wolf , ” full of cliffhangers and near - catastrophes . as a species , it has been to the brink of oblivion and back . today , the red wolf is an endangered species success story , though many challenges still stand in the animal’s way . this year marked the 25th anniversary of its reintroduction into the wild .

in the case of the wolf , a few of the traits they look for include muzzle shape , forehead slope , ear shape , and , of course , that distinctive eye color .

to understand wolf hunters like needham , one first has to throw out all previous conceptions of hunting . wolf hunting is a visual and an auditory experience , an affair of the senses . no shots are fired , and there is no ridiculous stomping through jungles and forests . mainly , wolf hunters spectate . in the absence of train whistles they drive their pickups to the outback , sound loud police sirens across the night , listen for answering cries from wolves and then release their hounds as close to the wolves as possible , all in the hope of starting a " race , " the long run that may take wolf and hounds 100 miles in diminishing circles before the quarry goes down in a frenzy of snapping teeth or , as is more commonly the case , until the wolf gets away . while this is transpiring , the hunters sit alongside their pickups , drinking coffee , telling wolf - and - bull stories and reveling in the cacophony of a pack of hounds hot on the scent . " that is the real reason we are here , " says burly earl needham . " the sounds and the hounds . "

red wolves , lanky predators native to the southeast , are smaller than gray wolves and larger than coyotes . their coats aren’t truly red but range from tan to black with reddish highlights . in texas , red wolves lived in the eastern part of the state and gray wolves in the west .

two issues , however , continue to plague the red wolf recovery . the coyote continued its eastward march and since the mid - 1990s has taken up residence near the red wolf . the constant crush of coyotes is like that throbbing headache that won’t go away . worried about hybridization , wildlife managers have been sterilizing the coyotes and putting them back as placeholders to keep other coyotes out .

just take a look at this fabulous video by sustainable human about the long - term influence wolf reintroduction has had on yellowstone . yes , they have actually changed the geography of the park .

answer : though all of our animals are fed a balanced raw diet , if that cannot be properly maintained by any potential adopters or owners , texas wolfdog project recommends a high quality , grain free kibble for normal , everyday feeding . some wolfdogs , usually high contents , can be intolerant to certain grains / processed foods .

our tour guide helped to dispel some common myths about wolves ( myth # 1 : wolves are openly aggressive toward humans ) , as well as provided a brief history lesson , explaining how dogs came to be . he also talked a bit about the modern laws regarding the ownership of wolfdogs , which vary by county in texas .

needham ' s own wolf dogs come in all shapes and sizes , for the test of a wolf dog is not his pedigree but whether , when the issue is joined , the hound will tangle willingly with the slashing teeth of a wolf . as needham puts it , " some hunters won ' t use anything but a registered dog ; the pedigree got to be three feet long . but that paper don ' t run that wolf . trial and error is what you use till you got the right dog . i ' ve used all kinds of hounds : walkers , julys , blue ticks , triggs , black and tans , goodmans and what we call ' potlickers , ' mixed breeds . they cost me about $ 150 apiece , and if i get one good dog out of every coupla dozen i buy i figure i ' m lucky . "

after a dog has learned how to hunt wolves , he must be kept in shape , like any other athlete , and the only way to keep him in shape is to keep him running wolves . " it ' s like trainin ' a fighter to fight , " says needham . " you got to have those dogs hard as arn to catch wolves . so you got to hunt ' em . they won ' t exercise , and if you don ' t hunt ' em for a few weeks they get fat and sloppy and short in the wind . " the discerning reader already will have noted a strong similarity between wolf hounds and baseball pitchers , in matters other than appearance . both can function like machines so long as they keep in motion , but as soon as they stop for any appreciable length of time they stiffen up and become useless . fay autry , a county commissioner in east texas , learned this the painful way and is still paying a stiff price in smart remarks by his friends . autry ' s dogs had spent four hours catching a wolf and working it over , and now the animal was presumed dead . autry had roped the wolf and dragged it out of the brush when he noticed that one of his dogs was lagging behind as though injured . he let go of the wolf to administer to the dog , and when he turned around the " dead " wolf was gone . not one of the dogs in the pack had deigned to give chase . " they were so tired and sore , " said the rueful autry , " that they wouldn ' t even look for the trail . " needham had a similar experience . a wolf , certified dead by a coroner ' s jury of wolf hunters , was pitched over a barbed - wire fence toward needham . " that wolf came down on his four feet and took right off into the cedar brush , " needham recalls . " lucky i had one big old dog left with enough energy to go catch him again . the rest of my hounds had cooled out . "

to any but close friends , these insinuations about the dogliness of a man ' s pack would be fighting words , but these men are old hunting partners , and no blood is drawn . soon the hour , the wind and the temperature are deemed correct , and the hunters file out , load their pickups with hounds and listen to commander in chief earl needham ' s final words of advice , spoken in a pure texas idiom : " y ' all go to whar you blowed the sireen the other night . carl , you know whar you blowed the other night ? we goin ' up to ernie bee ' s and listen . i ' m just gonna go back in on that hill so if they howl i can turn loose on ' em . and y ' all ' ll know whar we at if we don ' t come down outa there now ? " in a cloud of exhaust fumes the convoy of dog - carrying trucks takes off into the black texas night , and another wolf hunt is on . till dawn it continues , like a battle , with needham deploying his troops , reassembling his dogs , sending his hunters far up backcountry roads to sound their " sireens " and occasionally joining them all around a camp - fire , there to chew some coffee and some fat . observing this frustrating night , when not a wolf is heard or seen but only miles and miles of wolf tracks that might have been made by phantoms , an outsider gets the impression that the prospect of executing a wild animal is just a peg to hang the evening on , a texas way of staying up all night with the boys and getting away with it .

characteristics on average , they had a small to medium build . though they were not quite as small as the mexican wolf . most were of a rather dark color , though some specimens have shown that they were occasionally white .

answer : 12 - 18 years , though this can largely depend on the dog breeds in the mix and the wolf content . either way , wolfdog ownership is a serious commitment for several years / the duration of their life .

the red wolf program broke new ground again when it started a program called pup fostering , where captive - born pups are placed in dens with wild litters and raised as wild wolves — an innovation that helped increase the population .

answer : there is no simple answer for this because this greatly depends on the individual animal and the amount of wolf that has been inherited . generally speaking , your lower content or animals that express more dog like traits overall will be more easily adaptable to home type living , possibly even being inside full time without any incidents . an animal that has inherited and expresses more wolf like traits , tend to require an owner experienced with these behaviors as well as proper containment and enrichment outside . short , supervised sessions in a “wolf proofed” environment is usually the extent of a higher content wolfdogs inside time due to their nature to investigate with their mouths , despite all attempts to curb this behavior .

public outcry for establishing populations of mexican wolves in the american southwest actually began in texas . in the 70s , rick lobello , an employee at big bend , began gathering support for the release of the species in the park . that has yet to happen , but a debt is owed to rick for starting the process . now is the time to do this .

but the ultimate offense against the code of the hunt is the dog that gets too smart , the so - called " cutting dog . " " he ' ll chase that wolf with the rest of the pack for a while , " says needham , " till he figures out the pattern the wolf ' s runnin ' in . wolves usually run in circles , five or six miles around , and they keep passin ' the same checkpoints over and over again during the race . now this smart dog ' ll dope this out , and he ' ll find a spot where the wolf is crossin ' and lay there waitin ' for him , and when that wolf comes by the dog ' ll take out after him ahead of the pack . now we consider that downright unfair . we try to make the race equal to all the dogs , and this cuttin ' dog is cheatin ' because he ' s not makin ' the whole race . so we get rid of him . "

the wolf sanctuary itself is not a huge complex . you can see most of the enclosures without moving , if you’re standing in the right spot . as a result , the tour is more heavily geared towards educating visitors and introducing them to the animals .

while all the organizations participating in urltoken share the common goal of recovering the mexican gray wolf , individual groups can , and sometimes do , differ in their approaches to specific issues . © 2016 - view our privacy policy - contact us : info @ urltoken

the ever - adaptable coyote had been increasingly taking over territory from the shattered red wolf . red wolves had lost their foothold so badly that they were interbreeding with coyotes . and in the delirium of disaster , the resulting “hybrid swarm” was threatening to overtake the species .

habits . the gray wolf inhabits forests , brushlands , or grasslands , preferring broken , open country in which suitable cover and denning sites are available . formerly , wolves occurred commonly in the grassland plains of the buffalo on which they relied for their chief food supply .

part of the reason it has become so easy to ban or regulate wolfdogs is because there is no usda approved rabies vaccine for wolfdogs crosses in the united states . this is used as leverage against owners to ban , regulate or otherwise deny vet care to many wolfdogs . avoiding the use of the words wolf , hybrid , wolfdog or wolf mix on any paperwork could save your animals life . finding a vet that will provide your wolfdog with all the proper vaccinations ( including rabies ) as well as a legal rabies certificate is extremely important .

each of the animals comes with its own story . some were brought here from the houston area , while others come from as far away as alaska . each has found a safe , secure home under the attentive care of the volunteers at the saint francis wolf sanctuary .

with homo sapiens slowly vanishing from the landscape , wildlife has moved back in . wildcats and gophers abound , blackbirds blot out the sun in flights of tens of thousands , roadrunners and larks and hawks wheel about . the armadillo , once a rare sight , considers the area around flatonia to be his levittown and provides the wolf with a steady staple of diet . sometimes hunters will find as many as 50 vacant armadillo shells around wolf dens . but few men share the wolf ' s enthusiasm for the flavor of the " poverty pig . " says hunter bill stulting : " we barbecued a armadiller once , but it was a old one and the longer i chewed it the bigger it got . i threw it away . " on wolf hunts at night one sees armadillos gnawing away at roots in the fields ; they look like miniature knights of yore all dressed for the lists but , unlike knights , they are easily frightened . sometimes their first reaction to danger is a jump straight up in the air , right out of the terrytoons , followed by a 50 - yard dash that would do credit to bob hayes .

andrew sansom , former tpwd executive director , says he led an effort to get red wolves released on matagorda island in the 1990s . he liked the idea of having the wolf back near its final stronghold , but federal officials , pointing to the threat of coyotes , thought differently .

then , he went on to discuss the different phenotypes ( science word of the day ! a phenotype is a fancy word for a physical trait , like eye color ) that help the volunteers determine whether an animal is a wolf , a dog , or a mix of the two .

it has been argued that the lobo ' s impact on the frontier range was a good one because it reduced the numbers of old , weak , and infirm animals . this view was likely true when the lobo ' s main prey was the buffalo . by the late 1870s , after hide - hunters had reduced the southern buffalo herd to near extinction , stockmen introduced herds of the domestic cow . the lobo ' s role then changed dramatically . the wolf apparently liked the best available cows as well as the sick ones . stockmen complained bitterly . it was not unusual for a rancher to find a prime cow missing ten pounds of flesh from a rear loin . furthermore , the wolf had a reputation for blatant overkill ; once , eight cows were found dead or dying , and evidence suggested that a single wolf had been there . recent books have confirmed that the lobo killed beyond its needs .

answer : wolfdogs are any cross of a wolf bred to a dog , a wolfdog bred to another wolfdog or a wolfdog bred to a dog with varying amounts of wolf heritage . the majority of wolfdogs being produced now are from wolfdog to wolfdog pairings . pure wolves are not as common for private ownership breeding in recent years . wolfdogs are purposely bred and sold by breeders in many states across the united states . wolves are not pulled from the wild for stock . most foundation animals have been captive bred and raised for over 40 years , dating back to the fur farms in the 60’s and 70’s .

answer : this is also a question that would be dependent on the individual animal’s temperament and experience with children . texas wolfdog project generally advises that wolfdogs should not be in homes with children under 12 . due to the size of most wolfdogs , sometimes heightened drives and resource guarding , placing an animal in an experienced home or one without kids is usually the best option for all parties involved , especially if that animal has never previously been raised around or exposed to younger children .

at one point , several red wolves got it into their heads that when needham loaded his hunting dogs into his truck and drove off into the night the safest place to be was right there at the camp house , the jumping - off spot . " i ' d come back from huntin ' all night , without a sign of any wolf , and my dogs ' d be all whupped out , and we ' d find wolf tracks all around the camp house . while we was off huntin ' ' em , them scouns was back there tryin ' to dig under the fence and get the dogs ' dinner . "

earl needham , a middle - aged cattleman from the little cow town of flatonia , texas , is in no immediate peril of being mistaken for a werewolf , though even his best friends would have to admit that there are points of resemblance . at night long strings of empties rattle through flatonia , and when the engineers whistle for the crossing there often is heard an answering call from out on the range . the wolves of texas , after all these years , are still inclined to think of the night trains as brethren , and their answering howls easily could be taken from the sound track of a werewolf movie . no hair grows on earl needham ' s face when these cries are heard across the prairie , but in other respects he is likely to emulate our movie hero . carefully remembering to open the door first , needham rushes into the night , jumps into his pickup truck , drives out to his camp house , assembles his pack of hounds and rides to the hunt .

wolf hunters can tell exactly what ' s going on during a hunt by the sounds made by their dogs , by what they call the dog ' s " mouth . " " we got all kinds , " needham says , " and you just have to learn to tell ' em apart , one by one . we got dogs that on a cold trail they may be bawlin ' , wailin ' and squallin ' . then they get on up there close to that wolf and they ' ll begin to chop a little bit , shorter barks . they ' re changin ' their mouth now , and you can tell from this how things are goin ' . course , there ' s different mouth dogs—some of them are squallin ' mouth dogs till they start runnin ' , but a squallin ' mouth dog don ' t usually give as much mouth when he starts to runnin ' a wolf . there ' s chop mouth , coarse mouth , fine mouth , horn mouth that sounds like a horn , and bawlin ' dogs . we got a dog that ' s a goose - mouth dog and another one is a turkey - mouth dog : talk , talk , talk , talk , like a old turkey gobbler . we got dogs with high screamin ' mouths that gives a lot of mouth , very loud , and they scare a wolf and make ' em move out and tire their - selves . when my dogs take out after a wolf , i can tell each dog and what he ' s doing and what his mouth means . you get to know ' em . it ' s just like you listenin ' to a crowd of people and you can recognize different voices . "

with time running out , the government took desperate and drastic action : it decided to remove the red wolves and put them in captivity with hopes of reintroducing them into the wild someday . despite the hope and intent of the endangered species act , wildlife managers decided to make the red wolf extinct in the wild in order to save it .

the gray wolf eats animals ranging from mice to cows and spends around one - third of its time in search of food . it becomes engorged by eating a fifth of its weight at a single meal , then goes three or four days without food . though it usually runs in packs , pioneer texans also noted that the lobo hunts in pairs . the female snaps at a cow ' s nose , while the male watches for an opportunity to dart in and sever the victim ' s hamstring . because the gray wolf often eats its victims alive , one stockman called it the " cruelest predator . " in the 1880s in dakota country , theodore roosevelt called it the " beast of waste and desolation . "

the demise of mexican wolves in texas was complete by 1970 . in that year , two were killed in december at separate locations in brewster county where big bend national park is located . under natural conditions , wolves fed on a large variety of animals , with deer making up a large percentage of the total . opportunistically , they will feed on just about anything , including rabbits , squirrels , birds and reptiles . when natural game is scarce , wolves may take livestock , but in a functioning , healthy ecosystem this is the exception , not the rule .

as if the poor hound dog doesn ' t have enough problems , he is expected to follow a code of ethics as strict and inflexible as the rules for admission to the junior league . " silent trailing , " for example , is a major breach of the code . a silent trailer will jump a wolf track and go off in quiet pursuit , single - o , leaving the pack far behind . if he catches up to the wolf , he won ' t be able to make the kill alone and may well pay the supreme penalty for his rashness . the proper behavior for a dog that cuts a wolf ' s trail is to bark bloody murder , thus bringing the whole pack into the chase and improving the odds . the converse of the silent trailer is the dog that begins barking just for the sheer dizzy joy of being out in the country of a pleasant evening . " we call this kind of dog a babbler , " says needham . " he shoots off his mouth for nothin ' and drags the whole rest of the pack with him . "

a smart wolf will run straight for a hole in a barbed - wire fence in the dead of night ; the hounds will come caterwauling up , slam into the barbed wire , then waste time trying to find the hole . in the meantime , the wolf has come back through the fence via another hole . wolves even have learned to run along the highway , a most unnatural place for so wild an animal . the pavement does not hold scent as well as brush , and auto fumes make it hard for the hounds to pick up what little scent there is . wolves will run through herds of cattle , confusing the issue still more , or take a shortcut through a backyard , mixing scents with the local watchdogs .

in 1973 , congress passed the endangered species act , and the red wolf was one of the first animals listed . the first goal was to protect the wolves in their remaining territory , and the government started trapping coyotes to prevent the red wolves from being genetically swamped . the effort didn’t work . the wolves were surrounded by an ever - encroaching sea of coyotes .

wolf dogs are trained and treated like scholarship athletes at ucla . needham ' s own pack runs from 15 dogs up ; the number is always changing , because hounds are killed by wolves and new dogs are brought in and others die when they get to be about 6 , old age for a working wolf hound . needham has no stomach for training his own dogs ; he has found the necessary techniques too offensive to his own gentle nature . " the way they train dogs to fight wolves , " he says , " is they ' ll catch coyotes in traps and they ' ll tie the coyotes ' mouths , which is cruel , and i ' ve never been able to do anything like that in my life . then they ' ll turn the coyote loose and let the young dogs catch him and kill him . when the dogs learn how to do that , they ' ll let one coyote go without his mouth being tied , and then the dogs ' ll learn a little more . they get some of those hounds so highly trained they ' ll tear through a screened wire so they can get at a wolf . "

“red wolves , which are big - eared and short - coated , slender , spindly , stilt - legged for coursing through the southern marshes or under tall forests , have always impressed observers as being rather rudimentary and unemphatic for wolves , ” writes edward hoagland in his essay “lament of the red wolf . ” “behaviorally they resemble gray wolves ; ecologically they are more like coyotes . ”

these wolfdogs are sold as pets to individuals who do not have a full understanding of what they are getting themselves into . often , the owners realize very quickly that wolfdogs do not make ideal pets . they have the wary instincts of a wolf , dislike feeling trapped indoors , and may not easily trust humans . as a result , they are often abandoned , through no fault of their own .

seriously , there aren’t words to express the beauty of these animals . she made three whole passes , and seemed to love having her back scratched — her leg even motored a little , like my pups at home . it was definitely possible to see her more wolf - like traits , though . her long , athletic legs , narrow chest , and those yellow - tinted eyes are a dead giveaway .

“it seems like you’re going backward , ” says david rabon , coordinator of the red wolf recovery program for the u . s . fish and wildlife service . “you’re given this new piece of legislation to go out there and save the planet , save these species . and one of the first things you do is go : ‘we’ll extirpate them in the wild . ’” but , he added , it was the right thing to do .

soon the excuse may be gone . civilization , that implacable enemy of hunter and hunted alike , is approaching flatonia ; a freeway is inching across from san antonio to houston , and earl needham reckons that it will pass " right behind my dog pen . " nothing would kill wolf hunting faster than an uncrossable modern turnpike . earl talked to the authorities about this encroachment on his constitutional right to foray all over the country in search of the red wolf , " and i told them they ' re agonna have to build them a underpass for my dogs to run . " then , with the look of a stubborn old texan digging in for a long range war , needham added : " yes sir , that ' s all they are to it ! " with his code of ethics , his faithful hound dogs and his chili pateens all going for him , needham would seem to be the favorite .

also like major league pitchers , wolf hounds are expected to perform as specialists , not as all - round stars . their job is to find , chase and kill wolves , and nothing else but wolves . and if their attention wanders off to other forms of wildlife , they are sent back to the minors . to chase anything but wolves is called " trashing , " and a dog that " trashes " is subjected to stiff punishment . " a lot of hunters will whup the whey out of a dog that trashes , " says needham , " and i ' ve even known ' em to shoot their own dogs in the tail with a light load of no . 7 shot from a . 410 . it ' s like a sharp spray , but the noise scares ' em , and pretty soon they learn that they ' re gonna get hurt if they open on anything but a wolf trail . "


chrysotoxum cautum is a species of hoverfly .

it is found in southern britain and europe east into the palearctic but is normally encountered in small numbers .

the larvae are thought to feed on root aphids .

adults are usually found on the edges of woodland or scrub or along hedgerows where they visit a wide range of flowers .

chrysotoxum cautum

chrysotoxum cautum <EOT> kari pihlaviita added the finnish common name " etelänsarvikirvari " to " chrysotoxum cautum ( harris , 1776 ) " .

chrysotoxum cautum - large species , female with long dense hairs on thoracic dorsum . antennal segment 1 shorter than segment 2

tergites of investigated species , lateral view . a , chrysotoxum festivum a ; b , chrysotoxum festivum b ; c , chrysotoxum elegans ; d , chrysotoxum elegans –intermediate form ; e , chrysotoxum octomaculatum .

investigated localities . a , chrysotoxum festivum a ; b , chrysotoxum festivum b .

thin - plate - spline deformation grids shape differences . a , males of chrysotoxum festivum a and chrysotoxum festivum b ; b , females of chrysotoxum festivum a and chrysotoxum festivum b ; c , males of chrysotoxum festivum a and chrysotoxum elegans ; d , females of chrysotoxum festivum a and chrysotoxum elegans ; e , males of chrysotoxum festivum b and chrysotoxum elegans ; f , females of chrysotoxum festivum b and chrysotoxum elegans . differences between the species were exaggerated five - fold to make them more visible .

chrysotoxum tomentosum giglio - tos , 1890 : 159 stat . nov . corresponds to chrysotoxum festivum b

fig . 5 . superimposed outline drawings showing wing shape differences between analysed species . a , chrysotoxum vernale and chrysotoxum montanum sp . nov . ; b , chrysotoxum orthostylum sp . nov . and chrysotoxum montanum sp . nov . ; c , chrysotoxum orthostylum sp . nov . and chrysotoxum vernale .

pilosity on mesoscutum , lateral view . a , chrysotoxum festivum a ; b , chrysotoxum festivum b .

it just doesn ' t quite seem to have markings which match cautum or verralli when i check ' google ' .

fig . 10 . male genitalia . a , chrysotoxum orthostylum sp . nov . , lateral view ; b , chrysotoxum orthostylum sp . nov . , dorsal view ; c , chrysotoxum festivum , lateral view ; d , chrysotoxum festivum , dorsal view ; e , chrysotoxum vernale , lateral view ; f , chrysotoxum vernale , dorsal view .

fig . 11 . abdomen , dorsal view . a , chrysotoxum montanum sp . nov . ; b , chrysotoxum orthostylum sp . nov . ; c , chrysotoxum vernale .

figure 1 . adult female hover fly , chrysotoxum cautum ( harris ) , showing resemblence of some hover fly species to yellowjackets . photograph by david a . iliff , cheltenham , england .

fig . 6 . superimposed outline drawings showing surstylus shape differences between chrysotoxum montanum sp . nov . and chrysotoxum vernale .

fig . 14 . distribution maps of the material examined . a , chrysotoxum montanum sp . nov . ; b , chrysotoxum orthostylum sp . nov . ; c , chrysotoxum vernale .

fig . 13 . right surstylus of the male genitalia , lateral view . a , chrysotoxum montanum sp . nov . ; b , chrysotoxum orthostylum sp . nov . ; c , chrysotoxum vernale .

fig . 8 . thoracic scutum of males , lateral view . a , chrysotoxum vernale ; b , chrysotoxum montanum sp . nov .

head of male , anterior view . a , chrysotoxum festivum a ; b , chrysotoxum festivum b ; a , width of black vitta .

fig . 9 . thoracic pleura , lateral view . a , chrysotoxum orthostylum sp . nov . ; b , chrysotoxum vernale ; c , chrysotoxum montanum sp . nov . dotted areas indicate yellow colour ( kepst , katepisternum ) .

a small dumpy chrysotoxum looking like a diminutive c . cautum or chubby c . verralli . the first two antennal segments are very short ( like cautum ) but the third segment is very long . the male has dense , dark eye hairs . this is the only chrysotoxum with a northern - biased distribution and is frequent in sheltered , scrubby parts of heathland , moorland and open structured woodland , particularly in upland districts of britain . the larvae feed on ant - associated aphids . nbn map : urltoken bnsys0000006893

chrysotoxum festivum ( linnaeus , 1758 : 593 ) corresponds to c . festivum a

fig . 7 . scatter plot of factor loadings of two pc scores showing the positions of chrysotoxum montanum sp . nov . and chrysotoxum vernale in the environmental space .

right surstylus of male genitalia , lateral view . a , chrysotoxum festivum a ; b , chrysotoxum festivum b ; a , length of surstylus ; b , width of surstylus .

a review of the palaearctic species of the genus chrysotoxum mg . ( diptera , syrphidae )

ch . cautum should be correct . however , a good picture of the antennae is needed to compare the length of the segments ( this is the first question the key http : / / web . archiv . . . x _ key . html asks ) . in your fly the third segment seems to equal the first and second together , which is fine for ch . cautum . the colouring fits well , too . regards , sundew

the european chrysotoxum species can be grouped according to the proportional length of the basoflagellomere : species with basoflagellomere shorter than scape and pedicel together , chrysotoxum bicinctum ( linnaeus , 1758 ) , chrysotoxum elegans loew , 1841 , chrysotoxum festivum ( linnaeus , 1758 ) , chrysotoxum gracile becker , 1921 , chrysotoxum lineare ( zetterstedt , 1819 ) , c . montanum sp . nov . , chrysotoxum octomaculatum curtis , 1837 , c . orthostylum sp . nov . , chrysotoxum parmense rondani , 1845 , chrysotoxum tomentosum giglio - tos , 1890 , c . vernale and chrysotoxum verralli collin , 1940 ; species with basoflagellomere longer than scape and pedicel together , chrysotoxum arcuatum ( linnaeus , 1758 ) , chrysotoxum cisalpinum rondani , 1845 , chrysotoxum cautum ( harris , 1776 ) , chrysotoxum fasciolatum ( de geer , 1776 ) and chrysotoxum intermedium meigen , 1822 . within the group with a relatively short basoflagellomere , masseti et al . ( 2006 ) defined the morphological festivum group , c . bicinctum , c . festivum , c . elegans , c . octomaculatum , c . parmense and c . vernale , excluding characters such as the colour of femur and lateral margin of terga 3 and 4 . based on morphology , c . tomentosum , c . montanum sp . nov . , and c . orthostylum sp . nov . are likely to belong to the festivum group ( sensu masseti et al . , 2006 ) . these three species have the yellow fasciae on terga 3 and 4 not reaching the lateral margin of the tergum , but the festivum group ( sensu masseti et al . , 2006 ) includes some species with yellow fasciae reaching the lateral margin . further morphological and molecular analyses are required to access the concept of a festivum group .

fig . 1 . location of the 16 analysed landmarks on the right wing in the chrysotoxum vernale .

chrysotoxum tomentosum , male genitalia . a , epandrium , dorsal view ; b , hypandrium , lateral view .

chrysotoxum festivum , c . orthostylum sp . nov . ( femora wholly yellow ) , and c . tomentosum

sang - wook s , ho - yeon h . 2013 . clarification of previously confused chrysotoxum sapporense and chrysotoxum graciosum ( insecta : diptera : syrphidae ) in east asia based on morphological and molecular data . animal cells and systems 17 : 277 - 289 .

chrysotoxum montanum sp . nov . , c . orthostylum sp . nov . ( femora black basally ) , and c . vernale

boxplot of mean centroid size showing differences in wing size between chrysotoxum festivum a , c . festivum b , and c . elegans .

fig . 2 . location of the 30 analysed semi - landmarks on the right surstylus of the male genitalia in the chrysotoxum vernale .

the social wasp - mimicking hoverfly chrysotoxum cautum must be a strong contender for the most handsomely marked british fly species . the subterfuge ( batesian mimicry ) is enhanced by the adoption of a flight pattern and buzz very similar to that of the social wasps that are being mimicked and it is very likely that any predators already wise to the hazards of being stung will avoid the perceived risk and leave this fly well alone . there are several other members of the chrysotoxum genus with very similar markings so close examination of the relative lengths of the antennal segments will be required in order to unequivocally separate the species .

habitat and flowers visited . chrysotoxum orthostylum sp . nov . has been found flying with other chrysotoxum species in the grassy edges of conifer forests at high altitudes in serbia and montenegro . in fyr macedonia , c . orthostylum sp . nov . has been found resting on lapsana and chrysanthemum leaves in wet meadows .

giglio - tos e . 1890 . le specie europee del genere chrysotoxum meig . atti della r . accademia delle scienze di torino 26 : 134 - 165 .

refinements to couplets in the key to the palaearctic chrysotoxum in violovitsh ( 1974 ) are provided below , based on the results presented here , as well as those in nedeljković et al . ( 2013 ) . chrysotoxum montanum sp . nov . , c . vernale and specimens of c . orthostylum sp . nov . with femora black basally would key out to c . vernale ( sensu lato ) in violovitsh ( 1974 ) ; specimens of c . orthostylum sp . nov . with femora wholly yellow would key out to chrysotoxum festivum ( linnaeus , 1758 ) ( s . l . ) . chrysotoxum festivum and chrysotoxum tomentosum giglio - tos , 1890 , which also have yellow fasciae on terga 2 - 4 not reaching the lateral margins of tergum , would key out to c . festivum ( s . l . ) .

habitat and flowers visited . this species has been found with other chrysotoxum species in the grassy edges of conifer forests at high altitudes . flowers visited : no data .

additional material . holotype of chrysotoxum collinum : m , museo “la specola” coll . rondani holotypus ( red label ) / 357 / chrysotoxum vernale ( = collinum rnd . ) / rev . ( overwritten by hand on ‘det . ’ ) m . daccordi 1985 [ lsf ] . for further non - type additional material see table s1 .

two or three legs of each specimen were used for total genomic dna extraction from 25 chrysotoxum dry specimens ( table s2 ) , following chen et al . ( 2010 ) . material analysed included 22 specimens of the c . vernale a , two specimens of the c . vernale b and one of third chrysotoxum species . dna voucher specimens are deposited in fsuns .

fig . 12 . terga 3 - 5 , dorsal view , chrysotoxum orthostylum sp . nov . a , male ; b , female ( t , thorn - like process ) .

violovitsh na . 1974 . a review of the palaearctic species of the genus chrysotoxum mg . ( diptera , syrphidae ) . энтомологическое обозрение ( entomological review ) 53 : 196 - 217 .

chrysotoxum verralli - restricted to south - east england and the midlands . very similar to elegans but smaller and with black at front of tergite 2 mostly straight , not curved as in elegans .

sommaggio d . 2001 . the species of the genus chrysotoxum meigen , 1822 ( diptera , syrphidae ) described by giglio tos . bollettino del museo regionale di scienze naturali , torino 1 : 115 - 126 .

in the world approximately 150 chrysotoxum species has been recorded so far ( evenhuis et al . , 2008 ) . peck ( 1988 ) listed 69 species of this genus occurring in the palaearctic of which 23 occur in europe .

masetti a , luchetti a , sommaggio d , burgio g , mantovani b . 2006 . phylogeny of chrysotoxum species ( diptera : syrphidae ) inferred from morphological and molecular characters . european journal of entomology 103 : 459 - 467 .

amongst the most striking of all british hoverflies , chrysotoxum species are boldly marked with yellow and black and have distinctly elongated antennae . although the genus is distinctive , identification to species level can be tricky and may require close examination of the abdominal markings in combination with other characters .

nedeljković z , ačanski j , vujić a , obreht d , đan m , ståhls g , radenković s . 2013 . taxonomy of chrysotoxum festivum linnaeus , 1758 ( diptera : syrphidae ) - an integrative approach . zoological journal of the linnean society 169 : 84 - 102 .

a preliminary examination of named specimens of chrysotoxum vernale loew , 1841 resulted in the identification of two different morphotypes according to the colour of long pile on thoracic scutum of males : yellow ( morphotype a ) and black ( morphotype b ) ( nedeljković , 2011 ) . in addition , a new chrysotoxum taxon sharing with morphotypes a and b an antenna with basoflagellomere shorter than scape and pedicel together and abdominal terga with yellow fasciae not reaching the lateral margins was recognized . the main objective of the present study is to test using an integrated approach , whether these morphotypes correspond to different species .

musca arcuata and m . festiva linnaeus , 1758 ( currently chrysotoxum arcuatum and c . festivum ) and m . citrofasciata de geer , 1776 ( currently xanthogramma citrofasciatum ) ( insecta , diptera ) : proposed conservation of usage of the specific names by the designation of neotypes for m . arcuata and m . festiva

opinion 1982 ( case 3090 ) . musca arcuata linnaeus , 1758 and m . festiva linnaeus , 1758 ( currently chrysotoxum arcuatum and c . festivum ) and m . citrofasciata de geer , 1776 ( currently xanthogramma citrofasciatum ) ( insecta : diptera ) : specific names conserved by the designation of neotypes for m . arcuata and m . festiva

veličković n , obreht d , đan m , kočiš tubić n , vujić a . 2012 . cytochrome oxidase i gene variation in genus chrysotoxum ( diptera , syrphidae ) . pp . 63 - 68 in : sabin i , ed . , proceedings of the xivth international symposium ‘young people and multidisciplinary research’ , timis¸oara . timisoara , romania : editura politechnica .

chrysotoxum species are present in all bio - geographic regions except for australasia . in the palaearctic region 71 species are recorded , 24 of which are present in europe ( vockeroth , 1969 ; violovitsh , 1974 ; peck , 1988 ; nedeljković et al . , 2013 ) . these wasp - mimics can be separated from other syrphid genera by the yellow and black body colouration ( yellow maculae in thoracic pleura and yellow fasciae in abdominal terga ) , the very long antenna and the convex , margined abdomen ( thompson and rotheray , 1998 ) . chrysotoxum adults are found in many habitat types ( speight , 2013 ) and their poorly known larvae are associated with ants and / or root aphids ( rotheray , 1994 ) .

worldwide , syrphids ( diptera : syrphidae ) play important ecological roles in nature . adults are usually conspicuous flies that feed on pollen and nectar from a wide range of plants in numerous habitats ( rotheray and gilbert , 2011 ) . in europe , syrphids are one of the better studied diptera families . however , the taxonomy of certain groups is still provisional and uncertain , such as the genus chrysotoxum meigen , 1803 ( speight , 2013 ) .

diagnosis . medium to large species ( 15 - 17 mm , n = 10 ) ; r = 1 : 0 . 8 : 1 . 8 ; vertical and frontal triangles with black pile ; scutum with black pile ( fig . 8b ) ; katepisternum completely black ( fig . 9c ) or with a very small yellow macula ; scutellum with long black pile ; male genitalia very similar to that in c . vernale ; surstylus 1 . 3 times longer than hypandrium ( excluding superior lobes and aedeagus ) ; epandrium plus surstylus 1 . 2 - 1 . 3 times longer than hypandrium ( excluding superior lobes and aedeagus ) ; in female frons black , with two triangular pollinose maculae . chrysotoxum montanum has longer wings than c . vernale . chrysotoxum montanum occurs only at high altitude . ml tree based on mtdna coi gene revealed a clear separation of c . montanum from c . vernale .

three morphologically related taxa , c . elegans loew , 1841 , c . festivum , and c . gracile becker 1921 share the following morphological characters : first flagellomere short ( shorter than scape and pedicel together ) and yellow legs . chrysotoxum gracile , clearly separable by the longer scape than pedicel from c . elegans and c . festivum , is not included in the present study . based on mtdna and internal transcribed spacer 2 ( its2 ) , c . festivum and c . elegans appeared in the same clade ( masetti et al . , 2006 ) .

taxonomic notes . in this new species , the katepisternum colour ranges from completely black ( fig . 9c ) to black with a small yellow macula anteriorly . chrysotoxum montanum sp . nov . can be separated from c . orthostylum sp . nov . and c . vernale by the colour of the long pile on the scutum , which are black in c . montanum sp . nov . ( fig . 8b ) and yellow in the other species . for further morphological differences between c . montanum sp . nov . and c . vernale see table 2 .

paralectotypes ( designated here ) . 1f labelled as 16 / 547 / vernale f loew alte sammlung / austria alte sammlung / chrysotoxum vernale f loew * ( nhmw ) . 20 specimens labelled as ‘coll h . loew’ and seven specimens not labelled but supposed to be part of loew’s collection and have been collected in poznań ( j . ziegler , in lit . ) ; 10 of the 20 ‘coll h . loew’ specimens are labelled as ‘wien schiner’ ( 4 specimens ) , ‘florenz mann’ ( 3 specimens ) , ‘syrakus zeller’ ( 1 specimen ) , ‘spanien’ ( 1 specimen ) , ‘paris’ ( 1 specimen ) ( zhmb ) .

an integrative taxonomic approach revealed two taxa within chrysotoxum festivum ( linnaeus , 1758 ) ( diptera , syrphidae ) , c . festivum a and c . festivum b . in addition to morphological differences , results also showed significant distinction in geometric morphometrics of wings and surstyli , and in dna sequence data ( nuclear its2 sequences ) between c . festivum a , c . festivum b , and the closely related species c . elegans loew , 1841 . from examination of type material , the name c . tomentosum giglio - tos , 1890 is proposed for c . festivum b , and the taxon is redefined . © 2013 the linnean society of london

the taxon tomentosa was originally described as a variety of chrysotoxum festivum based on material from the alpine region of piemonte and surrounding localities alagna and valsesia , valdieri , val dell ' orco , santa redegunda in stiria ( giglio - tos , 1890 ) . z . nedeljković and a . vujić examined the lectotype designated by sommaggio ( 2001 ) labelled as follows : 20–68 / ch . festivum linn . var . tomentosa giglio - tos ( handwritten ) / ch . festivum var . tomentosa ( handwritten ) lectotype / mzut - mrsn torino , coll . bellardi box 12 . the redescription of c . tomentosum is based on the examination of lectotype and additional studied material .

chrysotoxum festivum linnaeus , 1758 . described based on a male specimen bm 1937 - 539 as musca festiva . type locality : ‘europa’ . the lectotype of musca festiva was designated by thompson et al . ( 1982 : 155 ) . neotype : male . type locality : germany , schneverdingen , lüneberg heath , n . germany , leg . t . h . rowsell and b . j . clifton in 1937 was designated by p . j . chandler ( iliff & chandler , 2000 ) and is deposited in bmnh . it was examined by n . wyatt in october 2012 , a . ricarte in january 2013 , and also via photos by z . nedeljković in october 2012 .

the pca reduces the bioclim variables ( table 1 ) to three pcs with eigenvalue ≥ 1 . 88 % of the variation . separation among species were statistically significant along pc1 and pc2 ( anova , pc1 : f 1 , 302 = 141 . 26 ; p < 0 . 00000 , fisher lsd post hoc test p < 0 . 00000 ; pc2 : f 1 , 302 = 155 . 27 ; p < 0 . 00000 , fisher lsd post hoc test p < 0 . 00000 ) , but not along pc3 ( f 1 , 302 = 1 . 90 ; p < 0 . 168397 ) . because of this , pc3 was excluded in the interpretation of results . the precipitation - related pc1 explained 61 % of the total variation , while the temperature - and altitude - related pc2 explained 17 % of the total variation ( table 1 ) . the scatter plot of pc1 against pc2 illustrated a clear niche separation between c . vernale and c . montanum sp . nov . chrysotoxum vernale occurs across a wide temperature range , precipitation and altitude ( fig . 7 ) , while c . montanum sp . nov . occurs in a much narrower range of temperatures . chrysotoxum montanum sp . nov . occurs only at high altitudes with high precipitation , and its distribution is strongly influenced by the precipitation in the coldest and wettest quarters of the year ( bio19 , bio12 , bio16 and bio13 ) .

chrysotoxum vernale was described from an unspecified but large ( “unter vielen exemplaren . . . ” ) number of specimens , both males and females . some males studied by hermann loew were collected in the place where he was working at the time of the description ( “ . . . hier gefangen . . . ” ) : poznań ( “posen” ) , poland . apart from this , no other data about the type locality of c . vernale are given in the original description . in the zmhb there are 27 specimens of c . vernale belonging to loew’s collection ( j . ziegler , in lit . ) ; of these specimens only 20 are labelled as ‘coll . h . loew’ and further information is not provided in the available data bases at the zmhb ( sven marotzke , in lit . ) . these specimens were examined here to confirm the colour of scutum pile , which was yellow . two named specimens ( male and female ) of c . vernale from the ‘old collection’ ( “alte sammlung” ) at the nhmw were also examined ; the female is labelled as ‘ chrysotoxum vernale f loew * ’ ( handwritten ) . no information about the locality where the nhmw specimens were collected is available , but loew’s type material is usually marked with an asterisk ( * ) ( a . vujić , pers . obs . ) . we consider that the specimens examined both in zmhb and nhmw belong to the type series of c . vernale and the nhmw male is designated as lectotype in order to stabilize this species concept .

for surstyli , outline shape was studied . surstyli of 51 chrysotoxum males were analyzed : 21 of morphotype a and 30 of morphotype b . the right surstylus was taken off using pins . surstyli were mounted in hoyer’s medium on a microscopic slide and immobilized with a cover slip . in the absence of clearly - identifiable , homologous , anatomical loci , 30 semi - landmarks were generated ( fig . 2 ) . for each specimen semi - landmarks were drawn twice to reduce statistical error . to superimpose semi - landmarks , coordgen7 . 14 and an integrated semiland module were used following a distance - minimising protocol to minimize the shape differences due to the arbitrary nature of semi - landmark positions along the curve ( bookstein , 1997 ; zelditch et al . , 2004 ) .

diagnosis . large to medium size species ( 11 - 15 mm , n = 10 ) ; r = 1 : 0 . 6 : 1 . 5 ; vertical and frontal triangle with yellow pile ; scutum with long yellow pile ( male ) ( fig . 8a ) ; katepisternum with a yellow macula ( fig . 9b ) ; scutellum mainly with long yellow pile ; basal third of pro - and mesofemora black ; surstylus 1 . 2 - 1 . 3 times longer than hypandrium ( excluding superior lobes and aedeagus ) ( fig . 13c ) ; epandrium plus surstylus 1 . 1 - 1 . 2 times longer than hypandrium ( excluding superior lobes and aedeagus ) ( fig . 10e ) ; in female , frons black , with two rectangular pollinose maculae . chrysotoxum vernale has larger wings than c . montanum . additionally , it has wide temperature , precipitation and altitude range .

significant differences in wing size and shape between c . montanum sp . nov . , c . vernale and c . orthostylum were detected ( fig . 5a ) . inconspicuous but statistically significant differences in surstylar shape between c . montanum sp . nov . and c . vernale were also revealed with a geometric morphometric analysis ; this is the second example after that of nedeljković et al . ( 2013 ) in which geometric morphometry of genitalia has successfully contributed to the separation of cryptic syrphid species . in addition , niche divergence analysis reveals that c . montanum sp . nov . is more specialised than c . vernale . chrysotoxum montanum sp . nov . occurs only at high altitudes with high precipitation , while c . vernale is able to thrive in a wider range of environmental conditions of temperature , precipitation and altitude . the sympatric ( e . g . in fyr macedonia , golema poljana ) and synchronic ( early may to mid - august ) distributions of c . montanum sp . nov . and c . vernale also support their taxonomic separation .

the anova of wing centroid size showed significant differences between c . vernale and c . montanum sp . nov . ( males : f 1 , 117 = 8 . 99 ; p < 0 . 00331 , tukey’s post hoc test p < 0 . 01227 ; females : f 1 , 117 = 81 . 12 ; p < 0 . 00000 , tukey’s post hoc test p < 0 . 00010 ) . anova test and tukey’s post hoc test showed significant differences in wing size between c . orthostylum sp . nov . and c . vernale ( f 1 , 182 = 6 . 69 ; p < 0 . 01045 , tukey’s post hoc test p < 0 . 00969 ) and c . orthostylum sp . nov . and c . montanum sp . nov . ( f 1 , 166 = 30 . 12 ; p < 0 . 00000 , tukey’s post hoc test p < 0 . 00000 ) . chrysotoxum vernale has larger wings than c . montanum sp . nov . and c . orthostylum sp . nov . ( fig . 4b ) .

thin - plate spline deformation grid allows recognition of wing regions that are contributing to the discrimination . the main differences in wing shape between c . festivum a and c . festivum b are in the basal and apical parts of the wing and in wing length . males of c . festivum a have a wider basal part ( landmarks 1 and 16 ) and narrow medial ( landmarks 7 and 8 ) and apical ( landmarks 3 and 6 ) parts of the wing ( fig . 10a , b ) . the major wing deformations affecting c . elegans and c . festivum a occur in the medial part of the wing and are associated with landmarks 7–13 , and in the apical part of wing associated with landmarks 3–5 ( fig . 10c , d ) . the deformation grid indicates that the shape difference between c . elegans and c . festivum b is due to wing width and associated with displacement of all landmarks . chrysotoxum elegans is characterized in having a generally narrower wing than c . festivum b , especially in the male ( fig . 10e , f ) .

taxonomic notes . chrysotoxum orthostylum sp . nov . can be distinguished from c . montanum sp . nov . and c . vernale by the abdomen shape , which is slender and nearly parallel - sided in c . orthostylum sp . nov . ( fig . 11b ) but more oval in other species ( fig . 11a , c ) . in addition , the posterior corners of tergites 3 and 4 in c . orthostylum sp . nov . are developed into thorn - like processes ( fig . 12a , b ) , while in similar species these corners are blunter . the katepisternum of c . orthostylum sp . nov . has a yellow macula ( fig . 9a ) , which is more reduced or even absent in c . vernale and c . montanum sp . nov . ( fig . 9b , c ) . males of c . orthostylum sp . nov . can be separated from other species by the long surstylus , which is 3 . 3 - 3 . 7× ( n = 5 ) longer than wide in c . orthostylum sp . nov . ( fig . 13b ) but 2 . 8× or less in the other species ( fig . 13a , c ) . in addition , the shape of the hypandrium apex is rectangular in c . orthostylum sp . nov . ( fig . 10a ) and more triangular in c . festivum ( fig . 10c ) and c . vernale ( fig . 10e ) .

da correctly classified the material studied in accordance with the three defined species . the overall classification success of the da was 92 . 95 % which indicates wing shape is a reliable predictor of interspecific discrimination . of the 249 digitalisations , only 21 were misclassified . canonical variate analysis conducted on shape variables gave two highly significant axes . the first canonical axis ( cv1 ) , with 65 . 4 % of total variation , separated c . vernale from c . orthostylum sp . nov . ( wilks’ lambda = 0 . 09515 ; χ 2 = 662 . 18 ; p < 0 . 00000 ) . the second canonical axis ( cv2 ) , with 34 . 6 % of total variation , separated c . vernale and c . orthostylum sp . nov . from c . montanum sp . nov . ( wilks’ lambda = 0 . 38388 ; χ 2 = 269 . 52 ; p < 0 . 00000 ) ( fig . 4a ) . the superimposed outline drawings showing major wing deformations between c . vernale and c . montanum sp . nov . occur in the central and distal part of wing and are associated with landmarks 2 , 4 , 5 and 9 - 11 ( fig . 5a ) . major differences in wing shape were found in the central part of the wing ( landmarks 2 , 7 - 11 ) of c . orthostylum sp . nov . and c . vernale ( fig . 5c ) , and in the central ( landmarks 7 , 8 , 12 and 13 ) and apical parts in c . orthostylum sp . nov . and c . montanum sp . nov . ( landmarks 4 and 5 ) ( fig . 5b ) . chrysotoxum vernale has wider wings , while c . orthostylum sp . nov . longer wings .

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a relatively large robust boldly marked grassland hoverfly species , widespread in southern britain and europe , usually seen flying near hedgerows , woodland edges and scrubby areas in small numbers where they visit a wide range of flowers . they are most often seen from june to october with a peak in mid july to early august . wing length 10 - 13mm ( 0 . 4 - 0 . 5in ) .

is similar to several hoverfly species and care is needed for identification . the abdominal patterning has two straight black bars thinly joined in the centre per segment , with the pattern towards the rear falling short of the segment edge and gradually becoming more like the shape of a whales fluke .

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hello , can this hoverfly be identified by foto ? i caught it on may 10th , 2011 , on the light . location : germany , rhineland - palatinum , 53572 unkel , river rhine valley , dry and warm habitat . i already posted this fly 1 1 / 2 years ago , with another photo , but never got an answer . perhaps this photo is better for an identification . thanks in advance , michael

why didn´t the upload work ? there were nop spaces , dots etc . in the name . one more try : michael stemmer attached the following image : [ 71 . 88kb ]

thank you , sundew ! this helps me a lot . greetings from the river rhine valley , michael

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the family syrphidae , also known as hover flies , flower flies , and syrphid flies , is one of the largest families of diptera with over 5 , 000 described species ( capinera 2004 ) . they are called hover flies because they can hover while in mid - flight , lingering in one place much like a hummingbird . while many diptera are detrimental to humans , most syrphid flies are beneficial . the larvae of some species ( for example , allograpta obliqua ) are natural predators of aphids , and many of the adults are important crop pollinators ( weems 1951 ) .

hover fly adults are often brightly colored and are commonly mistaken for the bees and wasps that they resemble ( mimic ) in appearance and behavior ( catts and mullen 2002 ) . many are black with either white , yellow , or orange bands across the abdomen and similar in shape to bees and wasps . they also have similar flight behavior and feed on pollen and nectar ( brower and brower 1965 , heal 1979 ) . this type of mimicry is called batesian mimicry because the mimic , although it is not dangerous to predators , benefits because the model is dangerous to predators ( bates 1961 ) . in other words , predators may avoid bees , wasps and yellowjackets because they can inject toxins by stinging , so predators also avoid the flower flies that are mistaken for bees and wasps ( gilbert 1986 ) .

figure 2 . adult female eastern yellowjacket , vespula maculifrons ( buysson ) . photograph by bruce marlin , http : / / cirrusimage . com .

the species eristalis tenax ( linnaeus ) , commonly known as the drone fly ( adult ) or rat - tailed maggot ( immature ) , is a mimic of the european honey bee apis mellifera linnaeus ( golding et al . 2001 ) , and was introduced from europe around 1875 ( gilbert 1986 ) . the rat - tailed maggot is probably the source of biblical writings that depict honey bees spontaneously developing from dead animals . this is because female drone flies can lay their eggs in carcasses ( osten - sacken 1893 ) .

figure 3 . adult female drone fly , eristalis tenax ( linnaeus ) . photograph by lloyd spitalnik , copyright 2006 . www . lloydspitalnikphotos . com , used with permission .

figure 4 . adult honey bee , apis mellifera linnaeus . photograph by zachary huang , urltoken .

adult e . tenax are important pollinators of many crops and wildflowers , while their larvae occasionally are pests around livestock ( day 2008 ) and cause accidental myiasis in humans ( catts and mullen 2002 ) . myiasis occurs when fly larvae infest humans and other vertebrate animals and feed on the host ' s living tissue ( lakshminarayana et al . 1975 ) , and is a common occurrence in certain other dipteran species , such as bot flies ( human bot fly , horse bot fly ) and screwworms .

the rat - tailed maggot is cosmopolitan , occurring on every continent except antarctica and ranges to the highest latitudes in the north ( metcalf 1913 ) . it is absent in the extreme southern latitudes and in arid areas of europe , asia , and africa ( thompson 1999 ) . in the united states , it is found as far north as alaska and south through california and florida ( milne and milne 1980 ) .

egg : the egg is white in color , has an elongate shape , and is covered in a sticky substance ( milne and milne 1980 ) .

larva : the following information is from metcalf ( 1913 ) . the aquatic larva has a cylindrical shape with patches of horizontal folds dividing the body into segments , between which the cuticle is smooth . at the division of each body segment , two rows of flexible hairs are visible . the larva has a highly specialized organ on the posterior end ( siphon ) that acts as a respiratory appendage and also looks like a tail , thus giving them their nickname " rat - tailed maggot . " the siphon can be several times the length of the body .

figure 5 . larva of the rat - tailed maggot , eristalis tenax ( linnaeus ) , about two and a half inches in length . photograph by walter reeves , the georgia gardener .

figure 6 . larvae of the rat - tailed maggot , eristalis tenax ( linnaeus ) , in dirty , polluted water within a tire . photograph by tami ansley , atlanta , ga .

figure 7 . larvae of the rat - tailed maggot , eristalis tenax ( linnaeus ) , in manure . photograph by j . keith waldron , cornell university .

pupa : the pupa looks very similar to the larva but is shorter and thicker ( gilbert 1986 ) . however , unlike the larva the pupa has two pairs of cornua , or horn - like bumps , located on the thorax ( metcalf 1913 ) . the siphon remains present in the pupa but generally locks in a curved position over the back ( metcalf 1913 ) .

figure 8 . rat - tailed maggot pupa , eristalis tenax ( linnaeus ) . photograph by unknown .

adult : the following information is from milne and milne ( 1980 ) . the adult drone fly can be over half an inch in length . they can be easily differentiated from honey bees because they lack a constricted waist between the thorax and the abdomen , and they only have two wings , while honey bees have four . short , brownish - yellow hairs are located on the thorax and the first segment of the abdomen . the body is dark brown to black in color , with yellow - orange marks on the side of the second abdominal segment while a narrow yellow - orange band crosses the third abdominal segment .

like many other fly species , males can easily be distinguished from females because they have larger eyes that almost touch , while females have smaller eyes that are spaced further apart . flies from the family syrphidae can be distinguished from all other fly species by the identification of a spurious vein , or " false vein . " this vein does not terminate at the end of the wing or at another vein but has a free end , and is not as sclerotized as the other wing veins ( metcalf 1913 )

figure 9 . adult male drone fly , eristalis tenax ( linnaeus ) . photograph by lloyd spitalnik , copyright 2006 . used with permission .

figure 10 . adult female drone fly , eristalis tenax ( linnaeus ) . photograph by lloyd spitalnik , copyright 2006 . www . lloydspitalnikphotos . com , used with permission .

figure 11 . spurious vein that is indicative of all syrphidae flies . illustration from maxwell lefroy , manual of entomology , 1923 .

the drone fly undergoes complete metamorphosis with three larval instars . usually two to three generations are produced each year ( gilbert 1986 ) . however , there are many gaps in our understanding of the drone fly life cycle and more research is needed to provide detailed information on the life cycle .

eggs : eggs are deposited near the surface of foul water or decaying organic material , and are laid in masses with the eggs side by side , perpendicular to the ground ( metcalf 1913 ) . it is not known how long it takes for eggs to hatch .

figure 12 . larvae of the drone fly , eristalis tenax ( linnaeus ) , sharing their habitat with mosquito larvae . the drone fly larvae are represented by the dimples where their siphons are attached to the surface of the water . photograph by phillip e . kaufman , university of florida .

pupae : pupation occurs in a drier environment than where the larvae develop . this is usually just below the soil surface , where they remain for eight to 10 days ( gilbert 1986 , milne and milne 1980 ) . cornua that appear on the pupa are thought to aid in respiration during the pupation period as the trachea within the siphon becomes unusable ( metcalf 1913 ) .

adults : females will feed on pollen once they emerge from the pupa in order to obtain the necessary nutrients to complete reproduction ( gilbert 1986 ) . subsequent meals will consist mainly of nectar to provide the energy necessary for activity ( gilbert 1986 ) . adult drone flies often feed on nectar from daisies , chrysanthemums , and asters ( gilbert 1986 ) . the adults prefer yellow flowers , leading to their importance in the pollination of yellow - flowered crops ( ilse 1949 ) .

male e . tenax tend to be territorial . observations suggest that males may live in the same territory their entire lives where they mate , feed , and groom , defending this area against other insects ( wellington and fitzpatrick 1981 ) . mating can occur while the pair is flying , with the male uppermost , or terrestrially while resting on foliage ( rogers and walker 1916 ) . after mating , adult rat - tailed maggot females lay clusters of about 20 eggs near dirty , contaminated water , sewage , or decomposing organic substances ( milne and milne 1980 ) .

adults can be found from late march to early december and most often in september and october ( gilbert 1986 ) . in the late autumn months , females from the latest generation will mate and find a secure place to overwinter . the sperm remain alive , nourished by fat reserves from the female , while her eggs remain undeveloped until the spring ( kendall and stradling 1972 ) . after overwintering , the female emerges and lays from 80 to 200 eggs , and the cycle begins again ( kendall and stradling 1972 ) .

eristalis tenax is usually not a serious pest , but occasionally the larvae can become a nuisance in livestock areas , where they are often abundant in manure lagoons and holding pits ( kaufman et al . 2000 ) . during the summer , larvae can migrate from these sites in massive numbers as they seek dry pupation sites ( day 2008 ) . the migrations can cause many problems , such as contamination of livestock feed , short circuits from accumulations in electrical boxes , and congregations in barn stalls , egg cartons , and other unwanted places ( kaufman et al . 2000 , day 2008 ) .

figure 13 . a dairy farm lagoon in upstate new york . photograph by j . keith waldron , cornell university .

figure 14 . rat - tailed maggots of the drone fly , eristalis tenax ( linnaeus ) , infesting a dairy farm lagoon in upstate new york . photograph by j . keith waldron , cornell university .

the drone fly is reported to have caused accidental myiasis , which occurs when fly larvae inhabit a living host by accident , usually because of the ingestion of contaminated food in humans ( lakshminarayana et al . 1975 ) . this can transpire in four ways : intestinal or gastric , nasal , auricular , or anal , with intestinal or gastric being the most common ( rogers and walker 1916 , herms 1969 ) . the larvae are able to survive gastric fluids , possibly due to the fact that they are adapted to living in polluted habitats ( aguilera et al . 1999 ) . myiasis from e . tenax becomes apparent when the host notices the larvae in their bowel movements ( lakshminarayana et al . 1975 , aguilera et al . 1999 ) . symptoms of this condition include diffuse abdominal pain and diarrhea , and can easily be treated with medication which expels the larvae from the body ( lakshminarayana et al . 1975 , aguilera et al . 1999 ) .

because e . tenax larvae live in highly polluted water , lagoons and manure pits need to be kept in the best condition possible . not allowing the manure to extend through the surface of the water can help prevent fly development ( lyon 1995 , day 2008 ) . physical blockades between lagoons and barns / coops can prevent larvae from migrating to the barns / coops when searching for pupation sites , and will keep the pupating larvae in a non - essential area ( lyon 1995 , day 2008 ) . agitating the lagoons frequently by pumping , especially during the warm summer months can disrupt larval development .

aguilera a , cid a , regueiro bj , prieto jm , noya m . 1999 . intestinal myiasis caused by eristalis tenax . journal of clinical microbiology 37 : 3082 .

bates hw . 1862 . contributions to an insect fauna of the amazon valley . lepidoptera : heliconidae . transactions of the linnean society 23 : 495 - 566 .

brower jz , brower lp . 1965 . experimental studies of mimicry . 8 . further investigations of honeybees ( apis mellifera ) and their dronefly mimics ( eristalis spp . ) . the american naturalist 99 : 173 - 187 .

capinera jl . 2004 . flies . pp . 875 - 883 . in encyclopedia of entomology , vol . 2 . capinera jl [ ed . ] . kluwer academic publishers , dordrecht , the netherlands .

catts ep , mullen gr . 2002 . myiasis ( muscoidea , oestroidea ) . pp . 319 - 348 . in mullen g , durden l [ eds . ] , medical and veterinary entomology . academic press an imprint of elsevier , san diego , ca .

day er . ( 2008 ) . livestock area fly control . virginia tech extension . urltoken ( 5 february 2009 ) .

gilbert fs . 1986 . hoverflies . cambridge university press , cambridge , england .

golding yc , ennos ar , edmunds m . 2001 . similarity in flight behaviour between the honeybee apis mellifera ( hymenoptera : apidae ) and its presumed mimic , the dronefly eristalis tenax ( diptera : syrphidae ) . the journal of experimental biology 204 : 139 - 145 .

heal j . 1979 . colour patterns of syrphidae ii . eristalis intricarius . heredity 43 : 229 - 238 .

herms wm . 1969 . herms ' s medical entomology 6th ed . james mt , harwood rf [ eds . ] , the macmillan company , london , england .

ibrahim ia , gad am . 1978 . the occurrence of paedogenesis in eristalis larvae ( diptera , syrphidae ) . journal of medical entomology 12 : 268 .

ilse d . 1949 . colour discrimination in the drone fly eristalis tenax . nature 163 : 255 - 256 .