Splayed deerfly
The splayed deerfly is a small horse fly with amazing eyes that shine red and green. Its see-through wings have dark brown patches, and its back end has a black upside-down V. Females are hungry for blood, but boys and girls also visit flowers.
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Fun facts
The black V on its back end looks like splayed legs, which is how it got its name.
When it bites, it puts special spit into the skin that stops the blood from clotting.
Females may use clever eyes that see special light patterns to find animals to bite.
It flies from May to September.
Most asked questions about Splayed deerfly
?Do deer flies bite?
Yes, the females do. The bite is sharp and itchy but not dangerous.
?Why do deer flies drink blood?
Only the females drink blood. They need it so their eggs can grow properly.
?How big is a splayed deerfly?
About 8.5 to 10 millimetres long.
For bug experts
- Scientific name
- Chrysops caecutiens
- Group
- Flies and mosquitoes
- Family
- Tabanidae
- Classification
- Insecta > Diptera > Tabanidae
- Lives on
- Europe, Asia
- Also known as
- Splayed deer fly, Scotch cleg
Where the facts come from
- Chrysops caecutiens (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0): what it looks like, where it lives, what it eats, sizes and fun facts, retold in simple words.
- Picture by Hectonichus. CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons. The round sticker of this bug is cut from the same picture.
If we got something wrong, sorry, we are bug fans, not a science journal. Tell us at [email protected] and we will fix it.
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