Aquatic fold wing cranefly larvae breathing at surface of water through a specialised tail straw tube reaching to the surface
Ptychopteridae, the phantom crane flies, is a small family (three extant genera) of nematocerous Diptera. Superficially similar in appearance to other "tipuloid" families, they lack the ocelli of Trichoceridae, the 5-branched radial vein of Tanyderidae, and the two anal veins that reach the wing margin of Tipulidae. They are usually allied with the Tanyderidae based on similarities of the mesonotal suture, this group being called the Ptychopteromorpha. The larvae are eucephalous and distinctive for the long, caudal respiratory siphon. Larvae and pupae are adapted to live submerged, but near the surface, in silt and mud in situations such as streams and ponds
Size: 3264px × 4928px
Location: Kent England UK
Photo credit: © Yon Marsh Natural History / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
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